Pictured above: Maryland Carey Law Board of Visitors Vice Chair Alicia Wilson ’07 (left) and Treasurer Jason St. John ’00 celebrate Alumni Weekend on the pickleball court.
The University of Maryland Francis King Carey School of Law held its annual Alumni Weekend April 16-18, featuring signature events, including the Alumni Honors Banquet, Golden Graduates Luncheon, Alumni and Family Picnic, and Reunion Class Dinners. This year, the schedule also included two new events, a Friday happy hour at Pickles Pub and an all-skill-level pickleball activity with a beginners clinic on Saturday morning.
“We wanted to change things up a little this year,” said Executive Director of Alumni Relations Justinia Carter. “We loved holding the events alumni have come to expect at Alumni Weekend. It was also fun to give our community opportunities to come together in some more casual settings. We had a blast doing both!”
The festivities kicked off on Thursday afternoon with the Women, Leadership & Equality (WLE) Program’s annual reception. The program’s current Rose Zetzer Fellows received their certificates of completion in the company of former fellows and other WLE supporters. Founding director, Professor Paula Monopoli, announced her plans to retire at the end of the 2026-2027 academic year, leaving the program in the capable hands of Managing Director Lisa Mebane, and a new academic director who will join the Maryland Carey Law faculty this summer. Additionally, Mebane gave a presentation on the current state of women in the legal profession.
Also on Thursday afternoon, the Trial Advocacy Leadership Council hosted a National Trial Team meet-and-greet for alumni and supporters. Attendees were delighted to learn that the National Trial Team this academic year brought home three championships and placed at six different national competitions. The National Trial Team is led by Salsbury Director of Trial Advocacy Ben Garmoe ’16. That same evening, Garmoe was honored at the Alumni Honors Banquet with this year’s Rising Star Award.
Garmoe (right) was joined in Westminster Hall with alumni, friends, and family cheering for him and the other 2026 award recipients, pictured left to right, the Hon. Julie Rubin '98, recipient of the Mary Ellen Barbera ’84 Judicial Excellence Award; Stanford Gann, Sr. '55, who received the Distinguished Graduate Award; and the Hon. Michael Siri '01, this year’s recipient of the Benjamin L. Cardin '67 Public Service Award.
Hosted by the Maryland Carey Law Alumni Board, the evening was emceed by Alumni Board President Lauri Cleary ’85 with remarks from Dean Renée Laurent. As has become tradition, retired Sen. Cardin was in attendance to bestow the award named after him.
Honorees shared recollections about their law school days and wise words on themes including the value of hard work, access to justice, and community.
On Friday morning, the Business Law Program offered its first Alumni Weekend breakfast. Graduates who studied in the Business Law Program and Intellectual Property Law Program mingled over French toast and coffee. Managing Director Heather Terech offered a program update, including the addition of a Small Business Development Clinic. Though the program has a longer history, this year marks the 15th anniversary of the Business Law Track at Maryland Carey Law.
At midday, members of the classes that graduated 50 or more years ago gathered for the annual Golden Graduates Luncheon (pictured) to induct the Class of 1976 into their distinguished ranks. Attendees were treated to remarks from Lauren Helbig '26, a graduating student and the William O. Goldstein Scholar, and an alum from the Class of 1976, the Hon. Clayton Greene Jr.
Judge Greene shared his journey “from janitor to judge,” calling out many of the popular professors from his time as a student and praising Maryland Carey Law’s recent establishment of the Gibson-Banks Center for Race and the Law.
Helbig gave a current student’s perspective, comparing the supportive community at Maryland Carey Law to that of her hometown of Deep Creek Lake, Maryland. “I found a close-knit community of alumni ready to give back,” said Helbig, “especially to a first-generation student like me.”
That afternoon, immigration law alumni met with Chacón Center for Immigrant Justice faculty Professor Maureen Sweeney, the center’s director; Associate Professor Aadhithi Padmanabhan, director of the Federal Appellate Immigration Clinic; and Assistant Professor Cori Alonso-Yoder, the new director of the Immigration Clinic. The trio shared news, including how recent grant funding from several foundations is enabling the center to hire three new staff members in the coming months. More resources will go toward trainings for practicing lawyers during what Sweeney called, “this extraordinary moment,” referring to the administration’s massive deportation initiative.
To add a new level of fun this year, Maryland Carey Law welcomed all alumni to a Friday happy hour at nearby Pickles Pub where many graduates remember blowing off steam during their student years. Yes, fried pickles were one of the featured appetizers.
On Saturday morning, beginners and seasoned players alike met at the university’s URecFit facility for a pickleball clinic and mixer. Let’s just say, some players were more competitive than others. Then it was straight back to the law school building for the Alumni and Family Picnic. With the sun shining, the courtyard was a perfect space to enjoy games, community, and barbeque-inspired food.
For those celebrating milestone reunions, Saturday evening was the main event. Members of classes ending in 1s and 6s going back to 1976 reconnected and reminisced during a cocktail and networking reception, followed by Reunion Class Dinners.
Pictured: Members of the Class of 2006 at their 20th reunion.