School of Law Honors Faculty and Alumni for Exemplary Service
USD law professor Thomas Simmons, B.S. '91, J.D. '98, was honored with the John Wesley Jackson Outstanding Faculty Award nominated and voted upon by students and faculty.
Simmons serves on the South Dakota State Bar's Ethics Committee, Elder Law Committee, Indian Law Committee and Lawyer's Committee on Diversity of Inclusion. He is a member of the South Dakota Bar Association's Section of Real Property Probate and Trust. Simmons is a gubernatorial appointee to the Governor's Task Force on Trust Administration Review and Reform and serves as a member and whip of the South Dakota Advisory Committee to the U.S. Commission on Civil Rights.
The Jackson Award was established in 1981 through a gift by Horace and Dorothy Jackson of Rapid City, South Dakota, in honor of members of the Jackson family. Selection is based on criteria demonstrating excellence in the teaching of law, including effectiveness in the classroom; efforts to improve legal education in ways that serve the needs of the profession and of South Dakota; research and writing; contributions to the profession through public service; and contributions to the academic environment of the Law School.
The 2019 Adjunct Professor of the Year Award was presented to Alex Hagen, J.D. '10, who taught business organizations. The Student Bar Association also presented awards to USD law school alumni Raleigh Hansman, J.D. '12, and Jason Krause, J.D. '12, for their service to the school.
