DiverseCITY Times | February 2021

The greatness of a community is most accurately measured by the compassionate actions of its members.

Dear Friends,

In honor of Black History Month, I am inspired by the words of Coretta Scott King especially during these times of healing from the trauma and turmoil many of us faced in 2020 and this year. With reflection and compassion, I am hopeful for a more promising future as it relates to the economy, politics, and overall health of our country.

The City Bar is full of compassionate and dedicated members. I am grateful to have benefited from the kindness and support of others during my journey from high school all the way through law school and beyond. I have been connected to the City Bar since 2005 as a high school student participant in the Thurgood Marshall Summer Law Internship Program, which is one of the pipeline programs offered through the City Bar’s Diversity Pipeline Initiatives Committee. As a participant of the program, I started to build a network and community of mentors, who would later help to guide my path to becoming a member of the bar. Of course, I learned practical information too about applying to college and deciding what to study to best prepare for a career in law.

I continued my relationship with the City Bar by giving back the same way others gave back to the community so that someone like me, a black first-generation American woman, can have the resources, knowledge, and confidence to navigate through the legal profession. I volunteered and shared my experiences and advice with students as I moved through the pipeline towards my professional goals.

Now, I humbly serve as Chair of the Diversity Pipeline Initiatives Committee, the same committee that helped to start me on my path to becoming a lawyer. It is an honor to collaborate with my fellow committee members, the Office of the Diversity and Inclusion, and Executive members of the City Bar to promote the diversity of the legal profession through service and compassion for students and lawyers of color in New York City and beyond. I encourage you to learn more about our programs, including our most recent LSAT Prep and Law School Conference geared to college students and professionals seeking to apply and attend law school.

In honor of Black History Month, I ask you to reflect on Mrs. King’s words and to offer compassion whenever you can. It will make a difference and we all can use a little compassion in our lives these days.

If you are looking for a structured way to show your compassion and make a difference, you can volunteer to network with high school students at the Thurgood Marshall Professional Development Series’ Part III: Office Etiquette workshop on February 9, 2021, 4:00 pm – 6:00 pm. Also, we are seeking summer employers for our Thurgood Marshall Summer Law Internship Program. If you are interested in hosting an underrepresented high school student, who attends a New York City public school for the 2021 summer, please register here. If you have any questions, contact Devanshi Shah, Senior Coordinator.

Also, don’t forget to take the time to celebrate your accomplishments and the accomplishments within your communities. Looking ahead, join us for our Black Heritage Month event, The Black Bar Association: Then & Now on February 18, 2021 at 5:00 pm.

Thank you for your time. I truly wish the best for you and your loved ones.

Sincerely,

Shanice

Shanice Naidu-Jimenez

Chair

Diversity Pipeline Initiatives Committee

New York City Bar Association

2019 Black History Month Celebration: Legal Luminaries of HBCUs

The 2021 Associate Leadership Institute nominations deadline has been extended to Friday, February 5, 2021. Contact us to learn more about the nominations process for the Office for Diversity and Inclusion’s fifth annual Associate Leadership Institute (ALI), the ABA award-winning series of high-level development trainings for mid-level and senior associates at the Office's signatory law firms. The Institute includes intensive training modules, keynote speakers and networking opportunities. Learn more about ALI here.

Celebrate Black Heritage Month! Join us on February 18, 2021, at 5:00 p.m. for a conversation on the history of Black bar associations and the critical role they play today. Register here.

The Diversity Pipeline Initiatives Committee and the Office for Diversity and Inclusion are seeking employers for the 2021 Thurgood Marshall Summer Law Internship Program, an intensive internship program that exposes diverse New York City high school students to the legal profession and provides them with professional development training. The 2021 Program will most likely be all-virtual.

If you have any questions, please contact Devanshi Shah, Senior Coordinator. To host an intern(s), please complete this form by Friday, May 7, 2021.

Thank you to the 600+ prospective law school students and 60+ law schools, test prep companies, and pipeline programs who attended our 12th Annual LSAT Prep and Law School Conference on January 13-14, 2021.

Special thanks to our speakers, including those pictured above (from left): Ariana Dindiyal, Secretary, Committee on Diversity Pipeline Initiatives; Declan McPherson, Member, Committee on Diversity Pipeline Initiatives; Sheila S. Boston, President, New York City Bar Association; David Levine, Chair, City Bar Fund Board of Directors; Shanice Naidu-Jimenez, Chair, Committee on Diversity Pipeline Initiatives; and Marcus Sandifer, Member, Committee on Diversity Pipeline Initiatives.

A HUGE thank you to our premier sponsor, Bloomberg Law, for their continued support. Learn more here.

Law firm and corporate sponsorship packages for 2021 are available now! See the 2021 Sponsorship Guides to learn what each sponsorship level entails, from professional development training to networking opportunities, admission to select events, support for diversity pipeline programming, and more. Should you have any questions, please contact the Office of Diversity & Inclusion.

We're on social media! Get connected now!

Diverse Members Wanted!

Diversity Pipeline Initiatives Committee

The Committee on Diversity Pipeline Initiatives works with the NYC Bar's Office of Diversity Pipeline Initiatives to sponsor more than a dozen programs annually to support students at all levels of the pipeline as they pursue a legal career. The Committee is made up of representatives from law firms, corporations, public interest organizations, and academic institutions, and is comprised of three subcommittees: High School Initiatives, Undergraduate Initiatives, and Sponsorship/Partnership. Contact Shanice Naidu, Chair, if you are interested in joining this committee.

National Moot Court Competition Committee

Interested in grading law school briefs and brainstorming on topics for next year's Competition? Admitted within the past five years? Consider joining the ranks of the New Lawyer's Moot Court Committee. For more information on how to join, please contact Stephanie Glazer, Moot Court Program Administrator.

Recruitment & Retention of Lawyers Committee

The Committee on Recruitment and Retention of Lawyers sponsors the City Bar’s 1L Diversity Fellowship Program. The goal of the Fellowship Program is to offer law students from under-represented populations a unique summer employment opportunity in outstanding New York City law firms and corporate law departments after their first year of law school. The Committee works throughout the year to successfully develop and administer the Fellowship Program. Contact Co-chairs, Muhammad A. Faridi and Michele Cerezo-Natal, if you are interested in joining this committee.

Collecting Resumes for:

Mid-size Law Firm, Northern, New Jersey
First-year law students
Volunteer Position with a State Supreme Court Judge
Law graduates and admitted attorneys (not currently employed at a law firm)

Applicants must have strong writing skills. Send your resume, for either opportunity, to diversity@nycbar.org.

Ameriprise Financial

Banking Attorney; if interested, please send your resume to diversity@nycbar.org

Clarion Partners

Internal Counsel, Legal & Compliance

*City of New York, New York, NY

Assistant Counsel

General Counsel

Law Student (for student)

Center for Constitutional Rights

Ella Baker Summer Internship Program (for law students)

Chicago State University

General Counsel, Chief Compliance Officer and Vice President of Legal Affairs

Clifford Chance LLP

Mid-level Bankruptcy & Restructuring Attorney (ref: JR-1155)

Mid-level Corporate/PE Funds Attorney (ref:JR-1509)

Mid-level Structured Finance Attorney (ref: JR-722)

Corporate/ Insurance M&A Contract Attorney (ref: JR-483)

Davis Polk & Wardwell LLP

Pro Bono Attorney for Systemic Racial Justice Initiatives

Emma Willard School

Director of Institutional Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion

Environmental Law Institute

Environmental Justice Lead

Facebook

Vice President & Associate General Counsel

Federal Judicial Internship

Honorable Dora L. Irizarry, U.S. District Judge for the Eastern District of NY

*Fordham University, New York, New York

Senior Associate, Strategic Sourcing

Fragomen, New York, NY

Business Immigration Analyst (Assistant Paralegal)

Business Immigration Associate

Legal Staff Paralegal

Frankfurt Kurnit Klein & Selz PC

Legal Billing Coordinator

Mid-Level Associate, Real Estate

*Goldman Sachs

Legal, Bank Regulatory Attorney, Vice President

Institute for Justice and Democracy in Haiti (IJDH), New York, NY

Development and Communications Coordinator

Operations Manager

Legal Information for Families Today (LIFT), New York, NY

Institutional Advancement Coordinator

Lerch Early & Brewer, Bethesda, MD

Business/Transactions Attorney

New York City Bar Association

Executive Director, City Bar Justice Center

Contractor Consultant Opportunity

Staff Attorney - Planning and Estates Law Project (PELP)

Veterans Assistance Project – Project Director (Attorney)

*New York State Office of the Attorney General, New York City and Albany, NY

Assistant Attorney General (multiple positions)

Chief, Antitrust Bureau

Deputy Bureau Chief, Health and Human Services Practice Group

Deputy Bureau Chief, Law Enforcement Practice Group

Senior Counsel, Division of Economic Justice

*Nixon Peabody

Real Estate Department Attorney, Cooperatives & Condominiums Team

Affordable Housing Associate, Affordable Housing and Real Estate Practice Group

*Robin Hood, New York, NY

Graphic Designer

Director, Planned Giving

Schrödinger

Employment Lawyer

Securities and Exchange Commission

Attorney Advisor

Senior Officer - Deputy Chief Counsel

Senior Officer - Supervisory General Attorney

*The Innocence Project

Chief of Staff

Legal Policy Fellow

Staff Attorney, Strategic Litigation

Staff Attorney, Post-conviction Litigation

*The Legal Aid Society, New York, NY

Criminal Defense Practice

Civil Practice

Juvenile Rights Practice

United States District Court, SDNY

Magistrate Judge, SDNY

*U.S. Bank

Regulatory Attorney, Assistant General Counsel (Position number: 200022946)

Volunteers of Legal Service (VOLS)

Executive Director

*Wellspring Philanthropic Fund

Chief Operating Officer

Deputy Director of Information Systems and Security

Global Children's Rights Program Director, Washington DC

*Westchester County District Attorney’s Office, Westchester, NY

Attorney Positions - Email your cover letter and resume to Victor Olds, First Deputy District Attorney.

*Additional Openings Available

Executive Institute on Inclusion (EII): A Unique DEI Program Focused on Systemic Change

The Executive Institute on Inclusion (EII) is a program where corporate America works together with our faculty and channel partners to achieve equity and advance opportunities for all. All across the country, companies that engage with the EII will:

Make a commitment to achieve fair practices and equity;
Focus on the power of their own institutions’ policies, practices, pay and pipeline; and
Work in partnership with the EII to create and implement sustainable plans.

To learn more, view this flyer and contact Tiffany Archer , Faculty Member, Executive Institute on Inclusion.

Justice In Action

TestMax is proud to announce their commitment to sponsor 1,000 future lawyers over the course of the next 5 years through our comprehensive Justice In Action program that will help the next generation of lawyers from underrepresented populations as they pursue legal careers.

Nonprofit New York, New York, NY

Nonprofit New York hosts a wide range of trainings from planning and evaluation to financial management to fundraising and resource development to communications and more. All trainings are open to staff or board member of a current Nonprofit New York member organization and non-member organization.

Leg Up Legal discovered a legal mentoring program called Leg Up Legal focused on improving diversity at the earliest levels of the legal talent pipeline. Leg Up Legal's program connects prospective law students to attorney mentors to help them learn more about the legal profession, build their first professional relationships, and find support for their future careers. The program targets prospective law students who are underrepresented minorities, first-generation students, and low-income students. They are currently looking for more volunteer attorney mentors. To learn more about the program and sign-up, please visit www.leguplegal.com/attorneys.

Corporate Counsel Women of Color Mentor Signup

Pay it Forward

Looking to donate some of your time to create access for Black individuals who want to get into or grow within the startup and/or marketing world? Sign up!

The Laundromat Project Board Call

Do you believe in the transformative power of art and community to create change? Are you a committed individual who values centering the voices, cultures, imaginations, knowledge, and leadership of people of color (POC)? If so, we invite you to explore the possibility of LP board service!

Dear Future Colleague (DFC) is a new non-profit that seeks to address educational inequity by providing guidance to underrepresented students applying to graduate school (starting with law school as a pilot program) and competitive scholarships. While the American education system is often referred to as a “meritocracy,” pervasive systemic barriers prevent the application process from being a level playing field. DFC seeks to help change that.

If you’re a current law school applicant looking for a mentor, please fill out this survey to be matched.
If you're a current law school students or alumnus that is willing to mentor an underrepresented law school applicant, please fill out this survey.

DFC is also seeking current law students or alumni who were themselves underrepresented applicants that would be willing to share their application experience or law school/career journey in order to help inspire others. Please contact Nancy Fairbank if you are interested in sharing your story, or if you'd like to learn more DFC and how to get involved.

iMentor is seeking mentors to work with students for the 2020-2021 school year. iMentor is a college access and success organization that leverages the power of one-to-one mentor-mentee relationships to help students achieve their college and post-secondary goals. Many students have been affected by the current COVID-19 crisis, with their personal and academic lives severely affected. They need mentors now more than ever to help guide them through these challenging times.

If you are interested in becoming a mentor, you can start your application here. If you have any questions, you can reach out to Steven Joseph, Manager of Corporate & Community Engagement.

The Belonging Project is seeking volunteer mentors, who will be paired with law students and/or lawyers who sign up requesting a mentor. As a mentor your role is to lean on your experience and knowledge and be available to answer questions, give advice, and talk through with your mentees' obstacles they may be trying to navigate. If you sign up as a mentor we ask that you:

Place a call to your assigned mentee within a week of the assignment;
Commit to meeting with your mentee at least once a month (the mentee will drive the relationship and schedule virtual meetings);
Provide feedback when requested by The Belonging Project administrative team;
Sign Up Here

Virtual Mentoring Portals

Don't let physical distancing equate social distancing. Mentor the youths of today, the professionals of tomorrow. The Virtual Mentoring Portals are safe and monitored mentoring platforms for mentors and mentees to continue their relationships while they may be separated due to COVID-19.

Safe Passage Project

Want to take action for immigrant children at risk? The Safe Passage Project is looking for 250 new pro bono attorneys to represent immigrant children at risk. Prior immigration experience is NOT required. Sign up to learn more.

The Office for Diversity and Inclusion is a part of the City Bar Fund, the 501(c)(3) arm of the New York City Bar Association. Our EIN is 13-6003018.