2016 Knauss Fellow Named

Casey Pickell,
2016 Knauss Fellow

Casey Pickell, a May 2015 graduate of the Paul M. Herbert Law Center at Louisiana State University, has been named a Knauss Fellow. He was nominated by the Louisiana Sea Grant College Program.

The Knauss Fellowship, sponsored by the National Sea Grant College Program, provides a unique educational experience to students who have an interest in ocean and coastal resources and national policy affecting those resources. The program matches graduate students with hosts in federal legislative or executive branch offices in Washington, D.C., for one year. Pickell’s fellowship begins in February 2016.

Pickell worked as a legal intern with Louisiana Sea Grant for two years. During the summer of 2014, he received a clerkship with the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and later a legal internship with the Edison Electric Institute (EEI), both in Washington, D.C.

“I found the experience interesting in how important minute technical differences can be when shaping policy that can be applied to a variety of situations,” he said. “At EPA, and later at EEI, I had the opportunity to work extensively on EPA’s proposed Clean Air Act regulation for reducing carbon emissions at existing power plants. By working on the rule at both EPA and EEI, I had the unique experience to write about a variety of issues from both the perspective of the government regulator and the regulated entity.”

Pickell is the son of Ted and Glad Pickell of West Jefferson, NC.

After completing the fellowship, Pickell plans a career in public service. “One of my toughest decisions in college was whether I should eventually go to law school or go for a master’s in public administration. While I eventually decided on the law school route, I have always made a conscious effort to position myself for a career in the public sector.”

Pickell was one of 120 Knauss Fellowship applicants from across the country. Sixty were selected for the 2016 class.

Since its establishment in 1968, Louisiana Sea Grant has worked to promote stewardship of the state’s coastal resources through a combination of research, education and outreach programs critical to the cultural, economic and environmental health of Louisiana’s coastal zone. Louisiana Sea Grant, based at Louisiana State University, is part of the National Sea Grant Program, a network of 33 programs in each of the U.S. coastal and Great Lakes states and Puerto Rico.