DePaul University College of Law’s Pro Bono & Community Service Initiative (PBCSI) recognized 84 students who collectively reported more than 15,000 service hours during academic year 2015-2016 at an awards reception on April 21.
2016 Pro Bono Alumna Award recipient Kathleen Curtin (JD '07), center, is congratulated by colleagues from the Legal Aid Society of Metropolitan Family Services.Alumna Kathleen Curtin (JD ’07) received the 2016 Pro Bono Alumni Award for her deep commitment to pro bono work in the area of family law. Curtin, who currently runs her own law practice, is a dedicated volunteer at the Legal Aid Society of Metropolitan Family Services and Prairie State Legal Services. She also serves as president of the Association of Women Attorneys of Lake County.
Among the awardees, 30 graduating students received the Benjamin Hooks Distinguished Public Service Award for contributing 200 or more hours of service while at DePaul. The award is named for the late Benjamin L. Hooks (JD ’48), a civil rights activist and former executive director of the NAACP, the first African-American to be named to the Federal Communications Commission, and a recipient of the Presidential Medal of Freedom.
Recipients of the Benjamin Hooks Distinguished Public Service Award are honored at PBCSI's annual service awards reception in April.Third-year student Alex Antonacci, a PBCSI student coordinator and Hooks Award recipient who tallied 334.5 service hours while at DePaul, reflected on her pr
o bono experience.
“I learned the importance of giving back,” she said. “With my law degree comes a responsibility to use it to give back to my community.” Antonacci will be working as an assistant public defender in Palm Beach County, Florida, after graduation.
Following are this year's award recipients.
| Frank Albi |
Lucienne Doler |
Ann Jackson |
Walter Lincoln |
Simone Patras |
Krista Sifuentez |
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| Alexandra Antonacci |
Sarah Foley |
Caroline Kane |
Scott Lucas |
Guadalupe Perez |
Alyssa Silva |
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| Molly Bruno |
James Garfield |
June Kowalewski |
Destinee Metoyer |
Alexandra Perraud |
Morgan Wilkinson |
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| Katherine Davis |
Charlie Giger |
James Kozlowski |
Maggie Miller |
Jacqueline Pesenko |
Natalia Wontorczyk |
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| Santiago DelReal |
Andrew Hays |
Sue Lee |
Marta Mizak |
Patrick Schweska |
Caitlin Zusy |
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| Elise Blandin |
Kate Fritzmann |
Qin Lu |
Sonam Patel |
|---|
| Erica Boos |
Jacqueline Kliment |
Natasha Mangal |
Holly Sanchez-Perry |
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| Corinne Cundiff |
Sukhpal Singh Kooner |
Ritta Merza |
Brooke Sartin |
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| Alessandra Faso |
Arben Kurtovic |
Jaime Ochoa |
Cecilia Villalvazo |
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| Class of 2016 |
| Danielle DeLeon Spires |
Xiaoxue Du |
Caitlin Duane |
Deirdre McGrory |
| Class of 2017 |
| Ruth Abarca |
Abigail Durkin |
Maria Gimena Puppo Martinez |
Fei Tan |
| Amanda Alasauskas |
Lindsey Gotkin |
Noora Shubbak |
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| Kathryn Brown |
Gina Leahy |
Alexandra Siciliano |
|
| Class of 2018 |
| Nolan Downey |
Lasheda House |
Marisa Reongpongdit |
Elizabeth Toth |
| Class of 2016 |
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| Lindsay Brown |
Bryce Newell |
|
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| Class of 2017 |
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| Natalia Anuszkiewicz |
Lauren Masching
|
Natalie Monteil |
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| Evan Compton |
Kaitlin McKenzie |
Rebecca Smart |
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| Class of 2018 |
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| Belfor Arichavala |
Sukhmanjit Kaur
|
Rachel Migliore |
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| Maria Calderon |
Anne Marie Knisely |
Edward O'Neill |
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| Alexandra Cox |
Morgan Litterly |
Nicole O'Toole |
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| Kathryn Green |
Daniel Melfi |
Erica Tremble |
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