Alumni Testimonial
Matthew Douglas
University of Kentucky College of Law
Legal Intern, Department of Justice, Office of Tribal Justice
Matthew Dougles giving the student testimonial during the 2009 graduation ceremony
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My name is Matthew Douglas and I am a rising 3L at the University of Kentucky. This summer I interned with the Department of Justice, in the Office of Tribal Justice.
I first learned about LSI from my law school roommate who participated in the program last year. He spoke so highly of the program that when it came time to decide what I was going to this summer, LSI seemed like a natural fit.
Even with all of the positive things that I had heard about LSI, from the very beginning my expectations have been exceeded.
One part of the LSI experience that I particularly enjoyed was taking the class on the “The Federalist Understanding of the Constitution” with Professor Baker and Professor Strossen. As a history nerd, I really enjoyed dissecting the text and thinking about the structure of our government from the perspective of its architects. But, what made the class even more interesting was the back and forth between Professors Baker and Strossen. Professor Baker is a proud member of the Federalist Society, while Professor Strossen is a former President of the ACLU. Hearing two intellectual heavyweights respectfully discuss issues, and at times come to surprising agreement, was definitely one of the highlights for me.
Another major highlight for me was the high quality of the panel discussions we had on a variety of topics. Among or most distinguished speakers were Bob Levy, of the CATO Institute, Judge Douglas Ginsburg of the U.S. Court of Appeals, and Supreme Court Justice Antonin Scalia.
I truly enjoyed the exchange of ideas among our speakers. And, as any of my classmates can attest, I never hesitated to ask a question if I disagreed with a premise, or just wanted more information. Our questions were answered very respectfully, and a dialogue was begun that pushed our thinking and challenged our assumptions.
But, as much as I enjoyed our class and our speakers, the real star of the summer for me, was the opportunity to live and work in the nation’s capital. Among the things I was able to do while I was here were:
- See the president lay a wreath at the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier on Memorial Day
- Hear the attorney general speak twice
- Attend the Sonia Sotomayor confirmation hearings and be quoted in the Washington Post
- Attend numerous congressional hearings
- Go on tours of the Capitol, Supreme Court, White House, Library of Congress, the National Cathedral, Mount Vernon, the National Zoo
- Visit all of the major Smithsonian Museums, the Newseum, the Spy Museum, the Holocaust Museum, all of the major monuments, the Bureau of Engraving and Printing to see money printed
- Visit the Civil War battlefields of Antietam, Fredericksburg, the Wilderness, Chancellorsville, Spotsylvania,and Gettysburg
- Go to major league baseball games in D.C., Baltimore and Philadelphia
In other words, I stayed busy!
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