St. Ambrose School, Schuylkill Haven, announced today that the National Catholic Educational Association (NCEA) has named Kimberly Bane Hynes a 2005 NCEA Catholic Elementary School Distinguished Graduate.
Attorney Hynes graduated in 1984 from the 8th Grade at St. Ambrose and is currently a member in the Health Law Department with the Cozen O’Connor Law Firm in Philadelphia (the Cozen O’Connor Law Firm has 23 offices nationally and internationally with 540 attorneys). She handles a variety of litigation, regulatory and transactional matters, including the structuring of integrated delivery systems and physician contracting. Additionally, she handles issues relating to Medicare fraud and abuse law, Stark and federal anti-Kickback law, Medicare reimbursement, compliance issues and general health care matters. Prior to joining Cozen O’Connor, she was an associate at the Philadelphia law firm of Miller, Alfano and Raspanti.
Kim is also a 1988 graduate of Nativity B.V.M. High School. In addition, she has a B.A. in Sociology/Political Science from Bucknell University. In 1992, she received her Juris Doctorate Degree from Temple University School of Law, serving on the Temple Political and Civil Rights Law Review. While a law student, she served as a law clerk for James G. Sheehan, Chief of Civil Division, U. S. Attorney’s Office – Health Care Fraud Unit. From 1995 through 1996, she clerked for the Honorable Stephen J. McEwen, Jr., President Judge of the Superior Court of Pennsylvania. She is a member of the American Bar Association, the American Health Lawyers Association, the Pennsylvania Bar Association and the Philadelphia Bar Association.
On September 14th, 2004, she was honored by the National Multiple Sclerosis Society as part of the MS Leadership Class of 2004. In addition, she received special recognition from guest of honor and host Pat Croce as one of the top three fundraisers of the 53 people in the Leadership Class.
In addition, she was recently elected to the Board of Directors of the Philadelphia Senior Center.
Attorney Hynes received the Pro Bono Service Award from her law firm for 2003 and 2004 in connection with the following: representing underprivileged children through the Philadelphia Support Center for Child Advocates, providing representation to an inmate charged with a parole violation, assisting a not-for-profit corporation seeking to provide clothing and necessities to newborns in need attain tax-exempt status, and assisting a volunteer ambulance company with Medicare reimbursement issues.
Kim is a volunteer for the Susan G. Komen Breast Cancer Foundation and a member of her neighborhood civic association.
She recently married Attorney Michael Hynes on September 6, 2003 and, in her spare moments, enjoys biking, swimming, hiking and running.
According to Kim, “St. Ambrose School gave me a foundation on which to build the rest of my life. The values taught, the friendships I made there and the educational process have been invaluable to me in my career and my life. The lessons learned there have enabled me to deal with life’s challenges, as well as to fully appreciate, and not take for granted, all of God’s blessings.”
Sponsored by the NCEA’s Department of Elementary Schools in cooperation with St. Ambrose School, the award goes to Kimberly Bane Hynes for exemplifying the highest qualities of Catholic Education and rendering distinguished service to the Catholic Church and the United States of America.
“It is with great pleasure that we recognize distinguished graduates from our Catholic elementary schools,” said Dr. Robert Kealey, executive director of NCEA’s Department of Elementary Schools, the award’s sponsor. “The education they received in the elementary years has provided a firm basis for growth and achievement in their adult lives.”
NCEA established the Distinguished Graduate Award out of a recognition that the significant accomplishments of Catholic elementary school alumni are a hallmark of Catholic education. These awards highlight “people who as adults put into practice the values and ideals they learned in their Catholic elementary schools,” added Dr. Kealey.
The first Distinguished Graduate Awards were made in 1991 by NCEA. As an award winner, Kimberly Bane Hynes joins a stellar group of hundreds of Catholic school alumni across the country. They include an FBI director, a governor, a missionary, a circuit court judge, a TV news producer, an Air Force combat training division chief, a senator, a mayor, a corporate president and a state representative.
This is the third year that St. Ambrose School has chosen an alumnus for a Distinguished Graduate Award. Candidates for this award were chosen from many outstanding alumni submitted to the St. Ambrose Development Office.
The St. Ambrose Distinguished Graduate Award will be presented to Attorney Kimberly Bane Hynes on Tuesday, June 7th following the Children’s Mass at 9:15 a.m. in St. Ambrose Church.
