From left: IPLC Director Prof. Jeremy Sheff, Amanda Hoffman '17, Olivia Cheung '17, Alyssa D'Antonio '17, Prof. Eva Subotnik.
This fall, the Intellectual Property Law Center (IPLC) welcomes its inaugural class of Intellectual Property Honors Scholars. They are Olivia Cheung ’17, Amanda Hoffman ’17, and Alyssa D’Antonio ’17. The IP Honors Program offers selected entering St. John’s students who plan to pursue a career in intellectual property a tuition stipend of $10,000. The scholars are presented special opportunities to engage in academic endeavors related to their field of interest for their full three years at St. John’s. Additionally, they receive individualized mentoring from faculty and career development counselors as they immerse themselves in St. John’s IP curriculum and participate in IPLC’s programs.
In addition to being highly qualified entering law students, Olivia, Amanda, and Alyssa have demonstrated an aptitude for, and an interest in, technological and creative endeavors. Moreover, their diverse backgrounds add unique values and perspectives to the IP Honors Program, to IPLC, and to the St. John’s community.
Olivia Cheung obtained her B.S. in Biology from St. John’s University. Unlike many science graduates, Olivia took a distinctive career path. During her undergraduate years, Olivia helped many Chinese immigrants start their careers in North America. She also started her own beauty school, which to date has graduated more than 1,000 students. Although her beauty school has grown into a successful and sustainable business, Olivia decided to pursue her dream of becoming a lawyer. Recognizing the immense value of intellectual property assets to American businesses, she decided to devote her career to the field. Upon graduation, Olivia hopes to serve as an in-house counsel in the fashion and entertainment industry.
Amanda Hoffman graduated from Syracuse University with a PhD in Chemistry and is determined to become a patent attorney. During her graduate studies, Amanda co-authored five peer-reviewed journal articles in the area of microbiology and medicinal chemistry. In the process of obtaining a patent for her own research work, Amanda became very interested in the process of distilling the details of a new invention, developing a patent application, and filing it in accordance with the Patent and Trademark Office’s requirements. Amanda also gained valuable patent law experience by working as a technology transfer intern at Syracuse University. Upon graduation from law school, Amanda hopes to practice patent law at a large law firm, help its clients protect their technologies, and offer well-deserved security and recognition to innovators.
Alyssa D’Antonio is a recent graduate from Northeastern University, where she obtained her Masters Degree in Chemical Engineering. Alyssa’s interest in Intellectual Property began with her Cooperative Education (co-op) experience at Novartis-MIT Center for Continuous Manufacturing. During the co-op, Alyssa worked on a project involving the continuous manufacturing of a pharmaceutical product. Upon graduation, Alyssa hopes to work as a patent attorney, helping with the process of getting life-saving drugs from discovery to the pharmaceutical market.
Olivia, Amanda, and Alyssa are very excited and honored to be a part of the IP Honors Program. With the special attention they receive from faculty and career development counselors, in addition to the support from IPLC and the St. John’s community, the scholars are already on their way to becoming successful attorneys in the growing field of intellectual property law.
