Sept. 28, 2007

Faculty member and student present at international conference

Lillian López

Dr. Lillian López, associate professor of political science at Morningside College, and student Katie Kotlik presented a paper Sept. 6 at the 27th annual Latin American Studies Association International Congress in Montreal, Canada.

The Inter-American Court is a place where individuals can file suit against their government for human rights violations. In their paper, “Twenty Years of Preliminary Objections in the Inter-American Court: An Analysis,” López and Kotlik examined the response of the court when the government filed a preliminary objection to the lawsuit.

“The court has overwhelmingly decided in favor of the individual,” López said. “That is a very positive development for the Inter-American system because the decisions are framed within the context of international human rights law.”

Katie Kotlik

Kotlik, a Spanish and political science major from Bellevue, Neb., has been collaborating with López on the paper since the summer of 2006, and now they are working to get it published in a major journal. Kotlik is a senior at Morningside.

“It is very unusual for an undergraduate to get access to present at this conference; the students who present are doctoral students,” López said. “This was a good opportunity for her to be part of intellectual activity at this level. Professionally for her, no matter what her goals are, it was a very valuable experience.”

Morningside College covered the cost of Kotlik’s trip to Montreal through a scholarship and funds from student government. She said working on this project with López was a lot of work, but she appreciated the chance to be involved in graduate-level research.

“The best part was the fact that I got to present with doctoral candidates and college professors,” she said. “I think it just helped prepare me for public speaking and what I’m going to experience when I get to law school.”