The law students at the Stegner Center were very competitive this year in garnering scholarships from a variety of sources, including academic departments, law firms, and institutes.
The David Williams Memorial Fellowship was awarded to current 3L Megan Mustoe. The Williams Fellowship was created in honor of David C. Williams, a career employee with the Bureau of Land Management, where he served as Chief of Planning and achieved Senior Executive Service status. David was a Visiting Fellow at the Stegner Center for the years 1999-2001, and was instrumental in organizing the September 2000 Stegner Center conference on the Grand Staircase-Escalante National Monument resource management plan. The Williams Fellowship is administered by the University of Utah College of Social Work and is open to students in all disciplines to support research on stewardship and sustainability in the management of public lands in or near Utah. Currently, Megan Mustoe, with the mentorship of the Environmental Dispute Resolution Program, is conducting empirical research through interviews with Wayne County, Utah stakeholders to create a situation assessment regarding the effect of tourism on the county, particularly around Capitol Reef National Park. A resident of central Utah, Megan is interested in building natural resources collaborative capacity of communities within her region in a time when parks and gateway communities throughout Utah are struggling with increased tourism and community infrastructure limitations. She is grateful for the support of the Williams family and the Stegner Center.
The University of Utah’s Global Change and Sustainability Center (GCSC) awarded one of its First Year Fellowships to current 3L Cassandra Gallegos. The GCSC First Year Fellowship Program is for students interested in a multidisciplinary approach in their graduate training and research experience focused on how different global changes impact the dynamics and sustainability of natural ecosystems, human-built systems, and regional-to-global climate systems. These interdisciplinary research and training opportunities occur in a cohort-based approach. When asked about her award and research interests, Cassandra said, “As a student of S.J. Quinney College of Law my research interests involve raising awareness of legal issues pertaining to animal law and environmental law. I have always been interested in how states can work to strengthen regulations governing factory farms that promote both sustainable and ethical changes. I will be working with various faculty of the College of Law on my research project during my time as a GCSC Fellow. I am so grateful for the support of the GCSC to enable my pursuit of interdisciplinary studies at the University of Utah and I look forward to working with the other Fellows.”
The Rocky Mountain Mineral Law Foundation awarded its Joe Rudd Scholarship to current 3L James Owen. It also awarded one of its Rocky Mountain Mineral Law Foundation Scholarship to current 3L Joshua Johnson. Both scholarships are available to law students enrolled in RMMLF Constituent Law Schools who demonstrate a commitment to the study of oil and gas law, mining law, energy law, water law, public land law, environmental law, and related areas. In 1979, the Foundation established the Joe Rudd Scholarship Fund and Scholarship Program in memory of Joe Rudd, a prominent Alaska natural resources attorney.