The annual event gives scholarship students an opportunity to share their inspiring stories.
Photo: From left, Paul Caiola, Hannah DeGraw, and Rasul Wright.
The annual Scholarship Luncheon at the University of Maryland Francis King Carey School of Law brings together more than 100 student-scholars and the donors, alumni, partners, and friends connected to their scholarships in celebration and appreciation. This year’s luncheon took place Feb. 6 at Westminster Hall.
In opening remarks, Vice Dean Deborah Eisenberg, JD, expressed the law school’s gratitude to attendees. “The scholarships that are established and supported by the people in this room enable us to open our doors widely, eliminate barriers to excellence, and recruit bold, bright, and highly passionate students to join our community, and, ultimately, the legal profession.”
Paul Caiola, JD ’95, an emeritus member of the Maryland Carey Law Board of Visitors and a generous supporter of student scholarships, also offered opening remarks.
“Supporting scholarships is about more than financial assistance,” Caiola said. “It’s about creating space — space for students to focus on learning, leading, and serving.”
Caiola is a partner at Gallagher LLP, one of the four founding firms of the LEAP (Legal Excellence and Promise) Scholars Initiative. The initiative stands out because it not only supports students financially but also offers an array of mentor and networking opportunities for recipients.
Caiola shared his pride in participating in the founding of the program. He also told the story of how hearing a student speak at a previous Scholarship Luncheon inspired him to unite with other classmates to establish the Class of ’95 (“best class ever!”) Scholarship in anticipation of their 30th class reunion in 2025.
Next, Hannah DeGraw and Rasul Wright, both in the Class of 2026, offered remarks to the assemblage, sharing their experiences as scholarship recipients.
DeGraw told her tale of being a high school student without family wealth who had the credentials to get into great colleges but thought higher education (let alone law school) was out of reach financially. She credited scholarships with not just covering her expenses but also giving her a sense of belonging.
Scholarships, she said, are “someone looking at you and saying, ‘These opportunities are meant for you, and if you ever feel doubt creeping in, know that there are people who believed in you long before you believed in yourself.’ ”
The Christine A. Edwards Scholar and a LEAP Scholar, DeGraw is pursuing a Business Law Track, is a member of the Transactional Law Team and Business Law Society, and serves as notes and comments editor of the Journal of Business & Technology Law. Last year, she (and her research partner) received both the Top Strategist award and the best overall Commander’s Cup award at the Cyber Research and Education Conference, hosted by U.S. Cyber Command.
After graduating in the spring, DeGraw will join Moore & Van Allen, where she worked as a summer associate last year.
Christine Edwards, JD ’83, flew in to attend the luncheon and cheer on DeGraw.
The second student speaker, Wright, also is a LEAP Scholar. He, like DeGraw, grew up thinking that higher education wasn’t an option. Thanks to scholarships, however, Wright went from working as a tire technician to becoming valedictorian at Towson University and now a class president at Maryland Carey Law. He also is articles editor for the Journal of Business & Technology Law and Maryland Carey Law’s representative to the American Bar Association. After graduation, Wright will join Mayer Brown’s office in Washington, D.C.
“What made the difference,” Wright said, recollecting overcoming moments of self-doubt, “was being seen, supported, and invested in.”
Addressing the scholarship supporters in the room, he added, “Your generosity changes lives.”