ABF’s Portrait Project 2.0 Study Cited in ABC 11 Story About NCCU School of Law Diversity Grant

ABC 11 referenced findings from the ABF’s Portrait Project 2.0 study, “Who’s Going to Law School? Trends in Law School Enrollment Since the Great Recession” in its story about a $100,000 diversity grant for North Carolina Central University School of Law. The study, which was published in the UC Davis Law Review, states that Hispanic and Black students are underrepresented in law schools nationwide, comprising only 12.7% and 7.8% of student populations respectively in 2019. NCCU Law will use the grant, which was provided by the Law School Admission Council, to fund a summer law school pipeline program for a cohort of 30 students from HBCUs and UNC Pembroke, a historically American Indian university. Portrait Project 2.0 is led by ABF Executive Director and Research Professor Ajay Mehrotra, ABF Research Social Scientist Shih-Chun Chien, and California Supreme Court Justice Goodwin Liu.

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Below are highlights from our Fellows news segment, Fellows in the News. You can view many more on our website here. Please send Fellows in the News submissions to [email protected].

Honorable Adrienne Camille Nelson 

Mississippi Fellow

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"Building the Rule of Law: Firsthand Accounts from a Thirty-Year Global Campaign"

World Justice Project Director and Treasurer James Silkenat, Miller & Chevalier Chartered Senior Counsel Homer Moyer, Steptoe and Johnson Diversity and Inclusion Director Michael E. Flowers, and World Justice Project Executive Director Elizabeth Andersen

On December 14, 2021, the ABF Fellows held a virtual panel discussion recognizing the publication of a new book, Building the Rule of Law: Firsthand Accounts from a Thirty-Year Global Campaign. The conversation was moderated by Patron Fellow and World Justice Project Director/Treasurer James Silkenat, one of the book’s editors, and included remarks from Fellow and World Justice Project Executive Director Elizabeth Andersen, Life Fellow and Steptoe and Johnson Diversity and Inclusion Director Michael E. Flowers, and Miller & Chevalier Chartered Senior Counsel Homer Moyer, all of whom contributed a chapter to the volume. The panelists reflected on 30 years of volunteer efforts that legal professionals at every level have made to promote the rule of law internationally, agreeing that the “Rule of Law” is an abstract but important concept that lawyers have a responsibility to identify and defend. 

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Minnesota Court of Appeals Judge and ABF Fellow Peter Reyes was born to practice law, he just didn’t know it. The environmental scientist-turned-intellectual property expert hit the ground running after obtaining his juris doctor from William Mitchell College of Law in 1997, going on to advance IP practice and diversity in the legal profession through his frequent speaking engagements and his leadership with the Hispanic National Bar Association and Minnesota Hispanic Bar Association. Judge Reyes is a member of the ABA House of Delegates and Commission on Hispanic Legal Rights and Responsibilities, as well as the ABF’s Fellows Research Advisory Committee (FRAC), where he shares his insights and feedback with ABF researchers. 

A: First and foremost, it means supporting critical empirical and interdisciplinary research regarding the law. Second, I have had the wonderful opportunity to provide feedback on this research as a member of the Fellows Research Advisory Committee. And third is the opportunity to interact with other Fellows.

A: I was born and raised in St. Paul, Minnesota. I attended college at the University of St. Thomas in St. Paul (the first in my family of Mexican immigrants) and law school at Mitchell Hamline in St. Paul. I am a proud Minnesotan.

A: The law is actually my second career. I originally went to law school to further my first career as an environmental scientist. But I took a number of intellectual property courses and was hooked. I decided to change careers and practice law instead. It has been an incredible journey.

Q: If you hadn’t pursued a career in law, what would you have done? 

A: I would probably be working in the environmental field, and eventually doing some type of advocacy work. As a lawyer, I loved advocating for others. As a judge, I now have the opportunity to advocate for justice.

A: I love spending time with friends and family. I enjoy music, traveling, boating, fishing, reading, and making new friends.

A: I believe I am living the American Dream. My personal brand is to put others in a position to succeed. I am grateful for all of the opportunities I have had, and appreciate the chance to give back to the community.

We have had the pleasure of welcoming over 100 New Fellows to the ABF community since September 1, 2021. Click here to see a list of our newest members.

We are grateful for your generosity and continued support. Please click here to make your contribution for this fiscal year which began on September 1, 2021.

Primary funding for the ABF is provided by the American Bar Endowment and the Fellows of the American Bar Foundation.

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