“I am excited to join the Weigand family as a 1L law student! In joining this family, I affirm my commitment to serving my fellow Kansans through my future career as an attorney. I have been so impressed with the tight-knit network of legal scholars, and I am honored to be accepted into their ranks. I believe that this wonderful community of scholars and alumni is key to the success of a state justice system that works together for the benefit of all Kansans. I could not be more grateful for the opportunity to participate in this effort as a Weigand scholar!”
Courtney E. Ress
Washburn University
Weigand Scholar: 2020, 2021, 2022
Hometown:
Colby, KS
Education:
J.D., Washburn School of Law, 2022
B.S., English Language & Literature with a minor in German, Kansas State University, 2012
- Dane G. Hansen Scholar
- Robert J. Dole Public Service Scholar
- Pete Henry Memorial Scholar
- Clark M. Brink Memorial Essay Award (first place, 2012)
- Sigma Tau Delta, Honorary English Fraternity (2010 – 2012)
- Kansas State University Marching Band (2008 – 2012)
M.A., British & American Literature, Kansas State University, 2014
- Jo Harriett Hofsess Popkins Scholar
- Student Representative to Faculty Literature Track
- Graduate Student Teaching Assistant
- Panelist: Pop Culture Association National Conference (2014)
- Panelist: Mid-America Medieval Association (2014)
- Panelist: KSU Graduate Student Literature Conference (2013)
B.S., German Language & Literature, Kansas State University, 2015
- Study Abroad Linguistic Program in Leipzig, Germany (2011)
Employment
Gatz Law
Courtney is a lifelong Kansan – born in Wichita, raised in western Kansas. Growing up in the “oasis on the plains,” she was nurtured and supported by both her home community and her parents, Richard & Melonie Ress.
After graduating from Colby High School, she attended Kansas State University in Manhattan, Kansas to study English literature and German language. As an undergraduate, Courtney was a Dane G. Hansen scholar as well as a Robert J. Dole Public Service scholar. Not only did she excel in her coursework, Courtney was a dedicated member of the Pride of the Wildcatland Marching Band for all four years of her undergraduate career at K-State. Her experiences with the K-State marching band emphasized the values of commitment, hard work, and dedication – values that later shaped her success in earning her first graduate degree. Courtney graduated with her Master of Arts in British and American Language and Literature from Kansas State University in 2014, and has been teaching as an Instructor in the K-State English Department since that time. In the past two years, Courtney has also worked at her local women’s crisis center as a hotline advocate, connecting Kansan women state-wide with safe resources and shelter following traumatic abuse or assault.
As Courtney prepares to attend Washburn University School of Law in Topeka, Kansas, she carries a deep and abiding gratitude for the upbringing and professional training opportunities afforded to her by the great state of Kansas. As a newly minted Weigand scholar, it is Courtney’s objective to use her love of her home state to serve her fellow Kansans after she passes the bar examination. She looks forward to returning to her home community of Colby, Kansas as a public servant. She desires to give back to the community that fostered and nurtured her into the law student and Weigand scholar that she is today.
“I am so fortunate to have been raised in Kansas. The hardworking members of my communities have supported me through my education and young professional life. In true Kansan spirit, I want to pay this generosity and kindness forward by serving the next generation of communities in the Sunflower State. “