BLSA/Project Pipeline Shadow Day
This past Friday, I had the opportunity to participate in the UC Davis Law Black Law Student Association (BLSA)/Project Pipeline "Day in the Life" Shadow Day, which took place as part of King Week, the Law School’s annual celebration of the legacy of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. Jihan Kahssay '12, Joanna Cuevas Ingram '12, Philip Person '11, and Sumair Khan '13 of BLSA organized an entire day designed to open the doors to educational opportunity--connecting current King Hall law students with local middle and high school age students from underrepresented communities--to expose students to critical legal analysis and the Socratic method early on, and to share the experiences of successful King Hall students and attorneys.
Thirty-three eager seventh- and eighth-grade students from Sacramento's Smythe Academy Middle School had an action-packed day here at King Hall, replete with: A "Scavenger Hunt," and mock Office Hours with a number of faculty, our UC Davis Law Career Services Office, and the UC Davis Law Academic Support Office; a mini Torts 101 Class generously presented by Professor Lisa Pruitt; a College Prep Game Show developed by Philip Person '11 and hosted by Joanna Cuevas Ingram '12 and Brandon Howard '13; a guest lecture by criminal defense attorney Keith Staten and delicious lunch; and a mini Moot Court Competition, judged by Judge Raoul Thorbourne of the Sacramento County Superior Court, with excellent coaching from our wonderful student volunteers!
Big thanks go out to all our law students who volunteered for this amazing event and made an indelible impression on these young advocates last Friday, including: Charles Oshinuga '11, Kyle Morishita '11, Layla Razavi '11, Kristen Busby '12, Elizabeth Crockett '12, Krista Della-Piana '12, Parissa Ebrahimzadeh '12, Kurtis Keller '12, John Stoller '12, Christian Acevedo '13, Ali Beheshti '13, Brenden Blake '13, Luong Chau '13, Charles Hellstrom '13, Eliza Hook '13, Fitz King '13, Fabiola Larios '13, Embert Madison '13, and Laurie Meinke '13.
Here's a photo of the students of Smythe Academy with Judge Thorbourne, smiling after receiving their Certificates of Completion for participating in the program and the Moot Court Competition!
