A King Hall Saturday: KHOP and Basketball

It was a busy and enjoyable Saturday at UC Davis School of Law.

The law school opened its doors to the first session of the King Hall Outreach Program (KHOP) winter session.  Twelve undergraduate students from UC Berkeley, UC Davis, and San Francisco State -- all interested in law school -- came for the first in a series of Saturdays where they will learn the basics of the law school application process.  KHOP was recently honored by the American Bar Association Council for Racial and Ethnic Diversity with the 2016 Alexander Award for Excellence in Pipeline Diversity. The award honors KHOP's success in working to foster diversity in the "educational pipeline" leading to law school admission.  Established in 2001, KHOP is a unique program that helps first-generation and economically disadvantaged college students prepare for the law school admissions process.  The program provides mentoring and pre-law advising during the school year and also takes eligible college juniors and seniors through summer sessions in which they learn writing, analytical, and logical reasoning skills, study techniques for taking the Law School Admission Test (LSAT), and explore career paths available to law school graduates.  

I joined the students for lunch and talked a bit about how I ended up in law school and the practice of law.  The students, most of whom were first generation college students, were eager to learn about law schools, the admissions process, and the basics about what lawyers do.  I told them about special community that we have at UC Davis School of Law.  I very much enjoyed meeting the group, hearing their enthusiasm, and feeling their energy.

That afternoon, students, faculty, and staff attended a doubleheader of UC Davis basketball.  We had a great time.  New law professor Jasmine Harris brought her children Lilyana and Lincoln along (pictured here with Gunrock), and they sat with me in the first row for much of the game. 

Bill Mantle '74, a dedicated King Hall alum and sports fan, traveled down from Seattle to watch high quality Aggie basketball.  Alumni board President Alberto Roldan '92 brought his son to the game. Professor Albert Lin brought his family.   

At halftime, the law school crowd joined a group of former players and supporters at a "chalk talk" with Men's basketball coach Jim Les and Athletic Director Teresa Gould.  AD Gould noted the many School of Law folks in attendance and thanked us for our support.

The Aggie women crushed UC Santa Barbara in a one-sided game in which the level of play was phenomenal -- good passing, great shooting, superior post play.  The Aggie men fought a grind-it-out victory over archrival Cal Poly San Luis Obispo.  The Aggies pulled away at the end.  It really was an exciting game!