Second-year student Peter Kramer is this year's recipient of the Alumni Association Endowed Scholarship. In 2000, The John Marshall Law School Alumni Association established a scholarship fund to underwrite a partial scholarship to be awarded annually to a second- or third-year student in good academic standing and with commitment to service. Preference is given to children of John Marshall alumni.

The scholarship was awarded to Kramer during the 2001 Alumni Association Annual Meeting in June.

During the first several years after his expected graduation in January 2002, Kramer says he hopes to gain valuable trial experience.

"Ultimately, I'd like to open my own practice," he said.

Most recently, Kramer has been clerking and conducting research at Coleman, O'Halloran & Wynn in Chicago.

Kramer is the son of James Michael Kramer, who earned his J.D. degree from John Marshall in 1975, and works in the international franchising department of McDonald's Corporation.

"My father is happy (with his selection)," Kramer stated. "He was very proud. He has always taken great pride in having gone to John Marshall," he said.

Kramer graduated from Mount Carmel High School in Chicago in 1994, and received an undergraduate degree in English literature from Miami University, Ohio in 1998.

Professor Michael J. Polelle

Activities

The tape of the 2001 Media & Law Symposium "Race, Ethnicity, and the Media" appeared twice on Can TV-21 Public Access TV in the Chicago area. The first time was 9:00 a.m. on Sunday, June 17 and the second time was at 2:00 p.m. on Thursday, June 28. As Symposium Director, he was one of the speakers.

He will be a panelist at the annual meeting of the First Amendment Center and the Federalist Society of Chicago Lawyers Chapter on July 12, 2001. The topic will be "Free Speech: A Review of Developing Issues Under the First Amendment." The presentation will take place at the University Club, 76 E. Monroe at 6:00 p.m. The public is invited free of charge.

He will file his response to the Motion to Dismiss in "The Sopranos" case of AIDA v. Time Warner Entertainment Co. on July 26. The reply to the response is due August 22. He will participate in the oral argument on August 29 before Judge Seibel in the Circuit Court of Cook County.

Professor Michael Seng

Activities

He and Edward Long, who received his LL.M. degree in Real Estate from The John Marshall Law School, participated in the second annual community Neighborhood HomeFest 2001 at the Austin Town Hall Center on Saturday, June 30. The event was sponsored by Alderman Isaac Carothers 29th Ward Service Office and the City of Chicago Department of Housing. Approximately 200 residents of the west side of Chicago attended the presentations. Professor Seng spoke about how to find and select an attorney and Long spoke about the coverage of the fair housing laws and the work of The John Marshall Law School Fair Housing Legal Clinic. Seng and Long also were available to answer questions about housing and lending discrimination.

Professor Debra Stark

Activities

In April 2001, she spent a week visiting at Trinity College. In addition to visiting classes there and meeting with faculty and students, she presented a paper on predatory lending in America. In her talk, Professor Stark identified the types of practices that have been labeled "predatory lending", offered explanations as to why this has developed and continues to occur notwithstanding extensive recent publicity of this problem, analyzed reforms enacted or proposed to date, and suggested additional ways to more directly combat the problem.

She presented a paper at the "New Ideas for Experienced Teachers" program sponsored by the American Association of Law Schools in June 2001 in Calgary, Alberta, Canada. More than 146 law professors had submitted proposals to make a presentation at this program and Professor Stark was one of the four chosen. She spoke about ways to incorporate pro bono partnerships into the substantive law courses law professors teach or as a supplement to the courses they teach, based on the pro bono work she has done over the past few years with some of her students.

July 9

Board of Trustees Meeting, Room 1200B, 3:00 p.m.

July 10

Law Consortium for Palestinian Legal Education Meeting, Room 1203, 4:00 p.m.

July 12

Young Alumni Council Meeting, Room 1203, 12:00 p.m.

Graduate Program in Real Estate Law Information Session, Room 1203, 3:30 p.m.

July 16

Fair Housing Meeting, Room 1203, 8:00 a.m.

July 17

Fair Housing Meeting, Room 1203, 8:00 a.m.

Class of 1951 Reunion Committee Meeting, Room 1200A, 11:00 a.m.

Alumni Reunion Committee Meeting, Room 1200B, 12:00 p.m.

July 18

Fair Housing Meeting, Room 1203, 8:00 a.m.

July 20

SPC Meeting, Room 1200B, 11:00 a.m.