“Weigands are very eager to help each other out.  One of the great strengths of the Weigand Scholarship is the moral and motivational support that the alumni provide.  This is what sets it apart from other scholarships.  I do not receive encouraging emails and Facebook posts from KU alumni, or from those with the same KU scholarship that I have.  Alumni and scholar interaction is what makes the Weigand Scholarship unique. 

I truly enjoy meeting and talking with the Weigand scholars and alumni.  This is a testament to the quality of people selected for the Weigand scholarship – they all seem like good people that I enjoy spending time with.  While we occasionally discuss the busyness of law school and our lives in general, I find that there is much less negativity in our conversations than what one usually finds in conversations between law students.”


Michael Hayes

University of Kansas
Weigand Scholar: 2018, 2019

View Michael’s Video

Hometown:
Pittsburg, KS

Education:
B.A., Philosophy, University of Dallas Constantin College of Liberal Arts, 2012

  • Phi Beta Kappa Honor Society
  • Student Government, Senator
  • NCAA Varsity Baseball 

M.A., Philosophy, University of Kansas, 2014

Ph.D. in Philosophy, University of Kansas, 2019

J.D., University of Kansas School of Law, 2019

Employer:
Shook, Hardy, & Bacon LLP

After graduating, Michael began working on a Ph.D. in philosophy at the University of Kansas. He primarily focuses on well-being, medieval philosophy, and the natural law tradition of ethics. In addition to his studies, he taught undergraduate courses such as Introduction to Philosophy, Philosophical Issues in Religion, Symbolic Logic ,and Western Civilization.

In the summer of 2016, Michael added law to his studies by enrolling at the University of Kansas School of Law. While there, he was president of the St. Thomas More Society and was the Executive Note and Comment Editor of the Kansas Law Review. He graduated first in his class, and clerked for Judge Grasz of the United States Court of Appeals for the Eighth Circuit, in Omaha Nebraska.

After finishing his clerkship, Michael and his family returned to the Kansas City area. Michael currently works for Shook, Hardy & Bacon, where he also worked as a summer associate during law school. He is a litigator focusing primarily on tort defense.
Michael and his wife Erin live in Overland Park, Kansas. They have four children: Margaret and Elizabeth (born 2016), Julia (born 2018), and Thomas (born 2021). They are parishioners at Queen of the Holy Rosary parish in Overland Park.


I am constantly impressed by how much the Weigand scholars and alumni support each other. They are quick to ask how you’re doing—academically, professionally, and personally—and provide moral and motivation support that really makes a difference.