Alumni

2009 Young Alumni Excellence Award

andiAndi Frieden

Western Illinois University graduate Aundrea "Andi" Frieden has been named the inaugural recipient of the WIU Young Alumni Excellence Award. Frieden was recognized Saturday, May 16 at the Spring 2009 Commencement Exercises.

Click here to read Frieden's Commencement Weekend remarks. (PDF)

The Young Alumni Excellence Award is presented to an alumnus/na who has demonstrated exceptional accomplishments in his/her chosen field, exceptional service in local, state or national affairs and exceptional service in support of the advancement and continued excellence of Western, and is not yet 35 years of age.

Frieden, a 1996 political science and pre-law graduate, is a partner with Gibbs & Bruns, LLP in Houston, TX. While she focuses much of her practice on securities matters, the scope of her litigation experience includes contract, environmental, construction, oil and gas, medical malpractice, intellectual property and directors' liability matters. Her practice has included representation of the Enron Board of Directors in connection with that company's iconic end, as well as pro bono representation of the City of Houston in defense of its air pollution ordinance.

While at Western, Frieden was an Honors scholar, a member and assistant coach of the Western Debate Team, a member of Phi Kappa Phi, a resident assistant, the Lincoln Laureate graduate and the 1996 Honors Convocation student speaker. Following graduation from Western, Frieden served as a performance auditor in the Illinois Office of the Auditor General. She then went on to obtain her juris doctorate from the University of Illinois College of Law in 2000. During law school Frieden clerked for the Illinois Attorney General and served as articles editor for the University of Illinois Law Review. Following graduation from UIUC, she practiced with Jenner & Block LLC in Chicago before moving to Houston, TX.

Frieden has been named a "Rising Star" by Legal Media's guide "Benchmark: Litigation" (2009); a "Texas Rising Star" by Texas Super Lawyers (2008-2009); and one of Houston's "Lawyers on the Fast Track" and “Professionals on the Fast Track” by H-Magazine (2004; 2008).

She is a member of the Houston Bar Association and is affiliated with the U.S. Courts of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit, the U.S. District Courts for the Southern and Eastern Districts of Texas and the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Illinois. She is licensed to practice law in Illinois and Texas.

Frieden is a current member of the Western Illinois University President's National Advisory Council. She and her husband Joe Gulley have also established the C. Robin Frieden Memorial Scholarship at Western in honor of her mother.


View Past Recipients