On July 30, nine students were honored at a special graduation ceremony at the Four Seasons Hotel in Georgetown. The three hour event consisted of a luncheon, acknowledgement of special guests, and remarks by Institute president William A. Keyes. Professors William B. Allen and Thomas C. Rustici also addressed the graduates.
Each student was recognized for his achievements during his two years in the Institute and presented with a diploma and Institute pin. As members of the inaugural class the students also signed the Institute's charter. Parents, friends, and members of the junior class also signed the charter as witnesses.
The Honorable Kurt L. Schmoke, Dean of the Howard University Law School, hosted sixteen IRC students for a private briefing. Mr. Schmoke, who is also a former mayor of Baltimore and a former Rhodes Scholar, discussed a range of topics with the students, from public policy issues to law school applications.
 Firm founder Steven Epstein with Jonathan Olinger, the student Epstein sponsored. |
Epstein is a charter donor to the Institute, sponsoring one student in each class. He sponsored Jonathon Olinger of Georgia Tech in the inaugural class and Darius Graham of Florida A&M, who is in his first summer in the Institute.
This morning, the nine members of the inaugural class met with Associate Justice Anthony Kennedy for more than an hour in the Lawyer's Lounge of the U.S. Supreme Court. Justice Kennedy discussed the process by which the court makes its decisions. The event was arranged by one of Justice Kennedy's clerks, Marc Allen, who is the son of Institute professor William B. Allen.
Yesterday, the sixteen members of the junior class spent more than three hours with Associate Justice Clarence Thomas. Seated around a large conference table in the Retired Chief Justices' Chambers, the students were able to ask Justice Thomas questions on a range of issues. This was Justice Thomas' second summer hosting Institute students at the Supreme Court.