The Stueve Siegel Hanson law firm based in Kansas City donated $500,000 to support Alfred Friendly Press Partners at the Missouri School of Journalism.
The Stueve Siegel Hanson Fund for Press Freedom will support a journalist working to improve the legal system or race relations in his or her home country.
Alfred Friendly Press Partners trains early-career journalists from countries with underdeveloped media to practice professional, ethical, and innovative journalism. The nonprofit organization, established in 1984, provides hands-on training in U.S. and international newsrooms and within the Missouri School of Journalism.
Pat Stueve talks with Fellows from Turkey, Cuba and South Africa during a reception at the law firm in Kansas City in 2016
Randy Smith, Donald W. Reynolds Endowed Chair in Business Journalism, professor at MU and president of Alfred Friendly Press Partners, said the gift is reflective of Stueve Siegel Hanson’s tireless work on behalf of a just society.
“Patrick Stueve and his wife, Janna, have been thought leaders for years with the Alfred Friendly Foundation, where Pat is also a board member,” he said. “This transformative gift from Stueve Siegel Hanson underscores the continuing generosity of the firm – and their strong belief that a free press can change our world for the better.”
In 2017, the Stueve family foundation sponsored its first Alfred Friendly Fellow, Binita Dahal, who works for BBC’s Nepal news service. She has a law degree and has reported extensively on the legal issues in her country. The Stueves funded the fellowships of Bilge Kotan of Turkey in 2020 and Juan Garcia of Guatemala in 2018, while Siegel helped fund the fellowship of Yan Zhang of China in 2019.
Jonathan Friendly, chairman of the nonprofit organization, said, “From its beginning in 1983, the Alfred Friendly Foundation was built on the idea of operating as a family. It is exciting to have another family, Janna and Pat Steuve, sharing the enthusiasm for training journalists to make a better informed world.”
The law firm announced Nov. 29 that it will also donate $500,000 to establish the Stueve Siegel Hanson Law Scholarship to support Black students at the MU School of Law.
Stueve, co-founder of Stueve Siegel Hanson and treasurer of the Alfred and Jean Friendly Foundation Board, said the two gifts complement the firm’s commitment to the pursuit of justice.
“We want to be an agent of positive change in the legal system,” Stueve said. “It is critical that we support diverse legal minds to serve as our next generation of attorneys, advocates, judges and legislators, and it is critical that we support journalists who can bring transparency and accountability to governments around the world.”
Norman Siegel, co-founder of Stueve Sigel Hanson, said the gift is a meaningful way to commemorate the firm’s 20th anniversary.
“Achieving ‘Justice for All’ is not possible without action, especially from those of us who have succeeded in law,” Siegel said. “We are honored to be able to invest in a more diverse and accountable legal system, and we hope other law firms will join us in this pursuit.”
Pat and Janna accept an award from Alfred Friendly presented by Randy Smith during a gala in Washington in 2018
