Melissa Burgess is a third year law student pursuing a concentration in homeland and national security law and is the Senior Articles Editor of the National Security Law Journal. She also serves as a law clerk at Mark Barnes & Associates, a firm specializing in firearms and explosives regulatory compliance. A Montana native, she attended Southern Methodist University, graduating summa cum laude with a B.A. in French and a B.M. in Violin Performance from SMU’s Meadows School of the Arts.