Each year, the Saint James School Alumni Council honors an alumnus or alumna who has distinguished himself or herself with outstanding service to the School and to society. This award is always a surprise, with the recipient’s name not being announced until the Alumni Dinner. After two years of waiting, the Alumni Council was very pleased to be able to present Maria “KiKi” Karos ’82 with the Outstanding Alumni Award, the first woman to receive this honor.

KiKi was seated with her husband, John, step-daughter, Julia, and two tables full of her Class of 1982 classmates when Alumni Council president Kimberley Medrano '04 made the award announcement. 

KiKi and her classmates were celebrating their 40th anniversary and have remained close over the years, typically getting together each Alumni Weekend, whether it’s a reunion year or not.  She said it was special to have her family and friends there with her when she received the award.  

As an SJS student, KiKi was a member of the Orpheus Society, the Irving Society, the Choir, the Yearbook Club, and the Library Committee. She was also an athlete whose sports included dance, field hockey, tennis, and swimming.

KiKi received her B.A. in Economics from Randolph-Macon Woman’s College before earning her J.D. from Cumberland School of Law at Samford University. Since graduating from law school, she has been in private practice in Dallas, specializing in business litigation and defense of catastrophic injury cases. She has tried cases throughout the country and was recently inducted into the American Board of Trial Advocates. She is active on several leadership committees within her firm. She is also a member of the International Association of Defense Council, a Board Member for the Women in the Law Empowerment Forum, and a member of the National Association of Women Lawyers.

KiKi said she did not immediately realize that she was the first female to receive the Alumni Award, but that it is a distinction that is very meaningful to her. 

“I take a lot of pride in representing women in my job because when I started practicing law 32 years ago, I would go to court, and I was the only woman who wasn’t the court clerk or court clerk reporter,” she said. “Often times, I was mistaken for court staff or someone’s paralegal. I’ve always prided myself on being a first in my profession for trying cases and being the first to sponsor woman’s and girl’s programs, so this was very special to me.”

KiKi was part of only the second graduating class to include females at Saint James. She said it wasn’t something she thought about at the time because her class was so small, and she had her close girlfriends and considered the boys to be like brothers.  She thought of Father Owens, Mr. Hoyer, Mr. Barr, and Mr. Meehan as fatherly-type figures who you never wanted to disappoint.

“Saint James was highly competitive academically and highly competitive athletically, and all of that was fostered in an environment where faith was extremely important,” she said. “We knew what the expectations were and we chose to live up to them.”

KiKi said the sense of camaraderie between faculty and students at Saint James was unique.
“There was a feeling of ‘we are in this with you, and we want you to succeed in all aspects of your life, and we are giving you the tools to do that,’” she said. “I always knew that if I stumbled at any point, Saint James would be there for me. You know your parents are going to be there, but to have a community that you’re not related to and having that security is something that I will forever be grateful for.”

KiKi has always been committed to community service, a practice that started at home with her parents and was reinforced at Saint James. Her service work includes founding the first ballet program at the Dallas-area Boys and Girls Club. She also chaired and sponsored events benefiting Make-A-Wish Foundation, Jonathan’s Place, North Texas Food Bank, and others. 
“I had two strong role models that gave a lot of time back to public service. My dad was in politics and public service for 50+ years and my mom was very active in the church and a lot of social organizations that were charity-based,” KiKi said. “It was always an expectation in our household, and most of the time they weren’t financial contributions because there wasn’t enough money to pass around. So, it is a blessing to be able to continue to do both; to not only give our time but be fortunate enough to financially contribute.”

KiKi has been a consistent donor to Saint James, making her first gift to the Annual Fund while still in college, and generously supporting the latest capital campaign. She also serves on the Saint James Board of Trustees, with her legal background, leadership skills, and financial knowledge a major asset to the School. 

“I love the diversity of thought that comes from being on the Board, and the free exchange of ideas, and listening to different perspectives. It’s very rewarding to me, and I think the School is better served with diverse viewpoints,” she said. “You’ve got people in medicine and lawyers and people with administrative backgrounds and fundraising, and I love listening to people with expertise in those areas sharing their thoughts and ideas. I’ve been on numerous other boards and committees where that is not always the case. I think this board is very active and the School has made some incredibly great steps forward, and it’s nice to be a part of that as well.”
KiKi exemplifies leading for good, and we congratulate her for being honored with the Alumni Award.