Emory Public Interest Committee (EPIC)
Inspiration Awards
One of the law school's signature events, the Inspiration Awards celebrate members of our community who do extraordinary work in the public interest and provide funding for public interest summer grants. The event traditionally attracts over 300 people and raises enough funds to provide stipends for students who worked in otherwise unfunded public sector summer jobs.
The 2023 EPIC Inspiration Awards will be held Tuesday, February 7, 2023, at 6:30 p.m. in Tull Auditorium. Registration will be available soon. You can donate now at https://together.emory.edu/epic23.
Watch the 25th anniversary celebration of the EPIC Inspiration Awards here.
Inspiration Award Past Honorees
Lifetime Commitment to Public Service Award
The Honorable Dorothy Toth Beasley, Court of Appeals of Georgia, retired
Outstanding Leadership in the Public Interest Award
Richard A. Horder, Kazmarek Mowrey Cloud Laseter LLP
Unsung Devotion to Those Most in Need Award
Michelle H. Jordan 92L, Atlanta Legal Aid Society
2020 Mark and Rebekah Wasserman Public Service Award
Linden Wait 20L
Lifetime Commitment to Public Service Award
Frank S. Alexander (Sam Nunn Professor of Law and Founding Director, Center for the Study of Law & Religion, Emory Law) (retired)
Outstanding Leadership in the Public Interest Award
Azadeh Shashahani, Legal & Policy Director, Project South
Unsung Devotion to Those Most in Need Award
Jason Costa 06L, DeKalb County Public Defender's Office
2019 Mark and Rebekah Wasserman Public Service Award
Brandon M. Scheck 19L
Honorable P. Harris Hines (Emory JD ’68)
Chief Justice, Supreme Court of Georgia
Outstanding Leadership in the Public Interest Award:
Margaret Ward Scott (Emory JD ’03)
Partner, Alston & Bird LLP
Unsung Devotion to Those Most in Need Award:
Monica Modi Khant
Executive Director, Georgia Asylum & Immigration Network (GAIN)
2018 Mark and Rebekah Wasserman Public Service Award
Sai Santosh Kumar Kolluru 18L
Lifetime Commitment to Public Service Award:Teri Plummer McClure 88L
UPS Chief Human Resources Officer and Senior VP Human Resources, Labor & Employment Communications
Outstanding Leadership in the Public Interest Award: Teresa Wynn Roseborough
Home Depot EVP, General Counsel, Corporate Secretary
Unsung Devotion to Those Most in Need Award: Sarah Geraghty
Managing Attorney, Impact Litigation, Southern Center for Human Rights
2017 Mark and Rebekah Wasserman Public Service Award
Amanda Quiles 17L
Lifetime Commitment to Public Service Award: Edward J. “Jack” Hardin
Founding Partner, Rogers & Hardin LLP
Outstanding Leadership in the Public Interest Award: Sally Quillian Yates
Deputy Attorney General, The United States Department of Justice
Unsung Devotion to Those Most in Need Award: The Honorable Peggy H. Walker
Chief Judge, Juvenile Court of Douglas County
Lifetime Commitment to Public Service Award: Paula Lawton Bevington, Principal, Bevington Advisors, LLC and Fundraising Consultant with Atlanta Legal Aid Society.
Outstanding Leadership in the Public Interest Award: H. Lane Dennard, Jr., Retired Partner, King & Spalding and Co-Founder, Emory Law Volunteer Clinic for Veterans.
Unsung Devotion to Those Most in Need Award: Linda A. Pace 75L, Chief Assistant Public Defender, DeKalb County Public Defender's Office, Juvenile Division.
Lifetime Commitment to Public Service Award: Anne Emanuel 75L, Professor Emerita, Georgia State University College of Law. Anne clerked with Judge Tuttle following her graduation from Emory and in 2011 published Elbert Parr Tuttle: Chief Jurist of the Civil Rights Revolution.
Outstanding Leadership in the Public Interest Award: Stan Jones, partner at Nelson Mullins. Stan has been involved in the mental health movement in Georgia since working on numerous gubernatorial and presidential commissions for the Carter family.
Unsung Devotion to Those Most in Need Award: Rachel Epps Spears, founding executive director of the Pro Bono Partnership of Atlanta. Presented by Rev. Melanie L. Conner, Executive Director of the Zion Hill Community Development Corporation.
Lifetime Commitment to Public Service: Robbie Dokson, Norman Underwood, Frank Strickland, Terry Walsh, Charlie Lester, Bucky Askew, Steve Gottlieb, Phyllis Holmen, The Hon. Rowland W. Barnes, Bill Brennan, Emmet Bondurant, Mary Ann Oakley, Donald Hollowell, Randolph Thrower, Robert Bomar, Ben F. Johnson Jr., John Cromartie, and The Hon. Marvin Shoob
Outstanding Leadership in the Public Interest: Jeff Bramlett, Jan Pratt, Bill Hoffmann, The Hon. Doris Downs, Gerry Weber, John Chandler, Joe Bankoff, John Sibley, The Hon. Norman Fletcher, Debbie Segal, Frank Alexander, Thurbert Baker, Paula Frederick, Mary Margaret Oliver, Marva Jones Brooks, Stephen Bright, and Renee Glover
Unsung Devotion to Those Most in Need: Tamara Serwer Caldas, Sue Jamieson, Karen Worthington, Rita Sheffey, Marian Burge, Aimee Maxwell, Sue Colussy, Stephanie Kearns, Sharon Hill, Karen Brown, Jack and Jim Martin, Vicky Kimbrell, Doug Ammar, Kathleen Dumitrescu, Kerry McGrath, and Karen Baynes Galvin
Public Service Award Past Honorees
Linden Wait 20L
Brandon M. Scheck 19L
Sai Santosh Kumar Kolluru 18L
Amanda Quiles 17L