News from the Office of Equity & Inclusion

We join the University, Penn Law APALSA and SALSA, and many others in denouncing anti-Asian violence, and we steadfastly support those harmed by racism and violence. As a law school, we have a unique responsibility in shaping how the law can be used as a tool to create a meaningful, anti-racist future, and that action is needed now more than ever.

To kick off Women’s History Month, the AI & Bias Lab taught by Professor Rangita de Silva de Alwis is highlighting stories about diverse women who are changing the face of innovation with their extraordinary leadership in the tech industry.

Chandra Nukala ML’21 shares his experiences and observations as part of Policy Lab: AI and Implicit Bias, taught by Senior Adjunct Professor of Global Leadership Rangita de Silva de Alwis.

Professor Rangita de Silva de Alwis will be affiliated with the Georgetown Institute for Women, Peace and Security (GIWPS) as a Hillary Rodham Clinton Fellow on Gender Equity 2021-2022.

During “A Conversation with Stacey Abrams,” the Georgia politician sat down with Ben Jealous to discuss topics from gerrymandering to romance novels in a lively virtual discussion.

The Future of the Profession Initiative is the Law School’s recognition of its opportunity and obligation to lead through ongoing changes in the legal profession.

The “Applying to and Succeeding in Law School” program is to help remove systemic barriers that perpetuate inequity and maintain homogeneity in the legal field and inspire a diverse cohort of future lawyers.

Prof. Anita Allen is featured in Penn Today piece about the University’s commitment to fostering the next generation of Black philosophers

Omar Gonzalez-Pagan L’10 celebrated a victory with his team of LGBTQ+ and immigrant rights advocates when a federal court enjoined a Trump Administration rule seeking to overhaul U.S. asylum processes.

Tiffany Keung L’22 and Apratim Vidyarthi L’22 are winners of the 13^th Annual First Amendment and Media Law Diversity Moot Court Competition and were also awarded Best Brief.

The Legal History Consortium, jointly sponsored by the University of Pennsylvania Carey Law School and the Penn’s Graduate History Department, was formed to promote interdisciplinary research, scholarship, and education in law and history.

Dr. Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala is set is to be the first woman and first African national to head the World Trade Organization. Prof. Rangita de Silva joins Under Secretary General Phumzile Mlambo Ngcuka to write about Okonjo Iweala’s leadership philosophy that will help her steer the WTO in a global recovery.

Chandra Nukala ML’21 shares his experiences and observations as part of Senior Adjunct Professor of Global Leadership Rangita de Silva de Alwis’ Policy Lab on AI and Implicit Bias.

As we embark on Black History Month, we are pleased to pay tribute to the legacy of Dr. Sadie T.M. Alexander, the first Black woman to graduate from the Law School, by launching three new full tuition scholarships created in her honor. Last semester, Dean Ted Ruger expressed the intention to create these scholarships thanks to the suggestion of Penn’s Black Law Students Association (BLSA).

This virtual event is sponsored by the University of Pennsylvania Carey Law School, Annenberg School for Communication, the Stavros Niarchos Foundation Paideia Program, and the Penn Provost’s Office and will be moderated by Benjamin Todd Jealous with featured remarks from Penn President Amy Guttman.

The University of Pennsylvania Carey Law School, together with Harvard Law, celebrates the legacy of the late Deborah Rhode with the nomination for the Margaret Brent Women Lawyers of Achievement Award.

Penn faculty analyze the events that took place at the U.S. Capitol on Jan. 6, 2021.

The Law School’s annual Public Interest Week will be held from February 1 to February 5 with all virtual events.

Dana Dyer L’22 and Magali Duque L’22 have published “Black Women Future Leaders,” a report developed as part of Rangita de Silva de Alwis’s “Women, Law, and Leadership” course at the University of Pennsylvania Carey Law School.

These draft policies were developed as part of a policy lab on sexual harassment taught at the University of Pennsylvania Carey Law School by Professor Rangita de Silva de Alwis.

The following report discusses themes that have emerged from working groups in Professor Rangita de Silva de Alwis’s course on “Women, Law, and Leadership” at the University of Pennsylvania Law School as part of an effort to increase female representation in positions of leadership. The report explores the ways in which themes including bias, representation, and allyship affect Black women in the legal field through the data collected from a survey of 30 Black Penn Law students, of which 24 identify as women and 6 identify as men.

In this chapter of the report, the students in the Seminar on Women, Law, and Leadership adopted a combination of quantitative and qualitative approach to analyze whether female lawyers in China are satisfied with their jobs, what obstacles they are facing, and whether they perceive their male colleagues as their allies. The data was collected through online questionnaire and covered more than 440 female lawyers in China.

In the Fall of 2020, students in the Seminar on Women, Law, and Leadership at the University of Pennsylvania Carey Law School interviewed nearly 70 male ally peers at the law school. The Students were given a survey instrument but asked to contextualize and modify the questions as necessary. The seminar was taught by Dr. Rangita de Silva de Alwis, Senior Adjunct Professor of Law and Global Leadership. In partnership with Thomson Reuters Transforming Women’s Leadership Initiative, this project was the first of its kind to be conducted in a law school classroom.

Some Perspectives on Inclusion and Allyship from Penn Law School

The Penn Law Women, Law and leadership Class brought over 30 leaders in law and business for in-class interviews. At a time of the twin forces of COVID-19 and a public reckoning on equality, these reflections on leadership provide important roadmap to understanding transformative leadership

On Monday, January 18, our nation commemorates the life and legacy of civil rights champion, Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. His vision of compassion and equality as a moral imperative still remains at the heart of today’s ongoing movements for racial justice, labor rights, economic equality, and fair housing—the same battles Dr. King fought 50 years ago. As legal educators and professionals, MLK Day reaffirms our commitment to service, justice, and equity.

On May 1, 1965 the University of Pennsylvania hosted a panel discussion titled “Rule of Law” in observance of Law Day. The panel speakers included the Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. as well as Raymond Pace Alexander, Arthur Dean, Eugene Patterson, and Dr. Sadie T.M. Alexander.

The University of Pennsylvania Carey Law School’s LLM Program expands recruitment outreach to students in Nigeria, South Africa, Ethiopia, Ghana, and Kenya, and begins partnership with Talento Total, an organization working in Latin America to accelerate the careers of young professionals who are indigenous and afro-descendant.

The COVID-19 pandemic has actually expanded LLM recruiting efforts’ reach outside of the major cities they typically visit for in-person events, allowing them to meet a wider range of applicants.

Trevor Kirby L’23 and Virinchi Sindhwani L’23 have been named as the University of Pennsylvania Carey Law School’s second class of First Generation Professionals (FGP) Fellows. The FGP Fellowship is designed for students who are the first in their families to attend professional school.

Trevor Kirby L’23 and Virinchi Sindhwani L’23 have been named as the University of Pennsylvania Carey Law School’s second class of First Generation Professionals (FGP) Fellows.

Sarah Best L’21 details her externship experience with the Education Law Center.

The Law School recognizes the value and long-term impact of diversifying curriculum and providing students a multicultural perspective that advances equity. Here are updates on our newest additions to curriculum and faculty. 

Christina Swarns L’93 has dedicated her career to criminal justice reform and now heads the Innocence Project, which advocates for the wrongly convicted.

Wailoo’s success in translating financial information into service to stakeholders, stewardship of revenue streams, and accomplishment of strategic goals make him an excellent addition to the Law School.

The University of Pennsylvania Carey Law School will join UN Women in honoring the global legacy of Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg on December 10, International Human Rights Day.

“Spanish for Law” is designed to help Spanish-speaking students become confident using Spanish legal terminology.

Health care law expert Professor Allison Hoffman maps out the complex picture of access to medical care in the United States in this Oxford Handbook chapter.

Contributing to the research update article: Rangita de Silva de Alwis, Associate Dean of International Affairs at the University of Pennsylvania Carey Law School

Written by Rangita de Silva de Alwis, Associate Dean of International Affairs at the University of Pennsylvania Carey Law School

Associate Dean Rangita de Silva de Alwis leads the research on transformative leadership and allyship in collaboration with Penn Law students and Thomson Reuters. The student-led research team: Zahra Keshwani (L21), Research Team Leader; Michael Machado (L20), Chukwufumnanya Ekhator (L20), May Alajlan (LLM 20), Margaret Gallagher (LLM 20), and Lindsay Holcomb (L21)

This research project is developed and supervised by Associate Dean Rangita de Silva de Alwis and led by Penn Law students: Zahra Keshwani, Fumnanya Ekhator, May Alajlan, Michael Machado, Lindsay Holcomb, and Sarah Heberlig

Written by Rangita de Silva de Alwis, Associate Dean of International Affairs at the University of Pennsylvania Carey Law School

A co-authored study from Thomson Reuters and the University of Pennsylvania Carey Law School

Principal Author: Rangita de Silva de Alwis, Associate Dean of International Affairs, University of Pennsylvania Carey Law School & Co-author: Natalie Runyon, Director, Talent, Inclusion & Culture, Thomson Reuters

Written by Associate Dean Rangita de Silva de Alwis, Christian Zabilowicz, and Gitanjali Swamy

Professor of Law Shyamkrishna Balganesh contends that courts should allow technical experts to testify in software copyright cases.

Miguel Willis joins FPI as its inaugural Innovator in Residence and the initiative will partner with Access to Justice Tech Fellows.

Ryan Baldwin L’22 served eight years in the U.S. Navy before coming to the University of Pennsylvania Carey Law School.

Presidential Assistant Professor of Law Shaun Ossei-Owusu has been elected to the Law and Society’s 2023 Board of Trustees as Class Representative.

New scholarships for incoming students whose education, experience, and professional commitments advance racial justice and honor the work and legacy of Dr. Sadie T.M. Alexander L’27.

We are excited to announce changes to the Office of Inclusion & Engagement to reflect its mission and our priorities more clearly and has been renamed the Office of Equity & Inclusion.

Leading scholars address the ways in which racism pervades the modern administrative state and the legal profession 

Student-led groups within the Toll Public Interest Center are collaborating with local legal aid advocates to provide relief to those who have been hardest hit by the COVID-19 pandemic.

Professor Maggie Blackhawk has announced that the Congressional Petitions Database has been released for public use.

Written by Rangita de Silva de Alwis, Associate Dean of International Affairs at the University of Pennsylvania Carey Law School

For Penn Law, the abrupt disruption to the spring semester meant a rapid depopulation of campus, followed by a fast, coordinated pivot towards a total virtual learning environment.

University of Pennsylvania Carey Law School students are volunteering their time and skills to ensure the integrity of the 2020 presidential election.

The Asian Law Review provides a forum for scholars and students to discuss and contribute to cutting-edge legal developments and legal affairs in Asia.

JLASC’s broad mission attracts articles from a diverse range of legal scholars, practitioners and activists around the country.

Convened by Rangita de Silva de Alwis, University of Pennsylvania Carey Law’s Executive Education Programs is hosting and producing the Forum on Advancing Inclusive Leadership on October 12- 15, 2020.

In the throes of a historic summer for racial and social justice, the Quattrone Center for the Fair Administration of Justice instituted a new internship program, wherein students from across the University engaged in projects meant to improve outcomes in law enforcement and criminal justice institutions.

Robert and Jane Toll Foundation makes $50 million gift to expand Toll Public Interest Scholars and Fellows Program launching hundreds of students into public interest legal careers

Jim Sandman L’76 recently joined the Law School faculty as a Distinguished Lecturer and Senior Consultant to the Future of the Profession Initiative (“FPI”).

Allyship as the New Theory and Practice of Diversity and Inclusion

University of Pennsylvania Carey Law School’s Presidential Assistant Professor of Law Shaun Ossei-Owusu has been named one of this year’s 10 New America National Fellows.

Written by Phumzile Mlambo-Ngcuka United Nations Under-Secretary-General and Executive Director of UN Women and Rangita de Silva de Alwis Associate Dean of International Affairs at the University of Pennsylvania Law School. 

A digital space for attorneys of color as the next generation of legal industry leaders to create, author and share career wisdom.

This research update was written by Rangita de Silva de Alwis, the Associate Dean of International Affairs at Penn Law, who leads the research on transformative leadership and allyship in collaboration with Penn Law students and Thomson Reuters.

Taught by experienced practicing attorneys at the Defender Association of Philadelphia (DAP), the clinic gives students the opportunity to represent clients accused of serious crimes.

The GII is an inequality index. It measures gender inequalities in three important aspects of human development—reproductive health, empowerment, and economic status.

Working Report October 2019: Measuring Progress on Diversity and Inclusion Under the Saudi 2030 Plan

In the fall of 2019, the University of Pennsylvania’s Carey Law School was fortunate to welcome the UN’s Special Representative for Children and Armed Conflict, Radhika Coomaraswamy, to teach a course on the Women, Peace, and Security Agenda.

The research on the barriers to leadership were conducted through interviews with women leaders who have helped to dismantle structural barriers and blazed a trail for other women in law, business and public life.

In the fall of 2019, students in the Women, Law, and Leadership Course at Penn Law interviewed over fifty women leaders in law and business, exploring the concept of gender in leadership and ways in which traditional notions of leadership are undergoing radical change.

Male allyship is critical in the evolution of gender equality programs in the workplace. Indeed, when men are included in gender equality programs, 96% of organizations see progress — compared to only 30% of organizations when men are not engaged, according to the Harvard Business Review.

On Tuesday, September 15, 2020 at 12:00 pm, Thomson Reuters will hold a program featuring a discussion on the ‘first of its kind’, ground-breaking research collaboration between Thomson Reuters and University of Pennsylvania’s Carey Law School.

Three University of Pennsylvania Carey Law School Class of 2010 alumni are challenging a Trump Administration rule that threatens to roll back discrimination protections for LGTBQ+ndividuals seeking health care.

Professor Allison Hoffman’s essay, “Medicalization of Civil Rights Could Disappoint” responds to former Sharswood Fellow Craig Konnoth’s recent piece, “Medicalization and the New Civil Rights.”

Sponsored by Weil, Gotshal & Manges, the WLI program is a philanthropic initiative that provides funding for students accepted at participating law schools to defer their first year of study to work at one of WLI’s partner nonprofit organizations.

The article is part of a special online supplemental issue of International Organization focusing on COVID-19 and international relations.

Osagie O. Imasogie has been appointed Chair of the University of Pennsylvania Carey Law School’s Board of Advisors, effective January 1, 2021. Current Chair Perry Golkin, for whom the Law School’s Golkin Hall is named, is rotating out of the position and will remain an active member of the Board of Advisors.

Led by Practice Professor Douglas Frenkel L’72, Adjunct Professor of Law Michele Goldfarb, and Lecturer in Law Sharon Eckstein L’86, Mediation Clinic students learn to exercise unbiased lawyering judgment by facilitating real mediation sessions.

Transnational Legal Clinic students represent clients from around the world attempting to obtain asylum and victims of human trafficking and other crimes hoping to secure immigration visas.

Julia Simon-Mishel L’13 represented an UberX driver in a case that landed before the Pennsylvania Supreme Court.

Sadye Stern L’22 has been awarded a Peggy Browning Fellowship to support her summer internship with Justice at Work in Philadelphia.

Lily Moran L’22 is a legal intern for the Environmental Protection Bureau of the New York State Attorney General.

Rodney Holcombe L’17, the newly-appointed State Director of Criminal Justice Reform at FWD.us, has been named one of City & State’s Albany 40 Under 40.

Victoria Ochoa L’21 is a Texas native and a JD/MPP student at the University of Pennsylvania Law School and Harvard Kennedy School who worked at the Brennan Center for Justice this summer.

Practice Professor of Law Cynthia Dahl heads the Detkin Intellectual Property and Legal Clinic.

As a Catalyst Fellow, Sabrina Ruchelli L’19 is working as a Law and Policy Analyst with the Policy Surveillance Program at Center for Public Health Law Research, which is based at Temple University’s Beasley School of Law.

Clark Edmond L’19 founded Crate, an innovative online gallery platform aimed at empowering younger patrons of the arts to become collectors.

The Pennsylvania 30 Day Fund provides $3,000 forgivable loans to small businesses in need with the help of Penn Law graduate and student volunteers.

On Wednesday, July 8, 2020, the University of Pennsylvania Carey Law School held the second event in its summer series, A Path for Change: Policing in America. The series is part of a yearlong colloquium, Achieving Racial Justice, as one of many initiatives Penn Law will be implementing in the coming months “to work internally and externally against anti-Black violence and racism and to promote meaningful change toward a more just reality.”

The Interdisciplinary Child Advocacy Clinic offers law students the opportunity to help vulnerable young people navigate the legal system using holistic advocacy.

As a 2020 Equal Justice Works Summer Immigration Legal Corps fellow, Jeff Simon L’22 is interning with the Tahirih Justice Center.

On Wednesday, July 8, 2020, the U.S. Supreme Court ruled on Our Lady of Guadalupe School v. Morrissey-Berru. the justices held that federal employment discrimination laws don’t apply to teachers who provide religious instruction at parochial schools.

Som-Mai Nguyen L’22 is spending the summer as an intern at Advocates for Children of New York.

Jocelyn A. K. Walcott, a JD/MSEd candidate, has spent the summer as an intern at the United States Department of Education Office for Civil Rights (OCR).

Dean Ted Ruger announces initial steps and long-term commitment to anti-racism

On Wednesday June 24, 2020, the University of Pennsylvania Carey Law School held the first event in its summer series, A Path for Change: Policing in America. The series is part of a yearlong colloquium, Achieving Racial Justice. 

Margaret Kopel L’19 represents clients in immigration detention under the auspices of the Pennsylvania Immigrant Family Unity Project (PAIFUP), a coalition of non-profit organizations serving immigrants in Pennsylvania.

With Biddle Library’s OverDrive collection you can download books to read and listen to on a Kindle, tablet, phone, PC or Mac.

You can also place holds on items that are checked out and be notified when they become available. To borrow items, sign in using the 8-middle digits of your PennCard.

On Thursday, June, 18, 2020 SCOTUS ruled that the Trump administration may not immediately end the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals, Law School faculty offer their perspectives.

Today, I write to share some concrete updates on the coming weeks even as our institutional efforts on many other fronts continue. There is much more we must do, including at the Law School, and we will report regularly on our progress.

Law School faculty react to the SCOTUS decision that a landmark civil rights law does protect gay and transgender workers from workplace discrimination.

Selected from 375 applicants, Jeffrey Simon L’22 is one of 20 law students who will serve in the 2020 class of the Equal Justice Works Immigration Summer Legal Corps.

Professor Wolff commissioned a quilt featuring the faces of his students, a unified work of art composed of many discrete and independent parts, like their dispersed but resilient class.

Each year, the Don H. Liu Scholars Program awards three law students across the country $15,000 each as well as mentorship and assistance with their career development.

Dean Ted Ruger of the University of Pennsylvania Carey School of Law announces effort to help our community grieve together, learn together, and work together to pursue systemic reform.

Vivek Kembaiyan L’20 will join Gideon’s Promise’s new partner office, Still She Rises located in Tulsa, Oklahoma this summer as Law School Partnership Project (LSPP) fellow.

The class of 2022 has the distinction of being the first class to have amongst its cohort three First Generation Professionals (FGP) fellows.

This year marks the 100^th anniversary of the ratification of the 19^th Amendment to the United States Constitution. Come celebrate this landmark moment in American history by visiting Biddle Law Library’s exhibit on women’s suffrage, on view now until February 29.

ABA exhibit on women’s suffrage visits Penn Law to celebrate the 100^th anniversary of the 19^th amendment

Philly Rising: Lawyering and Organizing for Racial and Economic Justice

Flags remembering transgender victims of violence in 2019 on display in Biddle Library. 

Esther Kang L’21, WG’21 and Bhavin Shah L’21, have been awarded Diversity Scholarships by the Morgan Lewis Foundation.

Divesting From State Violence: Decriminalizing the Social Safety Net