Robinson O. Everett Professionalism Award: S. Collins Saint
S. Collins Saint advises and litigates on behalf of public and private educational institutions and school boards on an array of education law issues, including special education and disability-related issues as well as constitutional and civil rights claims. They also represent transgender individuals in obtaining legal recognition of their identities.
Collins is actively involved in the North Carolina Bar Association (NCBA). They have served as the first co-chair of the YLD’s Diversity and Inclusion Committee and served as secretary of the YLD in the 2022-2023 bar year. They chair the Sexual Orientation and Gender Identity (SOGI) Committee, which they co-founded in 2021, and were profiled for their contributions and leadership in the November 2022 issue of North Carolina Lawyer Magazine. They also are in the incoming secretary of the Education Law Section. Collins is a frequent NCBA presenter, including contributing to the Expert Series on legal issues facing the LGBTQ+ community, and volunteer in NCBF pro bono clinics, assisting transgender individuals in legally changing their name to one that affirms their identity. Collins also dedicates their time to the American Bar Association (ABA), serving as Policy and Personnel Director of Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion for the ABA’s YLD.
Among their many accolades, Collins was most recently recognized as one of North Carolina and South Carolina Lawyers Weekly Icons and Phenoms of Law, and in 2022 as one of ABA’s On the Rise – Top 40 Young Lawyers and as one of the Triad Business Journal’s Leaders in Diversity. For the past two years, they were also selected by their peers for inclusion in Business North Carolina’s “Legal Elite” in the Young Guns category and in The Best Lawyers in America’s “Ones to Watch” for Labor and Employment Law – Management and Education Law.