The Jeanette A. Michael Memorial Scholarship Fund

About Jeanette A. Michael

Jeanette A. Michael was a member of the GW Board of Trustees and a founder and first president of GW’s Black Law Alumni Association (BLAA, now ABLA).  She was a passionate advocate for both breast cancer awareness and the advancement of African-American members of the legal community.

Prior to and consistent with her service as the first president of the BLAA, Ms. Michael was an active member of GW’s Black Law Student Association, calling the organization “a revolutionary group of folks whose common goals and experiences kept us connected to one another.”

In 2009, GW recognized Ms. Michael with the Spirit of Life Award at its Annual Cancer Gala. A breast cancer fighter herself, Ms. Michael inspired others as a community leader and personal example of perseverance and hope. She also received an Outstanding Alumnus Award from the University in 1997.

During her distinguished career, Ms. Michael was a past president of the DC Chapter of the National Forum on Black Public Administrators, former chief of staff to the DC mayor, and a former executive director of the DC Lottery and Charitable Games Board.

The GW Law community is exceptionally proud of the life, career, and advocacy of our friend and colleague. In recognition of her commitment to the GW Law community, the Law School established the Jeanette A. Michael Memorial Scholarship Fund. The scholarship is awarded to a student who reflects the principles evidenced by Ms. Michael’s life. More specifically, a 2L/3L with service to the BLSA community, the GW Law community, or the greater DC community, intent to pursue public interest law or involvement in the Jacob Burns Community Legal Clinics.

About the Scholarship Fund

The Jeanette A. Michael Memorial Scholarship Fund was established in 2014 by multiple donors from the Black Law Alumni Association, family, friends, and Jeanette A. Michael’s own bequest to the law school. 

Endowed in 2017, the scholarship creates a lasting legacy of support by providing funds for financial aid in perpetuity.

Jeanette A. Michael Memorial Scholarship Recipients

Made possible by GW Law alumni and friends, this scholarship award provides financial assistance to qualified members of the Black Law Students Association enrolled at the law school. It is granted based on scholastic achievement, school activities, and community commitment in memory of GW Law alumna Jeanette Michael, JD ‘75. Many notable members of the law school have been recipients of the Jeanette A. Michael Memorial Scholarship:

Scholarship Recipients

2021: Jordan Michel

Jordan Michel is a 2019 graduate of Hunter College and a 2022 graduate of GW Law. While at Hunter, Jordan earned a Bachelor of Arts in Sociology. While at GW, Jordan earned spots in the GW at Oxford, and the War Crimes Research Office Summer Law Program in the Hague. He also served as President of the GW Law Student Bar Association, the Black Law Student Association’s Employment Chair, and as deputy squadron commander of the Field Training Preparation Squadron at Howard University’s AFROTC Detachment 130. Jordan also co-founded GW Law’s People’s Parity Project Chapter.

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2020: Jeanmarie Elican

Jeanmarie Elican is a Philadelphia native and a 2022 graduate of the George Washington University Law School. She graduated from GW Law with Honors, concentrating in Business and Finance Law and Public Interest. Jeanmarie graduated Cum Laude from the University of Pennsylvania, majoring in Political Science and Africana studies, where she became a proud member of Zeta Phi Beta Sorority, Incorporated. While at GW Law, Jeanmarie served in leadership positions under the Black Law Students Association, was the inaugural Executive Diversity Editor of the International Law Review, and led as the Director of the Faculty Appointments Committee. Jeanmarie’s favorite law school memories were her clerkship under the U.S. Senate Judiciary Committee, collaborating with the Black Public Defenders Association, and her role as a student attorney in the Small Business and Community Economic Development Clinic.

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2019: Mustapha Nyallay

Mustapha Nyallay is a 2017 graduate of the University of Houston-Downtown and a 2020 graduate of GW Law. During his time at the University of Houston-Downtown, he was elected the Student Body President and led numerous volunteering and sustainability projects on campus and in the community. In law school, he continued his passion for service by serving as Class Representative to the Student Bar Association and as a student attorney in the Housing Advocacy & Litigation Clinic at Rise for Justice (formerly Law Students in Court), and a law clerk at Crowley, Hoge & Fein.

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2018: Sacred Huff

Sacred Huff is a 2015 graduate of the University of Alabama in Huntsville and 2019 graduate of GW Law. She served in several leadership roles in law school including the Director of Social Action for the Mid-Atlantic Black Law Students Association, the Senior Projects Editor of the GW Journal of Energy and Environmental Law, and the Social Justice Chair of the Black Law Student Association.

During law school, she interned for the Washington Legal Clinic for the Homeless, Bread for the City Legal Clinic, and the Lawyer's Committee for Civil Rights Under Law, where she conducted research, advised clients, and created advocacy campaigns. She says “all of these opportunities help mold me into the ‘Movement Lawyer’ that I aspire to become, and I am deeply grateful for those who have invested in me along the way.”

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2017: Melinda Momplaisir

Melinda Momplaisir is a 2015 graduate of Binghamton University and 2018 graduate of GW Law. She served in several leadership roles in law school. She was the Social Chair and later President of the Black Law Student Association, and programming editor of the Federal Circuit Bar Journal.

Her passion for public service was demonstrated through her various internships. During law school, she interned with the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia under the Honorable Ketanji Brown Jackson and the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York. She later interned for the NAACP Legal Defense Fund, researching issues regarding the Fair Housing Act and excessive force. Lastly, she served as a Legal Intern for the U.S. Department of Justice Criminal Division, where she assisted with investigations on child pornography, prostitution, and sexual exploitation. She was the 2018 Justice Thurgood Marshall Civil Liberties Awardee. She also was honored to serve as a research assistant for Professor Roger Fairfax, who she is grateful to have as a mentor. “GW’s black alumni were the cornerstone of why I chose GW Law,” she says.

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2016: Jordan Harvey

Jordan Harvey is a 2016 graduate of GW Law and a 2013 graduate of Brigham Young University, where he earned a BA in Political Science. During law school, Jordan served as President of the Black Law Students Association and Director of Elections for the Student Bar Association. He was also a member of both the Mock Trial Board and the Alternative Dispute Resolution Board, as well as a Notes Editor for the George Washington International Law Review.

While in law school, Jordan worked as an intern for a U.S. District Judge, a U.S. Attorney’s Office, and the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission. He served as a research assistant to Professor Roger A. Fairfax, Jr. He also represented indigent clients as a Student Attorney with the Public Justice Advocacy Clinic. “During my time at GW, I grew academically, professionally, and personally. GW has given me lifelong friends, an exceptional education, and a springboard for my legal career,” he says.

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2015: Phylicia Hill

Phylicia H. Hill is a 2008 graduate of Florida Agricultural and Mechanical University, a 2012 graduate of Auburn University and a 2015 graduate of GW Law. During her tenure at GW Law, she served as Vice President of Programming for the Student Bar Association and the Patricia Roberts Harris Committee Chair for the Black Law Student Association. She was a student attorney with the Family Justice Litigation Clinic and worked as a law clerk at the Public Defender Service for the District of Columbia and at the Lawyers’ Committee for Civil Rights Under Law.

Prior to law school, Phylicia was a corps member with Teach for America in Clarksdale, Mississippi. This experience solidified her commitment to serving underrepresented populations. “Coming to GW Law has given me the opportunity to foster relationships within the legal community, hone legal skills, and become a part of a network of distinguished alumni. Law school has allowed me to find different ways of engaging in public service, including working at the Lawyers Committee for Civil Rights Under Law and the District of Columbia Public Defender Service,” she says.

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2014: Roberta Roberts

Roberta Oluwaseun Roberts is a 2012 graduate of the University of Florida and 2015 graduate of GW Law. During law school, she interned with the U.S. Department of Justice and U.S. Department of Homeland Security, participated in the Domestic Violence Project Clinic and Family Justice Litigation Clinic, took on leadership roles with BLSA, and was a member of both the Moot Court Board and Alternative Dispute Resolution Board. She was also a Writing Center Fellow and Senior Notes Editor of a journal. Roberta graduated with pro bono honors, received the Judge Albert H. Grenadier Award for excellence in oral advocacy in moot court, and entered on duty with the DOJ through the Attorney General’s Honors Program after graduation.

As a first-generation college student and the first in her family to attend law school, Roberta speaks of her experience, saying “the GW BLSA and the Black Law Alumni Association have provided me with a family of Black legal professionals with whom I can work with and learn from, and I have Ms. Michael to thank for that.”

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Ways to Contribute

For questions about this fund and methods of giving, please contact:

Nina Waters
nwaterslaw [dot] gwu [dot] edu (nwaters[at]law[dot]gwu[dot]edu)
Assistant Director, Law School Leadership and Annual Giving
Phone: 202.994.7014