LOS ANGELES – MALDEF (Mexican American Legal Defense and Educational Fund) is proud to announce the recipients in its 2021-2022 Law School Scholarship Program. Since its founding in 1968, MALDEF has awarded scholarships to law students committed to furthering our mission of promoting and protecting the civil rights of the Latino community in the United States.
“In the United States, there is a severe shortage of attorneys who address the legal needs of the Latino community, the nation’s largest minority group for two decades,” said Thomas A. Saenz, MALDEF president and general counsel. “The caliber of scholarship recipients and applicants provides reason for optimism that that severe shortage might one day be successfully addressed.”
In recent years, MALDEF has awarded individual scholarships of $2,500 to $10,000 to deserving students. This year MALDEF awarded $2,500 to two students, seven students received $5,000, and one was awarded a $10,000 scholarship. MALDEF’s Law School Scholarship application is open to any student enrolled at an accredited U.S. law school. The most promising applicants are evaluated by a national Law School Scholarship Committee of leading attorneys.
The scholarship committee assesses applicants based on personal background and financial need;
academic and extracurricular achievement; demonstrated commitment to serving the Latino community, shown through an academic, extracurricular, or professional record of service, and future plans to advance the rights of Latinos.
This year, there are 10 recipients, studying at schools such as the Chicago-Kent College of Law; CUNY School of Law; Duke University School of Law; Georgetown University Law Center; Harvard Law School; Southwestern School of Law; University of California, Berkeley School of Law; University of California, Davis School of Law; University of California, Hastings College of the Law; and University of Connecticut School of Law.
All of the recipients have a passion for protecting the civil rights of Latinos. Several of the winners are the children of immigrants who wish to advocate for immigrant rights. One of the recipients wants to combat mass incarceration and work to reform the prison system. Another winner is a DACA (Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals) recipient.
“On behalf of the MALDEF Law School Selection Committee, I extend my sincerest congratulations to this year’s MALDEF scholarship recipients all of whom have already demonstrated a deep commitment to promoting and protecting the civil and constitutional rights of the estimated 63 million Latinos/as who live in the United States,” said Gabriel Sandoval, of the law firm of Atkinson, Andelson, Loya, Ruud & Romo and vice chair of the MALDEF Scholarship Committee. “Without question, the exemplary qualities of MALDEF’s scholarship recipients make clear that the future of our legal profession remains bright.”
Applications for MALDEF’s 2022-2023 MALDEF Law School Scholarship Program, are available for download at our website, www.maldef.org. The deadline to apply is February 3, 2023.
Donations may be made to MALDEF’s Law School Scholarship Program HERE.
A complete List of MALDEF’s 2021-2022 Law School Scholarship recipients and brief bios of each can be found HERE.