Professional and Eduational Background
Personal Background
Community Involvement
Curriculum Vitae
Professional and Educational Background
Laura Petelle opened her firm in January, 2005, after her admission to the Illinois Bar. Ms. Petelle was awarded a full scholarship to Duke University School of Law, and jointly enrolled there and at Duke University Divinity School. She graduated with a law degree and a Master of Theology Studies degree in May of 2004.
Laura Petelle is an adjunct professor of philosophy at Illinois Central College. She primarily teaches ethics classes, including business and medical ethics.
While in law school, Ms. Petelle, who has a strong commitment to equal access to the law and the rights of the economically disadvantaged, clerked at the Hillsborough office of Legal Aid of North Carolina and the Duke Law Community and Economic Development Clinic, participating in that program its first semester in existence. She also spent a summer as a legal intern at the Student Press Law Center, serving as a First Amendment advocate for student journalists.
Ms. Petelle worked as a research assistant on the Arizona Jury Project, and created her own research project entitled "A Guide to the Law for Pastors." She presented this project to graduating seniors at Duke Divinity School, to help them prepare for the legal climate facing pastors. The project was conceived when Ms. Petelle became aware of the poor understanding many ministers had of the legal issues that surrounded their everyday work in ministry, as well as the anxiety they felt over confidentiality issues and sex abuse issues. Ms. Petelle is currently developing this project into a book, and continues to give talks to seminarians preparing to begin their ministries. For more information on this project or to find out how to have Ms. Petelle talk to your seminary class or area ministers, click here.
Personal Background
Laura Petelle is a native of Illinois, who grew up outside Chicago. She is the oldest of four children. Ms. Petelle attended college at the University of Notre Dame in Indiana, where she graduated magna cum laude with a B.A. in theology and in government and international studies. While at Notre Dame, she lived in Lyons Hall, worked as a student journalist, and served as president of the Arts and Letters Student Advisory Council. She won the Gertrude Austin Marti Award for excellence in theology, and was named Columnist of the Year in 2000 by the Indiana Collegiate Press Association. She was also a member of Pi Sigma Alpha, the political science honors society.
Ms. Petelle is an avid musician who has been playing bass for fourteen years; she is classically and jazz trained. A voracious reader, Ms. Petelle also does hand embroidery in her free time. She is a fifth-generation Cubs fan.
Ms. Petelle and her husband, a native of Florida, left big-city D.C. for Ms. Petelle’s beloved Midwest and a smaller-city lifestyle. They settled on Peoria after falling in love with the area and being charmed by its people. Ms. Petelle and her husband were married in 2002 at Sacred Heart Cathedral in Raleigh, N.C. Her husband is a Peoria-area litigator.
Community Involvement
As an active member of the Junior League of Peoria, Ms. Petelle is involved in a variety of community projects sponsored by the Junior League, most importantly the Peoria PlayHouse Children's Museum. She also enjoys taking classes through various community organizations, and teaches craft classes through the Peoria Park District. She and her husband attend St. Philomena Catholic Church in Peoria.