Six Faculty of Law students have been chosen as recipients of the 2008 University of Toronto Gordon Cressy Student Leadership Awards.
The Gordon Cressy Student Leadership Awards recognize students for outstanding extra-curricular contributions to their college, faculty, school or department, or to the university as a whole. The awards were established in 1994 by the University of Toronto Alumni Association (UTAA) and the Division of University Advancement.
The six recipients from the Faculty of Law reflect the wide range of volunteer, public service and leadership opportunities at the law school.
The 2008 Cressy Award recipients from law are:
- Katie Clements
- Khalid Janmohamed
- Emily Kettel
- Todd Seth Orvitz
- Hadiya Roderique
- Renee A. Smith
Here are the Cressy Award citations provided for each of them:
Katie Clements
Katie Clements is committed to both social justice and the well-being of her classmates in the Faculty of Law. At Downtown Legal Services, Katie is a compassionate caseworker and also an inspirational mentor to first-year students. As a Third Year Caucus Representative with the Student Law Society, she advocates for her fellow students at Faculty Council and on the Diversity and Admission committees. With U of T’s intramural athletics program, Katie has organized the participation of more than 20 Faculty of Law teams.
Khalid Janmohamed
President of the Students’ Law Society, Khalid Janmohamed has shown a remarkable ability to build bridges between students and faculty on issues relating to academics, admissions, financial aid and curriculum. As Co-Chair of the Faculty of Law’s 2006 Orientation Week, he provided leadership to the Executive Committee and implemented a fundraising plan and budget. Khalid has also volunteered as a caseworker and shift leader at Downtown Legal Services, U of T’s community legal clinic, focusing on students’ rights cases. He is also a member of the clinic’s executive.
Emily Kettel
Emily Kettel serves as Editor-in-Chief of the University of Toronto Journal of Law and Equality. Since 2005, she has assumed a leadership role in organizing events for Women and the Law. With Mandate for Public Interest Law, Emily co-chaired the 2007 Student Public Interest Network Legal Action Workshop, a national conference that attracted 100 students. When she graduates this year, one of her legacies will be the Faculty of Law’s Knitting Club, which she helped found in 2006.
Todd Seth Orvitz
Todd Seth Orvitz is an advocate for the Faculty of Law’s Environmental Working Group and a member of the Standing Curriculum Committee. While working concurrently on both his master’s of social work and Juris Doctor, Todd dedicated his time to street-involved youth, as well as to future law students. Todd’s legal experience has led him to work as an advocate with Parkdale Community Legal Services, working with the rubric of municipal law and policing.
Hadiya Roderique
At Downtown Legal Services, Hadiya Roderique assumed a leadership role as a member of the 2006–07 Executive Committee in addition to being a Shift Leader in the Children’s Rights Division. Hadiya has served as both Orientation Co-Chair and the Vice-President Student Affairs of the Students’ Law Society. She has also volunteered on the society’s Faculty Council Diversity Committee and as Articles Editor for the Notes and Comments section of the University of Toronto Faculty of Law Review.
Renee A. Smith
Since 2006, Renee Smith has served first as President and then as Co-Chair of the Black Law Students Association at U of T. Through the association, she has successfully advocated to improve accessibility for prospective black law students. Renee has also served as a workshop facilitator with the Law in Action Within Schools (LAWS) program, which provides academic assistance and social support to individual students in local high schools.
