Center Fellow Aline Marie Longstaff in the Spotlight – April 2016
For 2016 graduate Aline Longstaff, studying at BYU Law School offered an opportunity to continue to explore her passion, the intersection of legal and religious studies. Growing up in Saudi Arabia, Longstaf was surrounded by a variety of cultural and religious communities. In such a diverse environment, she became fascinated with the relationships between law and religion, and she sought to make it the emphasis of her studies. “I [took] an interdisciplinary approach in trying to better understand the topic throughout my formal education,” she said.
Longstaff began her education by obtaining bachelor’s degrees in history, International Studies, and Middle Eastern Studies from the University of Utah in 2011. She then went on to obtain a master’s degree of…
ICLRS Student Management Board 2015-2016
The International Center for Law and Religion Studies is pleased to welcome its Student Management Board for 2015-2016. The members of the board are second- and third-year law students chosen for their interest in law and religion and their expertise in writing, research, editing, languages, and website management. Languages spoken by this year’s Management Board students include French, Spanish, Italian, Russian, Mandarin, Arabic, Turkish, and Hindi. Third-year students selected this year are Ryan Andersen, Alex Biggs, Eva Brady, Bennett Briggs, Tara Fitzgerald, Travis Hyer, Jedediah Knight, Monique Mullenaux Laing, Aline Longstaff, Annalee Moser, Lauren Robins, and Jarvis Yau. Second-year students are Tanner Bean, Lauren Flores, Raquel Flores-Vera, Ryan Jolley, Michael Goodrich, Leilani Maldonado, Abby McKeon…
Ryan Andersen
Ryan Andersen was born in Provo, Utah, but grew up in Rexburg, Idaho. He first thought about a legal career when he was in high school debate, and this desire stayed with him through his mission for The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints in Yekaterinburg, Russia and his undergraduate days at BYU-Idaho, where he earned a Bachelor’s degree in Political Science with a minor in Russian. Now part of the class of 2016 at the J. Reuben Clark School of Law, returned to Russia during the summer…
Tanner J. Bean
Tanner Bean grew up in South Jordan, Utah. After graduating from Bingham High School in 2009, he attended Snow College to graduate with his associate’s degree in 2010. He then served as a full-time missionary for The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints in Ribeirão Preto, Brazil. Upon his return from Brazil, Tanner attended Brigham Young University where he graduated magna cum laude with a bachelor’s degree in English Literature. He was married in May of 2014. As a student at BYU Law School Tanner was an ICLRS Student Fellow and spent a part of summer 2014 in São Paulo. For the school year 2015-2016 Tanner is a member of the Center’s Student Management Board.
Alex Biggs
Alex Biggs grew up in Cache Valley, Utah. He served a mission for The Church of Jesus Christ of Latterd-day Saints in Buenos Aires, Argentina. After completing his mission he studied at Utah State University where he graduated magna cum laude with a dual major in Political Science and History and with a dual minor in Latin American Studies and Spanish. While at Utah State University, Alex was able to study at the University of Belgrano in Buenos Aires, Argentina (where he met his wife), and Georgetown University in Washington D.C. Alex has gained legal experience working in Costa Rica, the Department of Justice, and various small legal firms in Utah County. On September 11, 2015, Alex was commissioned as an officer in the United States Navy. Alex enjoys travel, the outdoors, and soccer—he is a fanatic of the Argentine soccer club Velez Sarsfield.
Eva M. Brady
Eva Brady is third-year law student at BYU Law School. She is from Charlottesville, Virginia, and is the oldest of ten children. She graduated from Brigham Young University in Philosophy with a minor in Logic. Eva also studied Spanish extensively for ten years. Before beginning law school, she served a full-time mission for The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints in the Korean, Busan mission. Eva enjoys being outside, playing sports, learning, spending time with family and friends, and playing the piano. As an ICLRS Student Fellow for 2014, Eva spent a summer externship in Lima, Peru….
Bennett Briggs
Bennett Briggs was born in California and grew up in Rexburg, Idaho. After serving a mission for The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints in Moscow, Russia, Bennett returned to BYU-Idaho and graduated cum laude with a BS in Communications. He returned to Russia during the summer of 2014 to work with the Legal Counsel for the East Europe Area of the Church. He was appointed to the Center’s Student Management Board in 2014-2015 and again in 2015-2016. His research work with the Center focuses primarily on issues surrounding the same-sex marriage movement as well as anything with an Eastern European element.
Tara Fitzgerald
Tara Fitzgerald, a third-year student at BYU Law School from Rexburg, Idaho, was a Center Fellow for summer 2014. The work of the Center was a major motivating factor in leading her to go to law school and to attend BYU. Tara previously attended BYU-Idaho, where she graduated summa cum laude with a bachelor’s degree in Music Education (Choral Education with Piano Emphasis). She also served as a full-time missionary for The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints in the Dublin, Ireland Mission. As a member of the Student Management Board Tara assisted at the Center-sponsored Magna Carta Conference…
Lauren M. Flores
Lauren M. Flores was born and raised in Compton, California. She graduated from BYU in 2012, with a bachelor’s degree in Communications (Print Journalism: Design & News Media) with minors in Editing, Spanish, and International Development. While at BYU, Lauren participated in the performing group Living Legends, which celebrates Native American, Latin American, and Polynesian cultures. Before beginning law school, she served a full-time mission for The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints in the Texas Houston East Mission. She is enrolled in the joint JD/MPA program at Brigham Young…
Raquel Flores-Vera
Raquel Flores was born in Guayaquil, Ecuador and immigrated to the United States at the age of seven. She graduated from Brigham Young University with a degree in Latin American Studies and completed an internship in Washington, D.C. working with a non-governmental organization which incorporated religion as part of the solution to resolve identity-based conflicts. This internship piqued an interest to learn more about how governments interact with religious groups, what impact religious groups can have in their communities, and how the law affects the ability to practice religions in different countries. Raquel is now in her second year at BYU Law School. Last summer she worked as an extern at Baker & McKenzie in Argentina. She is a member of the Center’s 2015-2016 Student Management Board.
Michael K. Goodrich
Michael Goodrich grew up in Lindon, Utah and decided to go to law school while attending Pleasant Grove High School. He served a mission for The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints in Baltimore, Maryland, and returned home to study history of religion and philosophy at BYU. He is fascinated by the many religions of the world and loves to learn about other cultures. He was very excited to be accepted to the J. Reuben Clark Law School because of the International Center for Law and Religion Studies, and plans to study Constitutional law with an emphasis in civil rights and First Amendment…
Travis Hyer
Before entering the J. Reuben Clark Law School, Travis Hyer focused his studies on Latin America and indigenous peoples. Specifically, he has conducted graduate research on religious dynamics of the Maya of southern Mexico. Travis also enjoys studying the arts and enjoys performing in musical and theatrical ensembles as often as he can. Travis was selected as an ICLRS Student Fellow for 2014, serving a summer externship in Auckland, New Zealand. He served as a member of the Concierge/Hosting Team of the Executive Committee for the 2014 International Law and Religion Symposium and as Chair of this…
Ryan Jolley
Ryan Jolley was born and raised in Southeast Idaho. He served a mission for The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints in Quetzaltenango, Guatemala. He married Amanda in August of 2012. He graduated from BYU-Idaho with a degree in Sociology and a Criminology certificate. During his undergraduate program he spent a summer managing a rubber tree plantation in Guatemala, which further increased his love for the Spanish culture. He also spent two summers working for the Idaho Department of Fish and Game supervising inmates working on projects to improve outdoor recreational areas. He became interested…
Jedediah Knight
Jedediah “Jedi” Knight is a third-year law student at J. Reuben Clark Law School. Jedi first became interested in Law and Religion issues as an undergraduate studying Physics, when he became acutely aware of the competing ideologies of secularity and religiosity. Jedi chose to attend BYU Law, in part, so that he could begin to help influence domestic and international religious freedom issues. As a first-year law student he volunteered extensively for the ICLRS Symposium, and in 2014 he served as member of the Recruitment Team of the Symposium Executive Committee. As a member of the ICLRS…
Monique Mullenaux Laing
Monique is from southern Arizona. She graduated summa cum laude with a Bachelor of Science in Psychology Degree from Brigham Young University-Hawaii. As an International Center for Law and Religion Studies Fellow, she worked during summer 2014 in Accra, Ghana. She was a member of the Documents Team of the Executive Committee for the 2014 International Law and Religion Symposium, and she returned in 2015 as Co-Chair of the team. She is a member of the Center’s 2015-2016 Student Management Board.
Aline Longstaff
Aline Longstaff was born in Utah and raised in Saudi Arabia. Before coming to the J. Reuben Clark Law School, she received her bachelor’s degrees in History, Middle Eastern Studies (Arabic), and International Studies from the University of Utah, 2011. She went on to complete a master’s degree in Islamic Studies from Harvard University, 2013, where she also worked for two years as a research assistant for the Islam in the West Program at the Prince Alwaleed Bin Talal Islamic Studies Program. In summer 2014, she was a research assistant at the University of Bonn, Institute for Public…
Leilani D. Maldonado
Leilani Maldonado was raised in Southern California. She completed a Spanish-speaking mission for The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints in Chicago, and later graduated from Brigham Young University with a degree in Linguistics. After relocating to the Bay Area with her husband for work and becoming acquainted with a female immigration lawyer, she discovered she could combine her interest in international affairs, human rights, and peace-building with a family-friendly career by practicing immigration law. Leilani is now in her second year at BYU Law School. She was a 2014 Student Fellow…
Abby McKeon
Abby McKeon is from Alpine, Utah and earned her bachelor’s degree in English with a minor in editing from Brigham Young University. While at BYU, she enjoyed completing a study abroad in Siena, Italy. After being involved with the 2014 International Law and Religion Symposium, Abby was selected as an ICLRS research fellow, spending part of the summer of 2015 in the Office of General Counsel for The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints in Frankfurt Germany. She has been appointed to the Center’s Student Management Board for the school year 2015-2016.
McKenna Mills
McKenna Mills attended Arizona State University and graduated summa cum laude with degrees in History and Culture, Communications, and Global Studies. She recently spent a summer in South Korea teaching English to grade school children. McKenna is currently a second year law student at the J. Reuben Clark Law School and is interested in religious and human right issues around the world and hopes to pursue a career in International Law. As an ICLRS Student Fellow, McKenna worked in Moscow, Russia during part of summer 2015. For the 2015-2016 school year she is a member of the Center’s Student Management Board.
Annalee Moser
Annalee Moser graduated cum laude from BYU in 2013, with extensive education in Theatre Arts Studies and Mathematics. During her undergraduate years, she spent much of her time performing in shows at BYU, tutoring and mentoring athletes, and studying abroad in London. As a Student Fellow for the International Center for Law and Religion Studies she spent part of the summer of 2014 in Buenos Aires, giving her the opportunity to utilize the language skills she developed during her Spanish-speaking mission in Seattle, Washington for The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. She served on the…
Lauren Ravsten Robins
Lauren Robins attended Brigham Young University, majoring in Psychology and graduating in April of 2012. While at BYU, Lauren participated in the BYU Model United Nations team and traveled with this team for competitions. Lauren is now a third-year law student at BYU Law School. During summer 2014 she was a Student Fellow with the Law School’s International Center for Law and Religion Studies and worked in Johannesburg, South Africa. For the year 2015-2016 she is a member of the Center’s Student Management Board. She will pursue a career in International Law and human rights advocacy work.
Jarvis Yat-Him Yau
Jarvis Yau was born and raised in Hong Kong. He served a mission for The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints in New York City, where he spent a year in Queens and another year in Brooklyn. He returned to Brigham Young University–Hawaii to continue his study after he finished his mission in 2011. He graduated magna cum laude in 2013 with a bachelor of science in Business Management, emphasizing in both Finance and Marketing, with a minor in Hospitality and Tourism Management. As an ICLRS student fellow, Jarvis worked in Hong Kong in summer 2014. He was a member of the Student…