awards

cari sietstra award for excellence in organizing

Named in honor of LSRJ's visionary founder, former Executive Director, and organizer extraordinaire, this prize is awarded annually to a current LSRJ member or chapter that has demonstrated excellence in campus organizing in the previous three semesters. The Award Review Committee consists of LSRJ staff and student members. Criteria considered include applicants' efforts to advocate for RJ on their campuses and in their communities, successes in overcoming adversity, and participation in the LSRJ network on the regional or national levels. The winning chapter or individual receives a trophy and prize money – to put toward their organizing efforts, of course!

Past recipients of the Cari Sietstra Award include:

2012 – Bridgette Dunlap & Emily Wolf (Fordham Law), Georgetown University Law Center LSRJ Chapter, and University of Michigan Law School LSRJ Chapter

2011 – Laura Buchs ('11, University of Wisconsin School of Law), Lillian Hewko ('11, University of Washington School of Law), and Thomas Jefferson School of Law LSRJ Chapter

2010 – Joe Austen ('10, University of Iowa School of Law)

2009 – Madison Burnett ('09, Georgia State University College of Law)

2008 – Joy Levin Welan ('08, Georgetown University Law Center)

sarah weddington writing prize for student scholarship in reproductive rights law

Law students tend to write their papers, comments, and notes on current legal topics pertaining to their course materials. With a lack of course coverage of reproductive rights and justice, students need an outside incentive to dedicate their time and attention to research and writing in this field of study. To incentivize and inspire student scholarship, LSRJ annually awards three student authors the Sarah Weddington Writing Prize for New Student Scholarship in Reproductive Rights Law.

2013 Sarah Weddington Writing Prize Winners

Law Students for Reproductive Justice (LSRJ), in collaboration with the Center for Reproductive Rights, is please to announce the winners of the eighth annual Sarah Weddington Writing Prize for New Student Scholarship in Reproductive Rights.

This year's theme,"Economic (In)Justice of Reproductive Regulation," sought fresh student scholarship exploring the economic implications of laws and regulations that affect reproductive health and rights in the U.S. Winning authors received cash prizes: $750 (1st place), $500 (2nd place), or $250 (3rd place). The full text of the articles will be available soon.

First place: Kathryn Benedict, J.D. candidate (’14 Columbia Law School) for “When Might Does Not Create Religious Rights: For-Profit Corporations' Employees and the Contraceptive Coverage Mandate”

Second place: Katherine Jacob, J.D. (’12 Case Western Reserve University School of Law) for “Laying in [Wait]: Pregnancy Support Lessons from the Brehon Laws”

Third place: Laurah Samuels, J.D. candidate (’13 Columbia Law School) for “Mifepristone Protocol Legislation: The Anti-choice Movement's Disingenuous Method of Attack on the Reproductive Rights of Women and How Courts Should Respond”

Honorable mention: Lauren Goldsmith, J.D. candidate (’13 University of California, Berkeley School of Law) for “Redefining Viability: Why the State Must Ensure Viable Alternatives to Pregnancy and Motherhood”

For more information, download the Press Release.

Past Prize Winners:

2012

Theme: "Legislating Stereotypes: Reproductive Rights Rollback in the States."

First Place: Sarah Primrose, J.D. ('12, Michigan State University College of Law) for “The Attack on Planned Parenthood: A Historical Analysis”

Second Place: Chad Brooker, J.D. candidate ('13, University of Maryland School of Law) for "Making Contraception Easier to Swallow: Background and Religious Challenges to the HHS Rule Mandating Coverage of Contraceptives”

Third Place: Gina Gribow, J.D. candidate ('13, University of California Hastings College of the Law) for “An Assessment of California's Legislation Regarding Shackling Prohibitions for Incarcerated Pregnant Women”

2011

Theme: “Beyond the Books: Realizing Reproductive Rights in Real Lives.”

First Place: Allison Hartry, J.D. ('12, UC Berkeley School of Law) for “Birthright Justice: Birthright Citizenship and Reproductive Justice in Immigration Detention Centers”

Second Place: Elizabeth J. Chen, J.D. ('12, Washington University in St. Louis School of Law) for "Equal Protection: Why the HPV Vaccine Should be Mandated for Both Boys and Girls”

Third Place: Sarah Coburn, J.D. ('11, Temple University Beasley School of Law) for “Obstructed Birth: Racism in Midwifery Regulation, the Emergence of the Certified Professional Midwife and the Need for Movement Building”

2010

Theme: “Reproductive Rights as Human Rights.”

First Place: Hilary P. Hammell, J.D. ('12, University of Washington School of Law) for ”Is the Right to Health a Necessary Precondition for Gender Equality?”

Second Place: Sara Wilkinson, J.D. ('10, University of Minnesota Law School) for ”Redefining ‘Life’ in the Mexican Abortion Debate”

Third Place: Heidi Bramson, J.D., MPH ('11, Rutgers School of Law) “Gender-Rating in the United States Health Insurance Industry: A Human Rights Violation “

2009

Theme: “Seeking Reproductive Justice in All Places for All People”

First Place: Joanna Nairn, J.D. ('09, Harvard Law School) for "Is There a Right to Have Children? Substantive Due Process and Probation Conditions that Restrict Reproductive Rights"

Second Place: Kelsey Collier-Wise, J.D. ('10, University of South Dakota School of Law) for "Bearing Witness: Looking for Remedies for Forced Sterilization of Indigenous Women "

2008

First Place: Danielle Franco Mallone, J.D. ('08, University of Washington School of Law) for "Forging Family Ties through Full Surrogacy: An Argument In Favor of Recognizing Non-Traditional Parents in Japan"

Second Place: Jocelyn Getgen, J.D. ('07, Cornell Law School) for "Untold Truths: The Exclusion of Enforced Sterilizations from the Peruvian Truth Commission's Final Report"

2007

First Place: Ashley Wenger, J.D. ('07, University of Minnesota Law School) for "Fetal Pain Legislation: Subordinating Sound Medical Findings to Moral and Political Agendas"

Second Place: Katherine Atkinson, J.D. ('06, Washington College of Law at American University) for "The Constitutionality of the Partial-Birth Abortion Ban Act of 2003

2006

First Place: Elizabeth Pike, J.D. ('07, Georgetown University Law Center) for "Contraceptive Conflicts at the Counter: Exploring the Legal Ramifications of a Pharmacists' Conscientious Objection to Filling Prescriptions for Emergency Contraception"

Second Place: Hannah Stein, J.D. ('05, University of Minnesota Law School) for "En masse subpoenaing of abortion and pregnancy records: a disturbing attack on medical records privacy"