15
A LUMNI S U C C E S S
SLAA RECOGNIZES ALUMNI FOR SERVICE AND DEDICATION
The Stetson Lawyers Alumni Association (SLAA) presented
awards on June 18, 2020, to six individuals who have
made a positive impact in the community and supported
Stetson University College of Law.
Outstanding Alumni
Representative Award
Lori Baggett, J.D. ’02, received this
award, which is designed to recognize
dedication and service to the
Stetson Lawyers Alumni Association
through involvement in local alumni
activities, for her membership on the
SLAA Board, hosting many alumni
events, serving on the BLSA Reunion planning committee, and
establishing the Baggett Family Scholarship Endowment.
Distinguished Service Award
This award is presented to a
non-alumnus in recognition of
their significant, meritorious and
continuing contributions to support
Stetson Law. To honor the life
and memory of her late daughter,
Meredith E. Level, a 1994 graduate
of the College of Law, June Level established the Meredith E. Level
Endowed Scholarship that provides financial resources to a second-or
third-year female student at Stetson.
Ben Willard Award
This award recognizes an alumnus
who expends that extra effort to
prevail for the benefit of the citizens
of Florida and whose humanitarian
achievements have brought
distinction to themselves and Stetson.
Joseph W. Landers, Jr., B.A. ’64,
J.D. ’70, spent an early part of his
legal career serving as aide to Florida
Secretary of State Tom Adams and
then chief Cabinet aide and principal environmental adviser for
Gov. Reubin Askew. In 1974, he was appointed executive director
of the Internal Improvement Fund (the state land management
agency), and then first secretary of the newly established Florida
Department of Environmental Regulation. Later, Landers agreed
to serve as interim executive director of the Florida Department
of Natural Resources. He left government in 1979 to join a
Tallahassee law firm before co-founding his own firm, Landers
and Parsons. He resigned from his law practice to create a niche
patient finance company, USMed. Ten years later, JPMorgan
Chase purchased the company and named Landers CEO of
ChaseHealthAdvance. He retired in 2007.
Paul M. May Meritorious Service
Award
This award recognizes an alumnus
for showing continued support for
Stetson through the contribution of
both time and gifts. Seymour Gordon,
J.D. ’60, taught classes at Stetson Law
as an adjunct professor and served as
an alumni mentor for 1L students.
He helped organize a joint 50-year
reunion for the Classes of 1959
and 1960. Gordon and his wife have established an endowed
scholarship. He practices in the area of real estate, commercial law
and estate planning.
Distinguished Alumnus Award
This award goes to an alumnus who
is recognized as being outstanding
in his chosen profession and for
his service to humanity, which
has brought honor to himself and
Stetson. State Rep. Chris Sprowls,
J.D. ’09, was elected to the Florida
House of Representatives in 2014.
In his first session, he passed
legislation to assist craft breweries and reform the Public Service
Commission, and a bill to protect property owners from losing
their homes at the hands of out-of-state corporations. He was
re-elected in 2016 and is the first Stetson Law alumnus to serve
as the Speaker of the House.
President’s Award
This award is presented to the
outgoing president of the SLAA in
recognition of their term of service.
During Amy Rigdon’s, B.A. ’05,
J.D. ’08, term as president, she
led the board through a time of
unprecedented change, including
welcoming a new dean and the
transition from classroom instruction to online learning in
response to COVID-19. She also led the board in developing new
fundraising initiatives and created a series of events to encourage
student leaders to remain involved following graduation. Rigdon is
a partner in the Washington, D.C., office of Latham & Watkins.