Victoria R. Nauman ’23 Receives Thurgood Marshall Award at Law School Commencement
Victoria R. Nauman ’23 received the Thurgood Marshall Award during William & Mary Law School’s commencement ceremony at Kaplan Arena on Saturday, May 20. The award is given each year to a member of the graduating class who exhibits the ideals of distinguished public service exemplified by U.S. Supreme Court Justice Thurgood Marshall (1908-1993).
Dean and Trustee Professor of Law A. Benjamin Spencer presented the award to Nauman and noted that she and other members of the student-led Public Service Fund (PSF) raised $35,000 at the annual PSF Auction, and over $100,000 total over the past year– the most successful fundraising drive in PSF history—to support law students who work in public service positions each summer.
Nauman earned an undergraduate degree in international studies – international business and political science at the University of California at San Diego and a Master of Science at the Johns Hopkins University School of Education. Before law school, she taught elementary school English for Speakers of Other Languages in Baltimore as a part of Teach For America. At William & Mary, she was chair of the Public Service Fund, a Legal Practice Program fellow, notes editor and assistant symposium coordinator for the William & Mary Business Law Review, a board member of the First-Generation Student Alliance, and secretary of the Family and Education Law Society. In 2021, she was the recipient of the Law School’s Alvin Anderson Scholarship. Nauman worked summers during law school as a clerk for the San Diego Public Defender and as an appellate intern for the Federal Public Defender, Districts of Colorado and Wyoming. Following graduation, she will work as a public defender in Colorado.
About William & Mary Law School
Legal education in a university setting began at William & Mary in 1779. Now in its third century, America's first law school continues its historic mission of educating citizen lawyers who are prepared both to lead and to serve.