Wayne Hogan recently traveled to the American Bar Association meeting in Atlanta to accept honorable mention on behalf of the Summer for Undergraduates Program at his alma mater, The Florida State University College of Law. The award, the 2011 Raymond Pace and Sadie Tanner Mossell Alexander Award for Excellence in Pipeline Diversity, is given for innovation and leadership in diversifying the educational pipeline to the legal profession. Specifically, Wayne and his wife Patricia have endowed the program and helped it double the number of students it serves.
The program is designed to expose students, particularly those from groups historically underrepresented in the legal profession, to the joys and rigors of legal education. The 60 students selected annually for the program attend a month of simulated law school at no charge, including room and board, and receive a $500 stipend. Participants experience intensive instruction, legal writing training and exposure to legal professionals from a variety of fields.
In addition to financial assistance, Wayne has contributed to the program as an active and hands-on participant each summer. In recent years, he has coordinated sessions at the Florida Capitol, entitled “Behind the Capitol Doors,” introducing students to Florida policymakers.
“Year after year, the Summer Program helps students decide their futures,” said Wayne Hogan.  “It is intensive and provides just the right introduction to law school and life in the law; after all, there are so many doors a law degree can open, which is the purpose behind the visit to the Capitol.”
The most recent session afforded 59 students a tour of executive cabinet member offices, a Q &A with attorneys within the Office of the Attorney General, a briefing on the history of the Legislature by Bob Ward, clerk of the House of Representatives, and a mock legislative session in the Senate Chamber, led by Staff Director Eric Maclure.
For more information about the Summer for Undergraduates Program, visit Florida State University Foundation website here.