Baylor Law Prof Receives Surprise Honor

by Alan Hunt

Melissa A. Essary, a professor of law at Baylor Law School, received a surprise award from members of the Baylor Association for Human Resource Management (BAHR) in appreciation of her "consistent support" of the association and Baylor.
Essary received a plaque and a gift certificate from student Becca Yarbrough, current president of BAHR. More than 30 students attended the presentation, which took place at the second spring semester BAHR meeting Feb. 7 at the Hankamer School of Business. Also present were BAHR faculty sponsors Dr. Joe A. Cox, professor of management; Dr. P. Blaine McCormick, assistant professor of management; and Dr. David W. Schlueter, professor of communication studies.
A member of the Baylor law faculty since 1990, Essary has been a regular speaker at the association's meetings for a number of years.
"The plaque is to thank her for her years of constant support of Baylor students and to our association," Cox said. The inscription on the plaque thanks Essary for her "professional excellence" and her commitment to the students.
Essary teaches Employment Discrimination Law, Employment Relations Law, Labor Law, and Consumer Protection at Baylor Law School. She is a frequently requested speaker to professional associations in Waco and across the state and nation. In 2001, she was honored as the recipient of Baylor University's Outstanding Professor and Teacher Award. In 1997, the Texas Bar Foundation awarded her the Outstanding Law Journal Article Award for a series of articles on privacy in the workplace. Essary received a bachelor of journalism degree with highest honors from the University of Texas and her law degree magna cum laude from Baylor Law School in 1985, where she served as executive editor of the Baylor Law Review. She was a civil and appellate attorney with Vinson and Elkins in Dallas before joining the law faculty in 1990.
Founded more than 20 years ago, the Baylor Association for Human Resource Management is a student chapter of the international Society for Human Resource Management. Cox, a sponsor since its inception, said the Baylor chapter is one of the nation's largest with more than 50 members.
For more information contact Cox at (254) 710-6193.