Devontae Torriente

Devontae (he/him) joined the Penn Carey Law community from Washington, D.C., where he lived for nearly a decade. He is a community organizer with a background in political campaigns and policy advocacy. Originally from New York City, Devontae graduated cum laude from American University with a BA in Justice & Law and a minor in African American and African Diaspora Studies. While at American University, Devontae was elected to serve as student body president, becoming the first Black president of the American University Student Government.

After graduation, Devontae worked at Community Change, a national organization focused on economic and racial justice. He then worked at Priorities USA, the Democratic Party’s flagship political action committee, where he coordinated nearly $200 million with partner organizations focused on winning the 2020 presidential election. He also completed internships with the Legal Aid Society of the District of Columbia, Judge Barbara J. Rothstein on the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia, the Human Rights Campaign, and the Center for American Progress. Devontae is a co-founder and advisor for Blue Future, a youth-led civic engagement organization that gets young people involved with progressive political campaigns. He is an associate member of the Nonprofit Professional Employees Union and a 2021-2022 participant in The Appellate Project’s mentorship program.

At Penn Carey Law, Devontae is a teaching assistant for 1L Criminal Law, on the boards of the Black Law Students Association and Democracy Law Project, and an inaugural Equity & Inclusion Fellow. He is also an associate editor for The Regulatory Review and the Journal of Law and Social Change. Devontae spent his summer after 1L at the Constitutional Accountability Center in Washington, D.C. where he worked on constitutional litigation at the appellate and U.S. Supreme Court levels. Devontae is vegan, loves biking, and enjoys pop culture.