Second Annual BLSA Awards Gala Recognizes UCI Law Alumna, Faculty and Staff
UCI Law’s Black Law Student Association (BLSA) held its second annual awards gala Saturday, April 6. The event brought together leaders and change makers in the legal community to celebrate UCI Law students, alumni, faculty and staff.
Highlights of the evening included a keynote address by the Honorable Andre Birotte Jr. of the U.S. District Court (Central District), remarks from Dean L. Song Richardson, and a touching send-off of BLSA graduates of the Class of 2019.
The gala also provided an opportunity to recognize members of the UCI Law community for excellence in the legal field. UCI Law alumna Denisha McKenzie ’12, Associate Attorney at Carothers DiSante & Freudenberger LLP, received the Legal Trailblazer Award; Professor of Law Kaaryn Gustafson received the Faculty of the Year Award; and Assistant Director of Admissions Amanda Smith received the Administrator of the Year Award.
The BLSA Awards Gala is a fundraising event to provide scholarships to outstanding, underrepresented UCI Law students. Sponsors included Antioch Fellowship Missionary; Baptist Church, Dallas, TX; UCI Center for Black Cultures, Resources & Research; Crowell & Moring LLP; Jay & Traci Ferguson; Kirkland & Ellis LLP; Milbank, Tweed, Hadley & McCloy LLP; UCI Office of Inclusive Excellence; Tork Law; and the Thurgood Marshall Bar Association.
The 2018-19 Executive Board of BLSA at UCI Law includes Co-Chairs Rose Lyn ’20 and Kellen Nelson ’20, Secretary/Treasurer Travone Davis ’20, and Educational Outreach Chair Oluwatobi Agbelemose ’20.