Category: Phoenix Fellowship

Berkeley Law Foundation Announces the Renamed Broussard Phoenix Fellowship, Offering Scholarships to Diverse Berkeley Law 1L Students

BERKELEY, CA – March 2020: The Berkeley Law Foundation (BLF) is delighted to announce the renaming of its longstanding Phoenix Fellowship in memory of the Honorable Justice Allen E. Broussard, with generous support from the Broussard Scholarship Foundation.

As a nonprofit dedicated to social justice and increasing diversity in the legal profession, BLF has offered its Phoenix Fellowship to first-year law students of color at UC Berkeley School of Law (Berkeley Law) since 1997. The Broussard Scholarship Foundation was established in memory of the Honorable Justice Allen E. Broussard (1929–1996).

Justice Broussard enrolled at Berkeley Law as one of three African Americans in his class, and graduated in 1953. After serving in the U.S. Army and working as an attorney, he began a long and distinguished judicial career. Justice Broussard served as a judge on the Oakland-Piedmont Municipal Court and the Alameda County Superior Court. In 1981, Justice Broussard was appointed to the California Supreme Court, becoming the second African American to sit on the court and serving until 1991.

Appointed to co-chair the California Judicial Council Committee on Race and Ethnic Bias in the Courts, Justice Broussard was in the forefront of studying attitudes about race and ethnic discrimination and the existence of racism in the courts. Recognizing that fairness in the courts is essential to a functioning democracy, Justice Broussard worked with the committee to identify and eliminate bias in the judicial system. He was also a member of the ABA Task Force on Minority Opportunities in the Profession.

Justice Broussard maintained his involvement with Berkeley Law students long after he graduated, mentoring students and new lawyers for the duration of his career. One of his most earnest goals was the diversification of the profession, and much of his work was aimed at making sure all minorities are given the opportunity to succeed. BLF will continue to offer its annual scholarship under the new name of the Allen E. Broussard Phoenix Fellowship. The Broussard Phoenix Fellowship provides tuition support to first-year students of color at Berkeley Law with a commitment to public interest work.

Congratulations to BLF’s newest Phoenix Fellows, who will be starting as 1L students at Berkeley Law this August!

Alejandro Francisco Delgado earned M.Phil and M.A. degrees in History from Yale University and a B.A. from Colgate University.  He organized academic, service, and hotel workers with UNITE-HERE in and beyond New Haven, Connecticut, and more recently worked with Proyecto Defensa Laboral in Austin, Texas, providing legal assistance to undocumented construction workers.  Alejandro is interested in working in legal aid, impact litigation, community outreach, and policy advocacy.

Maria Sofia Corona Gomez earned an M.A. in History from the University of Texas and a B.A. from California State University, Fresno.  She has worked at California Rural Legal Assistance as a community worker since 2009, and has coordinated union campaigns and immigrant rights coalitions.  Sofia is deeply committed to unincorporated communities in the Central Valley.