Alum Lawyer Credits UMass with Nurturing Lifelong Negotiation Skills
“I’ve spent a lot of time with people who attended places like Harvard, Yale, Stanford, and Dartmouth, and I can say without a doubt that I was as prepared academically as they were,” says Lynn Robitaille Garcia ’97 (STPEC), general counsel of the Texas Forensic Science Commission. “In fact, I was better prepared to negotiate stressful situations and difficult interpersonal relationships than many of my colleagues because of my UMass experiences.” Read more...

From the Classroom to the Bench
William C. Ramsey ’97 (political science), chief administrative law judge for the Social Security Administration Office of Disability Adjudication and Review in Boston says attending UMass was one of the most positive experiences of his life. "Courses like Sheldon Goldman's ‘Constitutional Law’ and ‘Civil Liberties’ and John Brigham's course on the U.S. Supreme Court allowed me to develop important analytical and research skills. Without question, these courses enabled me to succeed in law school and later as a practicing attorney.” Read more...

The Case of the Vanishing Policy Memo
Derek Khanna '09 (political science) made big news this month in Washington related to "an incredibly bold copyright reform memo" he wrote for the Republican Study Committee. “Three Myths About Copyright Law and Where To Start To Fix It,” was released on 11/16 and retracted the next day for a variety of reasons, but not because Khanna isn't well-versed in the subject. The Slate article, which discusses Khanna's points, concludes, "[His] suggestion that Republicans should view copyright less as a kind of 'property' and more as a kind of regulation is a fascinating move on the coalitional chessboard. For now it seems too hot for the Republican Party. But if they’re smart, they’ll think twice."

Following the Fight
Dan Lamothe '04 (journalism) is an award-winning senior writer with the independent Military Times newspaper chain. To date he has spent about three months in Afghanistan, analyzing where things stand and telling the troops' stories. Stateside in Northern Virginia, Lamothe regularly covers the Pentagon and Marine Corps Base Quantico to seek details about shifts in policy, new equipment, and what senior leaders want to change about the Marine Corps. Read more in his own words.

Alum Goldman Leads Marketing/Publicity at Jim Henson Company
Nicole Goldman '93 (communication), senior vice president of marketing and publicity at The Jim Henson Company, was on campus October 1, participating in a full agenda. Besides addressing Journalism Prof. BJ Roche's Intro to Multimedia Reporting class, including a Q&A session, she presented a talk to the Marketing Club and interviewed with Amy Chaunt '13 (journalism), discussing her career, for a segment on UVC-TV. Watch the interview.