Just The Beginning - A Pipeline Organization Newsletter
JTB's Light the Spark Celebration is an inspiring evening dedicated to advancing our mission of promoting diversity within the legal profession. Our guests joined JTB staff, board members, volunteers, and supporters to reflect on our impactful work and celebrate over 30 years of igniting passion in the next generation of diverse lawyers and leaders.
The event showcased the incredible strides we’ve made in creating a more inclusive and equitable legal community, thanks to the generosity of our supporters. Together, we are expanding access to programs, empowering future leaders, and building a legal profession that reflects the diversity of society. Thank you for helping us continue this important work!
At the Light the Spark Celebration, Just The Beginning - A Pipeline Organization honored outstanding individuals and organizations advancing diversity, equity, and inclusion in the legal profession.
The Social Justice Leader Award was presented to the American College of Trial Lawyers and the ACTL Foundation for their exemplary commitment to social justice and service to others. The Diversity Partnership Award recognized Jacquelyn Stone and McGuireWoods LLP for their dedication to fostering diversity within the legal profession.
We also celebrated our 5 Under 40 Awardees—Tara Dunn Jackson, Danielle Hamilton, Demetria Hamilton, Ashlei Ferguson, and Lisa Kpor—who were nominated by their peers for their personal and professional efforts to increase diversity, equity, and inclusion in the legal field.
We were proud to honor and showcase these outstanding individuals for their invaluable contributions to creating a more inclusive legal community!
Thank you to everyone who came out to help us celebrate! JTB welcomed a hundred guests with the support of our Host Sponsor, United Airlines, inside the Willis Tower. We are beyond thrilled and incredibly thankful to our amazing sponsors for empowering the programs and students of JTB! Your support made all of this possible - we couldn’t have done it without you!
Exelon
Halo Security Group
Kirkland & Ellis LLP
Lane Brown LLC
Locke Lord LLP
McDonald's
McGuireWoods LLP
Microsoft
Riley Safer Holmes & Cancila LLP
Sentara Health
Winston & Strawn LLP
Ready. Set. Law.
Chicago, IL
September 20, 2024
The Ready. Set. Law. Program is designed to provide undergraduate students with essential insights into the law school admissions process, the skills needed to succeed in law school, and exposure to various legal career paths. We were thrilled to host 48 students who spent the day gaining valuable knowledge, beginning with an informative session on admissions by Phillip Harrinarine. They also participated in a law student panel with Leah Hall, Marissa Nugent, and Austin Perry, explored Tort Law with Professor Kevin Hopkins, learned about the judicial path from Judge Nichole C. Patton, and experienced a mock law school class with Sonia Bychkov Green. The day concluded with a session on personal branding led by Yoshi Haynie. A huge thank you to our volunteers and the University of Illinois Chicago School of Law for making this event possible!
iLead Law & Leadership Conference
Nashville, TN
October 25, 2024
We were excited to host 36 students for an inspiring day at the iLead Law and Leadership Conference in Nashville, where they gained valuable insights into law and leadership. The day began with an inspiring session on social justice and change-making led by Erica Perry, followed by powerful stories from Jerome Fuller III, Kelley Knott-Sandifer, and Shawntah Thomas, who shared their journeys "From Classroom to Courtroom." Students also heard from Honorable Judge Waverly Crenshaw during his keynote, offering invaluable wisdom on leadership and the role of the judiciary in driving change. They participated in an engaging session on the Art of Negotiation with Tatjana Stoljarova, and explored how law intersects with media, fashion, sports, and technology during a dynamic panel featuring Loren E. Mulraine, Valeria Williams, and Stephanie M. Hoffmann. A huge thank you to our JTB Scholars, volunteers, and our incredible host, Vanderbilt University Law School, for making this day a success!
Middle School Law Camp
Indianapolis, IN
November 22, 2024
We were thrilled to host 41 middle school scholars for an inspiring day at the Indianapolis MSLC, diving into the world of law and leadership. The day began with Chief Judge Tanya Pratt of the United States District Court for the Southern District of Indiana, who shared her journey and wisdom on navigating the judiciary and the importance of leadership. Scholars explored the intersection of law and digital life through a case analysis on the Pennsylvania School District and Fake TikTok Accounts, led by Jimmie L. McMillian, Chief Diversity Officer and Senior Corporate Counsel. A dynamic panel of law students and attorneys, including Andrew Dettmer, Justin Hornbuckle, Taylor Nunley, Hanna Gutwein, and moderator Esther Sandlin, inspired students with their stories of pursuing legal careers. Huge thanks to our volunteers and IU McKinney School of Law for making this impactful day possible!
Alumni Highlight: Daniel Chambers
Brooklyn Law School, Juris Doctor Candidate
How did you learn about JTB?
I learned about Just the Beginning and the Summer Judicial Internship Program through a student wide email I received from my law school. At the time, it was lost on me that what had just fallen into my lap would later prove to be transformative.
What sparked your interest in the law?
My interest in the law formed from my aspiration to become the advocate I felt deprived of in childhood. From a very young age, I felt marginalized. I had, and still rely on, the most loving parents and was educated in a robust public school system. Despite this, I was relentlessly bullied in my formative years, sexually assaulted in middle school, and lived with great instability at home where I would have otherwise had a haven of reprieve. In these experiences of isolation, I felt like a garment bound to the back and forth of a washer and dryer. However, I learned to not only survive through self-empowerment, but to grow. Through advocating for myself in ways well outside my comfort zone, I found in myself the ability to push against marginalization and even the person I was at my core. By the time I enrolled as an undergraduate student, my efforts to empower myself had catalyzed my desire to be an advocate for others. It was simply when I realized that the best way to advocate for others was to do so as an attorney.
What was your experience participating in the SJID Project?
My experience participating in the SJID Project, from my application to the last day of my summer judicial internship was surreal. I applied to the SJID with a thick writing sample that contemplated how different models of disability influenced the bar exam accommodation request process, and a two page cover letter with single spacing and thin margins. I submitted what I thought was a rushed application the day before I was to receive invasive abdominal surgery. I was floored to be so well received during each of the three rounds of review. Only when I was invited to intern in the chambers of the Honorable Joseph A. Marutollo, Magistrate Judge, for the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of New York did I realize the SJID Project was earnest given my historical skepticism.
At the start of my internship, I was warmly welcomed into chambers and became part of an ecosystem of kindness, teamwork, and intellectual stimulation. The experience was marked by profound realizations, friendships of the highest caliber, and meaningful mentorships. It was truly the first time I felt so comprehensively, and unfailingly, supported in a profession that is often defined by its coldness.
The SJID project gave me an invaluable level of insight that I will take with me in every aspect of my legal career. However, for me at least, this amazing experience was most indelible in the joy it brought to my life and the confidence it lended me.
How did JTB attribute to your current success in the legal field?
In placing me with a magistrate judge for the Eastern District of New York, JTB attributed to my current success in not only giving me a formidable experience to put on my resume and an amazing writing sample to put in my back pocket. It deepened my understanding of judicial reasoning, nurtured the skills needed of any robust attorney, taught me how to connect with other professionals, and instilled in me a confidence that is more akin to fearlessness than anything else.
Currently, I am interning in the chambers of another magistrate judge for the same U.S. District Court, sitting as a Student Member of the Education & the Law Committee and the Disability Law Committee of the New York City Bar Association, and commencing a legal internship with Brooklyn Law School’s Mediation Clinic in the spring of 2025. Not only has the SJID Project contributed to my success, it has made me giddy to navigate this profession.
Do you have any advice for our Scholars?
A note of advice for students, especially those who have come to feel discouraged. Bring your individuality, creativity, and instinct to this opportunity; to all of your professional endeavors too. Among the many notions and fears that dominate what your peers and advisors may believe is not within you reach. Know it is truly a choice to engage with, and be misled by, such notions. Fear not the idea of reaching for an opportunity that others may say is beyond what is accessible to you, but only the prospect of allowing your reach to fall short of pursuing what you want and where you belong.
Further, allow yourself to be courteously frank with those who support you, yet implore you to focus solely on realistic opportunities. This profession is that which requires the support of others, but you can influence the kind of support you receive when you ask for it. The SJID Project of JTB was not realistic for me until it was.
iLead Law & Leadership Conference
The iLead Law & Leadership Conference is a workshop focusing on law and leadership skills for high school students. During the workshop, students will work with judges, lawyers, and leaders in the legal community who are committed to supporting their academic growth and legal career aspirations. Lunch, prizes, and program material provided!
Richmond, VA
February 18, 2025
Houston, TX
March 31, 2025
Student Registration
Summer Judicial Internship Diversity Project
