Public Policy and Law Department Recognizes the Class of 2019 and Faculty Achievements

By Brendan W. Clark ’21

Editor-in-Chief

The Public Policy and Law Department confers its congratulations on all of the graduates of the Trinity College Class of 2019, who received their diplomas at the College’s 193rd Commencement on May 19th. The Department is also grateful for the invigorating and spirited debate that 2019 Public Policy and Law graduates have brought to the classroom over their four years here.

We are especially proud of those students in the department who graduated with honors, those who worked diligently on theses, and those who were honored at Commencement in a myriad of ways.

Brooke LePage ’19 was selected as the student speaker at Commencement and gave a rousing speech reminding students of their call to action. You can listen to Brooke’s speech here. You can also read more about her contributions to Trinity in an article published prior to Commencement here. Brooke was a frequent contributor to The Policy Voice and we are grateful for her thoughtful participation and contributions to this important vehicle for student expression within the Department.

At Commencement, two Public Policy and Law faculty members also received well-deserved honors. Public Policy and Law Program Director and Associate Professor of Legal and Policy Studies Renny Fulco received the Thomas Church Brownell Prize for Teaching Excellence. The prize, awarded annually by a committee of faculty and students, recognizes “consistently outstanding teaching by a senior faculty member” and is named for Trinity’s founder. Associate Professor of Political Science and Public Policy and Law Abigail Fisher Williamson received the Charles A. Dana Associate Professorship. This professorship confers “a period of reduced teaching responsibilities [that] would enable the recipients to move forward with an important piece of research” and is named for prominent journalist and Assistant Secretary of War Charles A. Dana.

Public Policy and Law 2019 Honors Theses

The Public Policy and Law Department is especially proud of students who worked over the past year on theses addressing key policy problems in Hartford, the nation, and beyond. You can read senior theses via Trinity’s Digital Repository here.

1. Matthew Boyle: A New Approach to Gentrification: Using the Case of Hartford to Discover the Reasons Certain Cities Have Not Gentrified
2. Kira Eidson: Complex Relationships: Public Policy and Law Solutions to Rebalance the Confrontation Clause, Evidence-Based Intimate-Partner Violence Prosecution, and Public and Private Violence After the Resurrection of Roberts
3. Alex Kaplan: America’s Electoral Problem: The Shortcomings of the Electoral College in Contemporary American Democracy
4. Brooke LePage: Title IX in the Age of Trump: An Evaluation of Institutional Administrators’ Responses to the Proposed New Guidelines
5. Julia Tempesta: Finding Home Along Farmington Avenue: Assessing Models of Refugee Resettlement in the Hartford Area
6. Brooke Williams: Not in My Backyard: The Participation of Local Governments in Federal Immigration Detention Through Intergovernmental Service Agreements

Public Policy and Law Senior Academic Achievement

The following Public Policy and Law graduates received Latin honors at Commencement in recognition of their academic achievements and assiduous attention to the maintenance of high marks in their courses.

Cum Laude:

1. Zoe Billington ’19
2. Matt DeMichele ’19
3. Sam Warren ’19

Magna Cum Laude: 

1. Matt Boyle ’19
2. Max Furigay ’19
3. Brooke LePage ’19

Summa Cum Laude and Phi Beta Kappa:

1. Becca Dedert ’19
2. Kira Eidson ’19
3. Julia Gorka ’19
4. Alex Kaplan ’19
5. Julia Tempesta ’19
6. Brooke Williams ’19