USF Law Diversity Committee Wins ABA Award

The award is presented annually to a student, faculty, administrator, or student organization from an ABA-approved law school.

Whitney O'Sullivan 3L (left), primary ABA representative, and Ben Lewis 3L, 2010–2011 SBA president, accept the ABA diversity award on behalf of the USF School of Law.

“I am grateful to work at an institution as equally passionate about diversity as it is about academic rigor,” Assistant Dean for Student Affairs Erin Dolly said. “While the course work, clinics, and international programs at the law school are challenging, the environment and sense of community encourages communication and collaboration, allowing diverse interests and ideas to flourish.

The SBA Diversity Committee helped organize a series of diversity events in the spring 2010 semester titled “Forging a Seamless Diversity Pipeline: Pre-law to Practice.” The series included a diversity reception, a speed networking event hosted by the Asian Pacific American Law Students Association, an attorney panel focused on working with diverse clients within the estate planning and family law field, a judges of color panel, and a legal career options mixer.

“We sought to raise awareness of diversity issues ranging from race, culture, nationality, economic status, sexual preference and orientation, gender, religion, age, and disability.,” said Pamela Palpallatoc ’10, the 2009–2010 chair of the SBA Diversity Committee. “The series as a whole promotes diversity in thinking, not just diversity in numbers of students and lawyers from historically underrepresented groups, by encouraging students to understand how diversity applies in attorney-client interactions."

The ABA diversity award is a testament to Dean Henry J. Ramsey of Howard University who dedicated his life to inclusiveness and increasing the quality of legal practice and studies.