Chad Archer L’15 is the recipient of the 2015 David Gergen Award for Leadership and Professionalism.
Elon Law Professor Enrique Armijo presented the award. His remarks follow:
“This year’s Gergen winner received a quarter of the total number of all the nominations that the Awards Committee received. These many nominators described a record of accomplishments that reflected, quote, ‘sound character and leadership abilities, respect from classmates and peers,’ and an interest in, quote, ‘giving something back to Elon Law, its students and the North Carolina legal community as a whole.’
“The activities of this year’s winner reveal a selfless dedication to our school, its mission, and the broader community. He has served as the Managing Editor of the Elon Law Review, a responsibility-laden position on the law school’s main academic journal, which is possibly as thankless a task as a student can undertake. He is a Business Fellow, has clerked with Judge Gale on our Business Court and has been a primary driving force in establishing a new journal at the law school devoted to corporate law issues. He also served as a Dean’s Fellow, providing academic and social mentoring to underclassmen. And as the President of the Tax Law Interest Group, our winner has devoted literally hundreds of hours to giving low-income residents of Greensboro tax-related assistance.
“It is rare for someone to accumulate such a record of achievement with equanimity. But this year’s winner has. With respect to his personal qualities, one nominator observed that this year’s winner, quote, ‘leads with dedication and humility.’ Another noted that he, quote, ‘carries himself with the poise and dignity befitting a Justice of the Supreme Court.’ No pressure, Justice Archer.
“In sum, this year’s Gergen winner embodies the qualities of the Elon lawyer-leader. Today he enjoys the honor of winning the award, but the faculty and staff of the law school and the university also enjoys the honor of awarding it to him. The Gergen Award recipient for the Class of 2015 is Chad Archer.”
In addition to achievements noted by Armijo above, Archer is the recipient of a Strongest Comprehensive Performance Award for his work in Civil Procedure I. He served as vice president of the Business Law Association and as faculty research assistant to Professor Patricia Perkins at Elon Law. His legal experience while at Elon Law includes positions with the Supreme Court of NC, the NC Court of Appeals, the NC Business Court, the Office of the Greensboro City Attorney and Pisgah Legal Services in Asheville and Hendersonville, NC.
A report on Elon Law’s Class of 2015 Commencement ceremonies is available here.