Graduate student Naoki Kanaboshi, S.J.D. candidate at the University of Wisconsin Law School, has been named the recipient of the first-ever Graduate Programs Recognition Award, for his exceptional service to the Law School. Professor Gerald Thain, chair of the Graduate Programs Committee, announced the award in May 2006.
The award letter to Kanaboshi read, "This award is being given to you to honor your innovative ideas to encourage academic and social interaction among master's and doctoral and J.D. law students at the UW Law School and your implementation of those ideas, as well as to recognize your excellent contributions to the University community at large. Your enthusiasm, energy, and creative thinking have enhanced the lives of many law students and we thank you for your contributions."
A plaque commemorating the award was presented to Kanaboshi at a Graduate Programs end-of-semester dinner by Professor Charles Irish.
Kanaboshi came to the UW Law School in 2000, after receiving the LL.B. degree from Aoyama Gakuin University and the LL.M. from Waseda University, both in Tokyo, Japan. He entered as a student in the Master of Legal Institutions (M.L.I.) program, and received the M.L.I. degree in 2001 and the LL.M. in 2002. He is currently working on his doctoral degree, the S.J.D., with a dissertation on a patient's right to refuse medical treatment.
Kanaboshi was one of the Wisconsin International Law Society members who initiated social events for both J.D.s and Graduate Programs students in 2002. He has promoted many social activities to help LL.M. and S.J.D. candidates to avoid isolation, and was elected to be thefirst Graduate Programs student representative for APALSA/SALSA in 2004-05. Kanaboshi’s encouragement and creative ideas have resulted in a noticeable increase in the participation of Graduate Programs students in Law School events since then.
In 2005, Kanaboshi became the first Graduate Programs student to sit in on Student Bar Association (SBA) meetings; he successfully persuaded the SBA executive board to vote unanimously for amending the organization's by-laws, creating voting rights and two official representative seats for Graduate Programs students.
Kanaboshi also served as a volunteer at the Legal Information Center for two years, and is currently a contributing editor for the Wisconsin International Law Journal.
Submitted by on August 14, 2006
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