Rising 2Ls Tyra Pearson and Joscelyn Solomon are recipients of McGuireWoods’ 2017 annual diversity scholarship award. The international law firm’s diversity scholarship program awards up to eight $5,000 scholarships to diverse first-year law students who are committed to contributing to and supporting diversity within the legal profession. Applicants are considered based on their involvement in community activities and diversity related student organizations, personal achievements, and law school and undergraduate academic performance.
“McGuireWoods and the scholarship selection team were extremely impressed by Tyra and Joscelyn’s applications,” says Alexis L. Grems, a representative from the Tysons, Va., office of the firm.
Originally from Roanoke Rapids, N.C., Solomon graduated from UNC-Chapel Hill with a bachelor’s degree in political science and sociology and a minor in African, African American, and Diaspora Studies. As a law student, she serves as vice president of Black Law Students Association; a staff member of the First Amendment Law Review; and a competing member on the civil rights team for Holderness Moot Court. She has also volunteered with the UNC Innocence Project; traveled to Cherokee and Boone, N.C., with the UNC Pro Bono Program to work in a wills, expunction and divorce clinic; volunteered with Lawyer on the Line's expunction clinic, and was a member of the BLSA mock trial team. After law school, Solomon plans to pursue a career in labor and employment law, government investigations, white collar litigation or intellectual property. Passionate about civil rights, especially as it pertains to racial justice and immigrants’ rights, she hopes to work at a firm that is committed to innovation, integrity, diversity and client service. Solomon spent the first part of her summer working as a research assistant for Professor Catherine Kim and is now working in the U.S. Department of Transportation’s Federal Highway Administration’s Office of Chief Counsel in Washington, D.C.
Pearson is originally from Fuquay Varina, N.C., and she graduated with distinction and honors from UNC-Chapel Hill where she earned a bachelor’s degree in history and a minor in social economic justice and African, African American, and Diaspora Studies. At Carolina Law, Pearson serves as a member of BLSA, a staff member of the First Amendment Law Review and a competing member on the national team for Holderness Moot Court. Pearson was a member of the BLSA mock trial team and volunteered with the UNC Innocence Project where she helped investigate the innocent claims made by incarcerated prisoners on death row in North Carolina. She has also partnered with North Carolina Legal Aid services through the Lawyer on the Line program to research and advise clients on expunction cases. After graduating, Pearson hopes to work at a large law firm where she can practice litigation work and contribute to diversifying and enriching the legal profession. She also hopes to serve as a mentor for young minority and underprivileged students and attorneys throughout her career. This summer, Pearson is a legal intern at Duke Energy.
-July 26, 2017