FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
June 29, 2005
Contact: Alfredo Tryferis
Communications Specialist
206-733-5932; alfredot@wsba.org
University Place Attorney Rhonda J. Brown Receives American Bar Association's Paul G. Hearne Award for Disability Rights
Seattle Washington, June 29, 2005 — The Washington State Bar Association (WSBA) announced today that University Place attorney Rhonda J. Brown received the American Bar Association's (ABA) 2005 Paul G. Hearne Award for Disability Rights. This prestigious national award, named after a devoted leader and advocate of disability rights, is presented to an individual who, or an organization that, has performed exemplary service in furthering the rights, dignity, and access to justice for people with disabilities. ABA President Michael S. Greco will present the award to Ms. Brown at the ABA Annual Meeting in Chicago on August 8.
Ms. Brown, who received her law degree from the University of Washington School of Law, has been a member of the WSBA since 1987. Since 1991, she has been a review judge for the Washington State Employment Security Department, and, since 2002, a consultant for the Washington Coalition of Sexual Assault Programs (WCSAP).
At the WCSAP, in addition to conducting training, she was co-facilitator of the Community Voices Partners on Ending Violence Against Women with Disabilities, a program that evaluated access to sexual-assault services for women with disabilities in Washington state, made recommendations, and developed educational material. She is also past chair of the Pierce County Citizens' Advisory Board for Community Development Block Grant and Emergency Shelter Programs.
"Rhonda Brown is tireless in her activity on behalf of those with disability issues," wrote AnnaLisa Gellermann, president of the Government Lawyers Bar Association. Indeed, her contributions to disadvantaged people over the years have been considerable. From 1982 to 1984, Ms. Brown served as Housing Program coordinator for the Tacoma Area Coalition of Individuals with Disabilities.
Prior to that, she was an adolescent psychiatric care worker for Camelback Hospital in Scottsdale, Arizona, and a central-intake assessor for Franklin County Children's Services, a child-protective agency in Columbus, Ohio. She helped organize the Disability Caucus for the 1996 Democratic Convention, served on the Governor's Committee on Disability Issues and Employment, and is a former secretary of the Washington Protection and Advocacy System. Ms. Brown is an instrumental participant on the WSBA's Access to Justice Technology Bill of Rights Implementation Committee, and has provided leadership and guidance to the Access to Justice community on technology and disability issues.
Ms. Brown has won numerous awards for her indefatigable service. In 2004, she received the WSBA's Local Hero Award for her outstanding contributions to the community and service to people with disabilities. In September of the same year, she received the WSBA's Angelo Petruss Award for Lawyers in Public Service for her tireless contributions to people-with-disabilities issues. In 2003, she was named Pierce County Volunteer of the Year.
In recommending her for the award, WSBA Governor Lonnie Davis wrote, "Ms. Brown has made outstanding contributions to the community and has met the highest standards of the legal profession in providing service to the public."
"When I think of people I admire in this profession and role models whose example I aspire to," wrote WSBA President Ronald R. Ward in nominating Ms. Brown, "invariably the name Rhonda Brown comes to mind."
Read Rhonda Brown's acceptance speech.
About the WSBA
The WSBA is a private, nonprofit organization authorized by the Washington State Supreme Court to license the state's 28,800 lawyers. The WSBA both regulates lawyers under the authority of the Court and serves its members as a professional association — all without public funding.
As a regulatory agency, it administers the bar exam, provides record-keeping and licensing functions, and administers the lawyer discipline program. As a professional association, the WSBA provides continuing legal education for attorneys, in addition to numerous other educational and member-service activities.
The governance of the WSBA is vested in its 14-person Board of Governors. There are three governors from the seventh congressional district; one from each of the other eight districts; and three at-large members, one of whom represents the Young Lawyers Division. The president is Ronald R. Ward of Seattle. The board meets every six weeks at various locations around the state, and its meetings are open to the public. Much of the work of the WSBA is carried out through its 23 standing committees, 24 sections, and a Young Lawyers Division.
