The winner of the Frank F. Flegal Excellence in Teaching Award is Frances C. DeLaurentis, Professor of Law, Legal Practice and director of the school’s Writing Center. The winners of the Charles Fahy Distinguished Adjunct Professor Awards are Sara E. Colangelo (L’07), director of the school’s Environmental Law & Policy Program and Father Raymond C. O’Brien, a professor of family law at The Catholic University of America who has also taught at Georgetown Law for over three decades.

“Fran, Sara and Father O’Brien are extremely worthy recipients of our teaching awards,” said Georgetown Law Dean William M. Treanor. “All three are beloved by students, and their contributions to education and mentorship have shaped the Georgetown Law community and the greater legal profession for the better. I am so pleased to honor these outstanding professors, and commend the committee for their thorough work evaluating the nominations.”

FLEGAL AWARD

The Frank F. Flegal Excellence in Teaching Award is presented to Frances C. DeLaurentis, Professor of Law, Legal Practice and Director of the Writing Center at Georgetown Law. She holds a B.A. from the University of Notre Dame and a J.D. from The Catholic University of America.

Before joining the Law Center, DeLaurentis was an instructor in the Lawyering Skills Program at The Catholic University of America. Previously, she was a shareholder/member of the firm of Verner, Liipfert, Bernhard, McPherson and Hand, Chartered, where her practice involved civil litigation before local and federal courts throughout the United States and the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico. She served as co-chair of the firm’s summer associate program, a member of the firm’s hiring committee and as the firm’s sexual harassment ombudsman.

In 2015, DeLaurentis received a Pro Bono Legal Service Award from the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Washington’s John Carroll Society for her work with the Catholic Charities Legal Network.

In support of her nomination, one of DeLaurentis’ students wrote, “Professor DeLaurentis has had the stamina to keep pushing us to be better law writers. She has been a magnificent professor, taking the time to ensure we all become better at our future practice. She is straightforward, honest, direct and always guiding us to the best results we can achieve.”

FAHY ADJUNCT PROFESSOR AWARDS

The Charles Fahy Distinguished Adjunct Professor Award for Graduate Programs is presented to Professor Sara A. Colangelo (L’07). She is a magna cum laude graduate of Brown University and a cum laude graduate of Georgetown Law.

After law school, she served as a trial attorney for the Environmental Enforcement Section of the U.S. Department of Justice’s Environment and Natural Resources Division, earning multiple awards from the Environmental Protection Agency and from the Environment Division during her time there.

Colangelo returned to Georgetown Law in 2015 to develop the J.D. program’s Environmental Dispute Resolution Seminar. She also has taught Environmental Lawyering to LL.M. students and Environmental Law to J.D. students. Colangelo is the Director of the Environmental Law & Policy Program and serves on the boards of the Georgetown Environmental Law Review and the Georgetown Environment Initiative.

In support of her nomination, one of Colangelo’s students wrote, “Professor Colangelo is by far the best professor I have had at Georgetown Law… She was very helpful to talk to about career paths/internships/externships in environmental law, and went out of her way to make herself available.”

The Charles Fahy Distinguished Adjunct Professor Award for the J.D. Program is presented to Father Raymond C. O’Brien, a full-time professor of law at The Catholic University of America who has also taught part-time at Georgetown Law for the past 34 years. His course at Georgetown in Decedents’ Estates is consistently enrolled at maximum capacity.

Father O’Brien received his B.A. from La Salle University, his J.D. from the University of Virginia, and his masters in church administration and doctorate in ministry from The Catholic University of America. He is an ordained Roman Catholic priest of the Archdiocese of Washington. He was an attorney for the Small Business Administration and a trustee for the Law School Admission Council, and has published extensively in the area of family law, elder law and decedents’ estates.

In support of his nomination, one of O’Brien’s students wrote, “Father O’Brien is a master at walking students through this difficult material and building our understanding of the systematic nature of the doctrine. One of the best professors I’ve had… with the heart and soul of a true teacher.”

These teaching awards are usually presented at an annual spring faculty luncheon given in the recipients’ honor; given the suspension of on-campus events during the COVID-19 pandemic, a celebration for Professors Colangelo, O’Brien and DeLaurentis will be held at a later date.