Author Information
Core Editorial Team
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Ethan Tong Ethan Tong is a contract writer for First Liberty Institute. He has experience working for political campaigns and religious freedom organizations, and he teaches constitutional law to high school Moot Court competitors. Ethan graduated Hillsdale College with a Philosophy and Religion degree and is currently pursuing a Master’s Degree at Baylor University Truett Theological Seminary. |
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Mia Gradick Mia Gradick is a contract writer for First Liberty Institute. Her experiences range from working in the U.S. Senate, First Liberty, and the Heritage Foundation’s Meese Center for Legal and Judicial Studies. Mia is a graduate of Baylor University and a current law student at Regent University School of Law. |
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Kelle Berry Kelle Berry is a freelance writer and contractor for First Liberty Institute. Her experience includes marketing and public policy specifically using data and strategy analysis for non-profit organizations. She also continues to serve as a director of home-education programs for over 10 years. She is a graduate of Texas A&M University. |
Contributing Writers
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Kelly Shackelford Kelly Shackelford is President, CEO and Chief Counsel for First Liberty Institute. He is a constitutional scholar and seasoned litigator who has argued before the U.S. Supreme Court, testified before the U.S. House and Senate, and has won a number of landmark First Amendment and religious liberty cases. He earned his law degree from Baylor University. |
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Stephanie Taub Stephanie Taub is Senior Counsel for First Liberty Institute. She previously worked as a law clerk to the Honorable Reed O’Connor in the U.S. District Court of the Northern District of Texas. Taub received her Juris Doctor from Harvard Law School and her bachelor’s degree in business administration from the University of Southern California. |
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Mike Berry Mike Berry is General Counsel for First Liberty Institute. He joined First Liberty in 2013 after serving for seven years on active duty as an attorney with the U.S. Marine Corps. He earned a bachelor’s degree from Texas A&M University and his law degree from The Ohio State University. |
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Jeremy Dys Jeremy Dys is Special Counsel for Litigation and Communications for First Liberty Institute. He previously led a public policy organization focusing on research and advocacy efforts on matters of life, marriage and religious freedom. He earned his law degree from West Virginia University College of Law and a bachelor’s degree from Taylor University. |
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Keisha Russell Keisha Russell is Counsel for First Liberty Institute. She was previously a 2011 Teach For America corps member in Atlanta Public Schools. She earned a bachelor’s degree from the University of Central Florida, Master’s in Teaching from the University of Southern California and her law degree from Emory University School of Law. |
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Lea Patterson Lea Patterson serves as Counsel with First Liberty Institute. She previously worked as a law clerk at the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Eighth Circuit. She received her law degree from the University of Virginia School of Law and bachelor’s degree in political science from Texas Christian University. |
