Governor’s Award for Tomorrow’s Leaders honors 1999 Goshen College alum

GOSHEN, Ind. – Lisa Koop, a 1999 Goshen College graduate who currently serves as an attorney and immigration fellow at Notre Dame Legal Aid Clinic, has been selected as a recipient of Indiana’s Governor’s Award for Tomorrow’s Leaders.

Koop was recognized at an awards luncheon held during the Indiana Leadership Summit in Indianapolis on June 23. The Governor’s Award for Tomorrow’s Leaders was created in 2003 by the Indiana Humanities Council to recognize outstanding young Indiana leaders between the ages of 19 and 29 for their achievements in entrepreneurial, community, educational and/or cultural arenas.

Koop was nominated for this prestigious statewide honor based on her community leadership and educational accomplishments. Her passion for advocacy and a desire to serve the needs of the underprivileged and underrepresented led to her commitment to improving the circumstances of immigrants and refugees. Serving with Mennonite Voluntary Service at the South Texas Pro Bono Asylum Representation Project in Harlingen, Texas, Koop spent two years advocating on behalf of detained immigrants. She was also a volunteer in Guam with the Church World Service Guam Asylum.

As a law student at Indiana University School of Law, Koop developed a Street Law Program to teach legal issues and practical law concepts to high school students at Arsenal Technical High School in Indianapolis, provided legal services for immigration assistance programs in Michigan and worked at the Immigrant and Refugee Appellate Center and the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees, both in Washington, D.C.

Koop graduated from Goshen College in 1999 with psychology and English double majors. She is from Goshen, resides in South Bend, Ind., and attends College Mennonite Church in Goshen.

The Governor’s Award for Tomorrow’s Leaders is awarded to 12 outstanding young leaders from Indiana. Recipients are selected in a juried competition, chaired by Tracy Souza, President of Cummins Foundation. “Lisa’s leadership and entrepreneurial skills are an asset to the entire state of Indiana. We are honored to recognize her with this award,” said Tracy Souza. Each recipient receives a special award and a $1,000 scholarship or contribution to the charity of his or her choice. Koop plans to donate the $1,000 award to the Neighborhood Christian Legal Clinic in Indianapolis.

Editors: For more information about this release, contact Goshen College News Bureau Director Jodi H. Beyeler at (574) 535-7572 or jodihb@goshen.edu.

###

Goshen College, established in 1894, is a four-year residential Christian liberal arts college rooted in the Anabaptist-Mennonite tradition. The college’s Christ-centered core values – passionate learning, global citizenship, compassionate peacemaking and servant-leadership – prepare students as leaders for the church and world. Recognized for its unique Study-Service Term program, Goshen has earned citations of excellence in Barron’s Best Buys in Education, “Colleges of Distinction,” “Making a Difference College Guide” and U.S.News & World Report’s “America’s Best Colleges” edition, which named Goshen a “least debt college.” Visit www.goshen.edu/.