Kathryn Kelly ’17 J.D.
Kathryn Kelly’s dedication to social justice has taken her around the world, but no single experience impacted her quite as much as her first job out of college: working with court-involved youth who were in gangs, had been sexually abused or dealt with mental health issues.
As a staff member for Boys Town, a nonprofit based in her hometown of Omaha, Nebraska, Kelly spent time in the organization’s intervention and assessment program, working to get delinquent youth on track to be successful in the community and not end up in the criminal justice system as adults.
“I loved it,” Kelly said. “It afforded me the opportunity to advocate in court in front of judges and lawyers and do some case management as well.”
The job was a realization of a dream that began years before, when Kelly was a sophomore at the University of Nebraska Lincoln and landed an internship with the Douglas County Attorney’s Victim Assistance Division. There, she accompanied victims of crime to court and helped them file protection orders.
“We made sure that victims weren’t ignored by the court system and that they knew there were people out there supporting them,” Kelly said. “Sometimes victims fall through the cracks in our justice system, and I wanted to be an advocate for those people.”
From there, Kelly went on to work as an assistant in a research law lab and as a page for the Nebraska State Legislature before taking the job at Boys Town. She left after two years for a one-year position teaching English in Spain, building on her interests in international relations, human rights and the hope of one day serving Spanish clients as an attorney.
All those experiences led Kelly to UST School of Law, where she continues to work toward a career that puts service to others first.
“I’m in law school because I want to be an advocate for people,” she said.
