May 2022

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Dean Renée McDonald Hutchins to depart UDC Law this summer

Read the university's official announcement.

Dean Renée McDonald Hutchins will leave UDC Law in August to take over the deanship of University of Maryland Francis King Kerry School of Law.

Dean Hutchins said, “Leading this remarkable institution has been the privilege of a lifetime. I am better for having been at UDC Law and I can only hope in turn the institution is stronger for my service. Getting to know you all, our amazing alumni, has also been a privilege. The legacy of UDC Law is strong, and I have no doubt it will continue to be so for another 50 years. Thank you for allowing me to lead such a remarkable group of tremendously talented future lawyers.”

The Class of 2022 pays it forward at Hooding Ceremony

Keynote Speaker James McMillan matches class gift

In a surprise announcement at the UDC Law Hooding Ceremony May 13, evening program representative DeMarcus Freeman and fellow graduate Cornelius Pope presented a $6,700 gift to the class of 2023 on behalf of the class of 2022. Keynote speaker James McMillan, CEO of ART@WAR Entertainment, later surprised the audience again by matching the gift for a total of $13,400 toward bar expenses for next year’s class.

Announcing the Mark Herzog Public Interest Scholarship

UDC Law launched the Mark Herzog Public Interest Scholarship, which was established to honor the memory of Mark Herzog, an attorney who spent over three decades working in public interest law.

Learn more about the scholarship.

Donate to the Mark Herzog Public Interest Scholarship

ALUMNI NEWS

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UDC Law Alumni Extended Bar Program - Summer 2022

Available for the Classes of 2020 and 2021

The UDC Law Alumni Extended Bar Program seeks to help alumni from the classes of 2020 and 2021 who have not yet passed a bar exam. The cost for alumni is $300. The Law School will pay the remainder of the program costs. The program will begin during the second week of June. We will meet in the evening starting at 6:15 p.m. The meetings will be weekly. There will be some weekend meetings in addition to the meetings held during the week. Meetings will take place online. Simulations will be in person.

THE PROGRAM OFFERS THE FOLLOWING:

Helix Bar Course
Adaptibar Multiple Choice Program
Weekly Essay Strategy Sessions
Weekly Essay Simulations
Weekly Essay Debriefs
Study Schedules (your bar coach will create a personalized schedule for you if necessary)
MPT Simulations
MPT Strategy Sessions
MPT Debriefs
Multiple Choice Strategy sessions
Multiple Choice Simulations
Multiple Choice Debriefs
Personal Bar Study Coach
48 hour return on most essay/MPT submissions

TO PARTICIPATE:

Please complete the order form and remit payment.
Email a copy your bar exam score report to Professor Sarah Knapp prior to first meeting
If your jurisdiction allows you to obtain your essay answers, please request them and email a copy to Professor Knapp prior to first meeting.

If you have any questions, please contact Professor Sarah Knapp at sarah.knapp@udc.edu.

Tom Devine '80 featured on NPR and Netflix

Tom Devine '80, Legal Director of the Government Accountability Project (GAP) and director of the UDC Law Whistleblower Protection Clinic, sat down with "On the Media" host Matt Katz to talk about increased protections for law enforcement whistleblowers.

GAP released a report pioneered by Karen Hopkins '16 and co-written by Kendrick Holley '18 addressing the importance of protections for law enforcement officers who report abuses by fellow police officers.

Would you join in a Netflix Watch Party featuring Meltdown and a discussion with Tom Devine?

Yes

Barbara Tommey Hope of Glory Scholarship honors cousin of Pearl Mansu '22

The scholarship supports a student working in or affected by domestic violence

The family of Barbara Tommey, including Pearl Mansu '22, has established the Barbara Tommey Hope of Glory Scholarship. Tommey, who is Mansu’s cousin, died Sept. 8, 2020, at the hands of an abusive partner. The scholarship will honor Tommey’s legacy by providing financial assistance to a student who is working toward a career in family law or has been impacted by domestic violence.

Learn more about the scholarship and Barbara Tommey.

CLASS NOTES

D’Annette Roy ’18 has been hired as director of legal affairs and business risk management for C-SPAN.

Class Notes May 2022

Want to keep up with your fellow alumni? Join the official UDC Law Alumni Facebook Group

Official UDC Law Alumni Facebook Group

SCHOOL NEWS

3L Tonya Harris wins national American Kennel Club writing contest on animal law

Rising 3L Tonya Harris won the 2021-2022 American Kennel Club (AKC) Companion Animal Law Writing Contest, a legal writing competition that invites submissions from law students around the United States. Harris receives a $2,500 cash prize for her winning entry.

Meet Tonya and read about her submission.

Rising 2L Imani Roberson receives Hennessy Fellowship for 2022-2023

Imani Roberson has been named to the Thurgood Marshall College Fund (TMCF) Hennessy Fellows Program, a partnership with Hennessy & Co. awarding a total of $10 million to high-achieving graduate students studying at HBCUs.

Learn more about Imani and the Hennessy Fellowship

3L Shawn Deadwiler chosen for ACS Next Generation Leaders program

Rising 3L Shawn Deadwiler has been selected to the American Constitution Society (ACS) 2022 Next Generation Leaders (NGL) program.

Get to know Shawn and learn about the American Constitution Society Next Generation Leaders program.

General Practice Family Defense Clinic students use experience to conduct Know Your Rights sessions

General Practice Family Defense Clinic students have represented mothers whose housing conditions present health concerns for their children, leading to a series of Know Your Rights presentations organized by Jamal Bailey '22 and rising 3L Elisa Ruano Velasquez.

Read about what students learned and shared.

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National Association of Women Lawyers seeking host committee members

Help plan the National Association of Women Lawyers (NAWL) 18^th General Counsel Institute by joining the GCI18 Host Committee. GCI18 will take place Thursday, November 10 through Friday, November 11, 2022, in New York City. It's the first in-person GCI conference since 2019.

Host committee members plan the conference and use their networks to ensure the event is a hit. Host committees are a great way to meet other NAWL members and help shape NAWL events.

Interested in joining the GCI18 Host Committee?

Contact NAWL Publications Manager, Isabell Retamoza, at iretamoza@nawl.org.

Participation is limited to in-house attorneys.

UDC Law turns 50; celebrate our golden anniversary all through 2022

2022 marks 50 years of UDC Law. We’re celebrating all year with special events, programming and other opportunities to celebrate the pioneering legacy of UDC Law. Through these efforts, we’re rededicating ourselves to our mission of diversifying the legal profession and serving the residents of the District of Columbia.

Join us throughout the year as we commemorate key moments from our 50-year history and invite our extended community to share in our efforts to achieve our mission. We will highlight our integral role in the early days of clinical legal education and how our clinical program remains an innovative and powerful tool for serving D.C. residents who could not otherwise afford legal services. We’ll hear from some of the transformative voices that have shaped our history and those that will shape our future. We’ll honor figures with whom our story could not have been told, and we’ll tell the stories that will shape our next 50 years.

We invite you to celebrate alongside us by sharing your UDC Law memories on social media using #UDCLaw50.