The University of Iowa College of Law and the Hubbell Environmental Law Initiative introduced a new law school award in the 2023-2024 academic year - the Hubbell Award for Excellence in Environmental Law.
This Hubbell Award is awarded to a student who has made an outstanding contribution or demonstrated a commitment to the field of environmental, natural resources, and energy law. The law school awards this designation at graduation. Accompanying this award is a gift of $1000 from the Hubbell Environmental Law Initiative.
For the inaugural award, HELI and the Student Awards Committee were honored to announce this Award would be split between two very deserving students. Those two graduating students are Hosu Chang and Spencer Culver. A short profile on Hosu and Spencer are included here, below.
Congratulations to Hosu and Spencer as the first recipients of this inaugural award!
Hosu Chang
Hosu Chang is from Tucson, and is working as a law clerk for Judge Timmerman in the Fifth Judicial District, Minnesota while preparing for the bar exam. During her time at Iowa Law, Hosu expanded her experience in environmental law. She was active in the Environmental Law Society and a member of a clinic project about the Iowa River, which runs through the University of Iowa campus. During law school, she externed at the Iowa Environmental Council where she worked on environmental policy issues in Iowa. Over her 2L summer, Hosu worked at the Pennsylvania Utility Law Project where she worked on utility and affordable energy advocacy for low-income consumers. She also completed an externship with Earthjustice during her 2L year, where she worked on clean energy policy and advocacy.
"Receiving the Hubbell Award for Excellence in Environmental Law has been a great honor and has further reinforced my commitment to environmental justice. The support from the Hubbell family and HELI has been a wonderful part of my law school experience, and I am so grateful for the opportunities they have provided," said Hosu.
Spencer Culver
Spencer Culver is from Kansas City, and will begin working as an Associate at Polsinelli’s Kansas City office this fall after the bar exam. Spencer worked at Polsinelli during his 2L year, as well. During his time at Iowa Law, Spencer was a dedicated student interested in energy law. Spencer was the team leader for Iowa Law's moot court team as they competed in the Pace environmental moot court competition, where the problem topic revolved around pipelines. Spencer was also the Senior Articles Editor for the Iowa Law Review during his 3L year. In his new role at Polsinelli this fall, Spencer will work on transactions involving utility-scale renewable energy projects across the Midwest to ensure residential and industrial consumers have access to reliable, affordable power.
"I appreciate the role that Fred and Charlotte Hubbell played in my education at Iowa Law. I found my legal identity at Iowa—in large part because of the Hubbell Environmental Law Initiative. HELI connected me with lawyers in the field of environmental law, which allowed me to ask questions, grow my professional network, and learn about being an environmental lawyer," said Spencer.