The Elon Law Alumni Association recognized Kristin Thompson Seum '10 L'13, Jim Grant L’12, Adrianne Edmonds Poe L'11 and Angelique Ryan L'16 for contributions to their professions, their communities, and their alma mater during Elon Law Alumni Reunion Weekend.
The Elon Law Alumni Association honored four graduates this month with awards for distinguished professional accomplishments and service to Elon Law.
The alumni were recognized during an April 22 ceremony at the Greensboro Marriott Downtown as part of Elon Law Alumni Reunion Weekend.
Recipients are:
Kristin Thompson Seum L’13 (honored in absentia)
Leary F. Davis Service and Leadership in the Community Award
Presented to an alum of the Elon University School of Law who has demonstrated outstanding service and leadership to the community, state, or nation.
As a health policy advisor employed by Rep. Morgan Griffith (R-Va.), Kristin Seum’s knowledge and wisdom is assisting the House Energy & Commerce Committee in Washington, D.C., as it crafts legislation to improve the American health care system. Her work on the committee follows success in advising members of Congress on complex issues affecting the Department of Veterans Affairs, which led to the hiring of additional doctors and expanded health care choices for rural veterans. Seum was an advocate in launching Elon Law’s DC Alumni Chapter.
James “Jim” R. Grant L’12
George R. Johnson Professional Achievement Award
Presented to an alum of the Elon University School of Law who has made significant contributions professionally, while bringing honor and recognition to Elon University School of Law
Jim Grant made national news in 2016 when, as an assistant appellate defender for the North Carolina Office of the Appellate Defender, he successfully persuaded the North Carolina Supreme Court to strike down as unconstitutional part of the state’s criminal cyberbullying statute. The case was one of only two in the nation examining the intersection of online bullying and the First Amendment. Grant has represented individuals convicted of crimes that range from possession of marijuana to first-degree murder, and he often serves Elon Law as a preceptor, moot court judge, and class speaker.
Adrianne Edmonds Poe L’11
Distinguished Service to Elon Law School Award
Presented to an alum of the Elon University School of Law who has demonstrated continued, exemplary service to the School of Law
Adrianne Edmonds Poe has been a longtime supporter of Elon Law, serving on the school’s Alumni Council as chair of the Development Committee. As an attorney with the Greensboro firm of Richard I. Shope, she handles everything from appellate cases involving complex business disputes to residential real estate closings for first-time home buyers. In the words of her nominator, she “fervently encourages those around her to get involved, to take a stand, to make a difference.”
Angelique Ryan L’16 (honored in absentia)
Young Alumni Award
Presented to an alum of the Elon University School of Law within the first five years of graduation from law school for significant achievements in their area of practice and in their service to the university, community, state, or nation.
Angelique Ryan has leveraged her experience working in Elon Law’s Humanitarian Immigration Law Clinic to serve her nation as a refugee officer with the Department of Homeland Security. While a student, Ryan also worked as a legal extern in the Guilford County Public Defender’s Office; served as president of the Elon Law Democrats; served as vice president of the Immigration Law Society; and volunteered as an Honor Council Defender. For her work as a law student, Ryan was named one of the country’s 25 “law students of the year” by National Jurist magazine.