Chief Justice Kay McFarland Named Distinguished Alumni; Dean Dennis R. Honabach to Receive Honorary Life Membership; H. Allan Caldwell to Receive Distinguished Service Award
Kay McFarland, Chief Justice of the Kansas Supreme Court, will receive the Distinguished Alumni Award from the Washburn Law School Association, the alumni organization of Washburn University School of Law, at a luncheon Saturday, June 10. Washburn Law Dean Dennis R. Honabach is this year's recipient of the Honorary Life Membership, and H. Allan Caldwell, former general counsel for Koch Industries, Wichita, will receive the Distinguished Service Award. The awards luncheon is scheduled in conjunction with the Kansas Bar Association Annual Meeting, held this year at the Overland Park, Kan., Marriott.
Recipients of the Distinguished Alumni Award are chosen for their exceptional professional accomplishments. Chief Justice McFarland - the first woman to be elected to a judgeship in Shawnee County, the first woman district court judge in Kansas, and the first woman appointed justice of the Kansas Supreme Court - is also the first woman to receive the Distinguished Alumni Award.
Chief Justice McFarland graduated magna cum laude from Washburn University with dual majors in English and history-political science. In 1964, she received her law degree from Washburn Law, was admitted to the Kansas Bar and entered private practice in Topeka. In 1971, she was elected judge of the probate and juvenile courts of Shawnee County.
In January 1973, she became judge of the newly created Fifth Division of the District Court in Topeka. On Sept. 19, 1977, she was appointed by the governor to be a justice of the Kansas Supreme Court and became Chief Justice of the Supreme Court on Sept. 1, 1995, upon the retirement of Hon. Richard W. Holmes.
Honabach will receive the Honorary Life Membership for his dedicated service to his profession, community and Washburn Law. Honabach was instrumental in developing the new Washburn Law Centers for Excellence including the Business and Transactional Law Center; The Center for Excellence in Advocacy; and the Children and Family Law Center.
Honabach received a bachelor's degree in economics from Bucknell University, Lewisburg, Pa., and his law degree from Yale University. He previously served in several positions at Western State University, Fullerton, Calif., including director of the Entrepreneurial Law Center, and dean of the College of Law. He also worked in private practice specializing in general corporate law, including finance, governance and securities regulation. Honabach will leave Washburn Law in August when he takes over as dean of the Salmon P. Chase College of Law at Northern Kentucky University, Highland Heights, Ky. The Honorary Life Membership is given annually to a non-alumnus.
Caldwell will receive the Distinguished Service Award for his service to Washburn Law, the legal profession and community. His service to Washburn Law includes serving on the Washburn Law School Alumni Association Board of Governors for many years in various capacities including vice-president and president, and serving as president of the Washburn Law School Foundation. He also has served on the board of directors for Evangel University, Springfield, Mo.
Caldwell previously served as general counsel for Koch Industries. He received a bachelor's degree from Evangel University and earned his law degree from Washburn Law in 1973. Caldwell was a judicial clerk before joining Koch Industries.
(Posted: June 19, 2006)
