Native American and Indigenous Law Students Association

The John Marshall Law School has a rich tradition of promoting diversity within the legal community. In that tradition, NAILSA is dedicated to serving as a forum for Native American and Indigenous students to receive support, voice concerns, and work together to succeed in the legal community. An equally important goal of NAILSA is to educate all students about the legal issues that have historically and presently continue to shape the Native American and Indigenous communities, both within the United States and worldwide.

NAILSA is open to all students of all backgrounds. Our goal is for all students to work together in order to promote the advancement of Native American and Indigenous individuals within the legal community and to shed light on the complex and very important issues facing Native American and Indigenous communities.

NAILSA members are encouraged to participate in the NAILSA committees. The Bylaws committee is chaired by the NAILSA President and works to update the Chapter Bylaws and make sure that the John Marshall NAILSA bylaws do not conflict with the bylaws of the National Native American Law Students Association. The Budget and Planning Committee is chaired by the NAILSA Treasurer and works to both plan the yearly budget and find creative ways of funding the many events that NAILSA aspires to hold every year. The Cultural Events Committee is chaired by the NAILSA Cultural Liaison and works to plan a variety of cultural events throughout the academic year.

For information on how to join or for any questions, please contact the NAILSA executive board.

NAILSA EXECUTIVE BOARD: 2009-2010 Academic Year

President: Wendy Fawcett 5fawcettw@law.jmls.edu

Vice President: Patrick Heery pheery@law.jmls.edu

Secretary: Sebastian Soto 5sotos@law.jmls.edu

Treasurer: Matthew Fender mfender@law.jmls.edu

Cultural Liaison: Gentri White  5whiteg@jmls.edu

Faculty Advisors:

Associate Dean for Academic Affairs Ralph Ruebner: 7Ruebner@jmls.edu

Professor Cecil J. Hunt: 7Hunt@jmls.edu

NAILSA Calendar: Fall 2009

SEPTEMBER

21st - first general meeting

OCTOBER

26th - general meeting: finalize planning for pow-wow and speaker event

NOVEMBER

7-8 American Indian Center Pow-Wow at the University of Illinois, Chicago. Please stop by our table.

9th - Edith Leoso, Tribal Historic Preservation Officer will speak to students and practicing attorneys about understanding social and political dynamics of Tribes and what to expect when representing tribes. RSVP

DECEMBER

8-22 Finals.  We will host student led review sessions for 1L classes.

For more information about Native American legal issues and the National Native American Law Students Association, please visit the following web sites:

National Native American Law Students Association

The American Indian Center of Chicago