Kyle Kaiser '03 Law

Hometown: Coon Rapids, Iowa

Kyle Kaiser has been fascinated by the law for most of his life. Beginning in junior high, when many kids' passions tend toward sports and television, Kyle's included mock trial competitions. So it's no wonder that when the time came to decide upon a career, he chose law.

There was no guarantee, however, that the Coon Rapids, Iowa, native would choose the University of Iowa College of Law to pursue his studies. Kyle looked at -- and had opportunities to attend -- some of the nation's other prestigious law schools. But when he was offered a full-tuition scholarship at the UI, he jumped at the chance.

"I grew up knowing that Iowa has a great law school," Kyle says. "I knew it had excellent teachers and researchers and an outstanding reputation. The opportunity to stay in my home state meant a lot to me."

Kyle made the most of his time at the UI law school, serving as senior managing editor of the Iowa Law Review and participating in faculty research.

He also was able to do public-service work as a board member of the Equal Justice Foundation, a victim advocate for Iowa City's Domestic Violence Intervention Program, and clerk of the legal public-service fraternity Phi Alpha Delta.

"What good is a superior education if it's not put to use in service to a community or society as a whole?" Kyle asks, noting that his scholarship support will enable him to pursue public-interest work rather than making career choices based solely on the need to repay a high debt load.

Kyle has started his career clerking for a federal district court judge in Missouri. After that two-year experience, he'll have many options before him.

One thing is clear, though: his UI legal education, assisted by private support, will help him better our society.

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