VCU Massey Center names internship for attorney

Virginia Commonwealth University’s Massey Cancer Center has established an internship named for Hunton Andrews Kurth LLP Partner Rudene Mercer Haynes, the law firm announced last week.

“I am humbled by this honor and pledge to continue my support of the live-saving and life-changing work performed by the brilliant clinicians and researchers at VCU Massey Cancer Center every day,” Haynes said in a statement.

In the Rudene Mercer Haynes Clinical Trials Office Summer Internship, interns are meant to develop an appreciation for the role academic medicine has in cancer research and the impact of research on cancer disparities.

The six-week internship will support rising third-years, fourth-years or prospective 2022 graduates interested in learning about clinical research. Interns will receive a $2,820 stipend based on 30 hours of commitments per week.

Haynes is a hiring partner of Hunton Andrews Kurth and serves on the Goals and Metrics Subcommittee of the firm’s Diversity and Inclusion Committee. In 2021, Haynes was one of The National Black Lawyers’ Top 100 lawyers. Haynes was also a recipient of the Virginia Business Women in Leadership Award in 2021.

She was part of the trio that created “Facts & Faith Fridays,” a series of weekly calls with the Black faith community to provide information on COVID-19, transmission, vaccination and improving outcomes. Both Dr. Anthony Fauci and first lady Jill Biden have joined the discussions.

In 2021, Haynes received the Humanitarian Award from the Richmond chapter of Virginia Center for Inclusive Communities. Additionally, she has served on the advisory board of the Massey Center since July 2020.

“Rudene Mercer Haynes embodies the spirit of service that VCU Massey Cancer holds as one of its guiding principles,” Tremayne D. Robertson, Massey’s director for diversity, equity and inclusion, said in a statement. “The interns selected to participate in the Rudene Mercer Haynes CTO Summer Internship will be expected live up to her standard of excellence, service and humor.”