Center for Law, Justice & Culture Announces 2016 Certificate Cohort

The Center for Law, Justice & Culture is proud to present this year’s cohort of certificate students in Law, Justice & Culture at Ohio University.

The 2016 cohort of students in the Law, Justice & Culture Certificate program includes:

• Amal Afyouni is a sophomore double majoring in Political Science and Economics, with an interest in international human rights. She will be attending the OHIO spring break study abroad trip on Human Rights, Law & Justice in Northern Ireland in 2017. Afoumi is also a member of the mock trial team, a member of the Executive Board of Global Ambassadors, and Internal Affairs Vice Commissioner in Student Senate.
• Gillian Amrine is a double major in Sociology-Crimonology and Psychology. She took CAS 2500: Breaking the Law in fall 2015.
• Raphaelle Antwi is a sophomore majoring in Political Science Pre-Law. She is especially concerned with racial bias in the criminal justice system.
• Francisco Cintron is a junior Honors Tutorial College History major with a minor in Classical Civilization. He is currently planning his senior honors thesis in the field of legal history.
• Georgia Curran is a freshman HTC Communication Studies major. She has been influenced by Ava DuVernay’s documentary film 13th, about racial inequality within the justice system.
• Anna DeGarmo is a sophomore majoring in Geography Environmental Pre-Law with a certificate in Women’s, Gender, and Sexuality Studies. She will be attending the OHIO spring break study abroad trip on Human Rights, Law & Justice in Northern Ireland in 2017.
• Janie Dulaney is a sophomore majoring in Journalism News and Information. She is concerned about federal law and gender equality relating to sexual assault on college campuses, especially Title IX.
• Emily Flint is a junior majoring in Sociology-Criminology, minoring in Spanish and Anthropology. She is interested in racial inequality and the criminal justice system in the United States.
• Joseph Frate is a junior double majoring in Political Science Pre-Law and Philosophy Pre-Law.
• Billie Frank is a sophomore majoring in Philosophy Pre-Law. She is also a member of Phi Alpha Delta and she is interested in developing an Inside-Out Prison Exchange Program at Ohio University. In 2017, she will participate in the OHIO spring break study abroad trip on Human Rights, Law & Justice in Northern Ireland.
• Alison Harper is a sophomore majoring in Anthropology with a special interest in human trafficking. She is the Learning Community Leader for the Anthropology Learning Community
• Celestia Hathhorne is a freshman majoring in Communication Studies.
• Gabrielle Hughes is a junior double majoring in Political Science Pre-Law and War and Peace Studies.
• Craig Jenkins is a sophomore majoring in Women’s, Gender, and Sexuality Studies.
• Chandler Jenkins is a sophomore majoring in Sociology-Criminology, minoring in Business Administration.
• Tori Jester is a sophomore majoring in Sociology-Criminology.
• Nylah Mustafa is a sophomore majoring in Political Science Pre-Law. Mustafah is currently in the Pre-Law Learning Community and CAS 2500: Breaking the Law. She is also a member of the Ohio University Mock Trial Team. She is interested in how racial discrimination is institutionalized through the courts, and she aspire to become a judge.
• Taryn Osborne is a sophomore majoring in Political Science Pre-Law, minoring in Spanish, with a special interest in access to justice. Osbourne is a Learning Community Leader for the Pre-Law Learning Community and a member of Phi Alpha Delta and the mock trial team. She will be attending the OHIO spring break study abroad trip on Human Rights, Law & Justice in Northern Ireland
• Jessica Roth is a junior double majoring in HTC Sociology-Criminology and War and Peace Studies. She works for the Center for Law, Justice & Culture as an Undergraduate Student Associate and is a member of Students for Law, Justice & Culture.
• Madison Sloat is a sophomore majoring in HTC Communications Studies. She will be attending the OHIO spring break study abroad trip on Human Rights, Law & Justice in Northern Ireland in 2017.
• Stephen Stafford is a sophomore majoring in Political Science. He is interested in international law and human rights as well as the U.S. prison industry and the challenges of re-entry.
• Alyssa Stegmaier is a junior majoring in Communications Studies and minoring in Political Science,  with a certificate in Political Communication. She is in her second year of the OHIO Mock Trial team.
• Kayla Swan is a junior double majoring in Sociology-Criminology and Political Science Pre-Law. She is pursuing a certificate in Italian Studies. She took CAS 2500: Breaking the Law in fall 2014.
• Sarah Vanderhoff is a sophomore majoring in Communications Studies. She is participating in the 2017 Spring Break Study Abroad  Program on Human Rights, Law & Justice in Northern Ireland.
• Alexandra Wainwright is a freshman HTC Business major.

“I feel lucky to be reading and discussing law and society issues with a smart, highly motivated group of certificate students,” says Dr. Kevin Uhalde, who will teach LJC 2000: Core Course in Law, Justice & Culture, the mandatory seminar for the incoming cohort of certificate students each spring.

“This year we challenged applicants to write substantial essays. That’s given me a glimpse already of how creative and diverse these students are in the ways they think about law, society, and culture.”

“I’m making final revisions to the syllabus now, including more films and some fiction along with significant scholarly works. Once we’re in the classroom, though, it will be the students leading discussion. I’m looking forward to it!” he says.

The certificate program brings together interdisciplinary coursework from departments across the social sciences and humanities to provide students with intellectual training in a “law and society” perspective. It also provides opportunities for faculty mentoring through research projects, internships, externships, study abroad, and career guidance.

The competitive process of enrollment in the certificate program modeled after selection for law and graduate schools. Students with an overall GPA of 3.4 or above are eligible for 25 slots per year. During the fall application cycle, students are asked to submit a statement of intent as well as a current transcript. Those who do not meet the GPA requirement may submit an optional essay explaining their qualifications.

Once accepted into the program, Law, Justice & Culture students enroll in LJC 2000 and CAS 2300x: Themes in Action. They are then required to take five courses, including least one LJC elective course outside of their majors to ensure that they are exposed to interdisciplinary perspectives.

As they proceed through the certificate coursework, LJC students participate in the intellectual life of the center and engage in practice-oriented learning opportunities.

The program is appropriate for students who plan to pursue professions in law, rights advocacy, justice administration, public policy, government, nonprofit organizations, and academic research and teaching.

Several students in this year’s cohort learned about the certificate program after enrolling in CAS 2500: Breaking the Law, the gateway course that introduces students to the challenges of law and justice in the 21st century.

Students with a special interest in law and society studies are encouraged to apply for the certificate program.