Katie Jo Luningham

B.A. ’11, Fort Worth, Texas

Career Experience

Katie Jo (Baumgardner) Luningham is an attorney at Alston & Bird, practicing civil litigation and appellate law. She earned a B.A. in University Scholars, summa cum laude with honors, from Baylor in 2011, attending as a National Merit Scholar on a full academic scholarship. In 2015, Luningham earned a J.D., magna cum laude, from Notre Dame Law School. At Alston & Bird, she represents institutions of higher education and defends clients in privacy and data security litigation. She previously served as a law clerk for Judge Branch on the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Eleventh Circuit. Prior to clerking, Luningham was an attorney at Husch Blackwell, specializing in higher education litigation and regulatory compliance.

Board Experience

Luningham has served as an alumni-elected regent on Baylor’s Board of Regents since 2018. She is currently the vice chair of the Audit, Compliance & Regulatory Affairs Committee and has served as a member of the Academic Affairs, Finance & Facilities, Student Life, and University Leadership & Compensation committees. Luningham also previously served on the U.S. Senate Youth Program Alumni Association’s national board.

Awards and Honors

Luningham is recognized by The Best Lawyers “Ones to Watch” for commercial litigation. In 2019, she delivered the keynote address at the Baylor Academic Honors Convocation. She was a member of the legal team that won the 2017 Education Law Association’s award for “Best Brief” and a Missouri Bar Pro Bono Wall of Fame honoree for her commitment to pro bono legal service. In 2015, Luningham was awarded a Burton Distinguished Writing Award by the U.S. Library of Congress for Excellence in Legal Writing for her article on Higher Education and Administrative Law.

Baylor Philanthropy

A Crane Scholar during her studies at Baylor, Luningham has continued to support the Institute for Faith and Learning and the Crane Scholars Program. She also supports Baylor’s University Scholars and Honors College Excellence Funds.

Church/Christian Mission Affiliations

Luningham and her family are members of St. Paul Lutheran Church in Fort Worth and are avid supporters of the WELS Thai Village mission.