June is LGBTQ+ Pride Month, a yearly celebration recognizing the profound impact that LGBTQ+ individuals have had on history, art, politics, and culture. This year is particularly significant.
On Memorial Day, we honor and give gratitude to the brave and selfless individuals who have proudly served our country.
This month, as we at LSAC celebrate diversity, equity, and inclusion in the legal profession, we wanted to share Laura’s story as an example of a legal professional who embodies a commitment to those values — and demonstrates the importance of making sure the doors of the legal system are open to all who seek justice.
Luisa Hernandez came to the United States from Venezuela with her family when she was 13. She didn’t speak English, lived in a low-income neighborhood, and attended a school that was struggling to meet its students’ needs. But a family role model helped her decide what she wanted to do with her life.
Derrick Sawyer made the decision to pursue a legal education later in life than most students do. For him, though, the desire to be a lifelong learner just comes naturally.
On this Veterans Day, as we salute those who serve or have served, we want to share Valentina’s story as an example of how military enlistment can play a vital role in achieving a law degree — and, in turn, help diversify the legal profession and make justice accessible for all.
n a previous blog post, we told you about how one student started her journey into the world of law via an event sponsored by the Law School Admission Council under its Diversity Matters grant program. Today, we share more stories of students who come from diverse backgrounds, but were able to discover that a legal education was within reach for them.
Abyan Gurase knew where she wanted to go; she just didn’t know how to get there. “I always knew I wanted to go to law school,” says Gurase, who was born in Somalia and came to the United States as a refugee when she was a young child. “But maybe back then, I didn’t know what it meant to be a lawyer.”
Today I am thrilled to introduce Flor Gonzalez, a 3L student at Chapman University’s Dale E. Fowler School of Law in California. Like Kendeil Dorvilier and Mamadou Jawo, Flor is already committed to doing work in the legal field that will advance equity, access, and diversity across our society.
This week I’m pleased to introduce Mamadou Jawo, whose journey to law school at the University of Wisconsin began in his childhood, in West Africa. There, one day after school, he went to see his father at the police station where his father worked, and what he saw there became a cornerstone in his dream of becoming a lawyer.
