The 2025 recipients of the annual Baker Donelson Diversity Scholarship are Willie James Butler III, Brian Leon, and Shannon Teh.
Each scholarship recipient will be awarded a minimum six-week, salaried 2L Summer Associate position for the summer of 2025 in one of Baker Donelson's offices as well as $20,000 to help defray the cost of law school tuition and related expenses. The application process was open to all law students enrolled in an ABA-accredited law school.
Mr. Butler, a second-year student at the Thurgood Marshall School of Law at Texas Southern University and a graduate of Fisk University, will serve as a summer associate in the Firm's Houston office.
Mr. Leon graduated from the University of Central Florida and is in his second year at the Indiana University Robert H. McKinney School of Law. He will serve as a summer associate in Baker Donelson's Orlando office.
Ms. Teh, a graduate of Bellevue University, is a second-year law student at the University of Memphis Cecil C. Humphreys School of Law and will serve as a summer associate in the Firm's Memphis office.
The three recipients were selected from 98 applicants attending 48 law schools across the country, including Harvard Law School, Cornell University Law School, Georgetown University Law Center, Vanderbilt University Law School, Washington University School of Law (St. Louis), Belmont University College of Law, University of Florida Levin College of Law, University of Notre Dame Law School, University of North Carolina School of Law, Arizona State University College of Law, and University of Alabama School of Law.
Established in 2008, the Baker Donelson Diversity Scholarship Program is open to all law students enrolled in an ABA-accredited law school of any race, color, religion, citizenship, national origin, gender, age, sexual orientation, gender identity, gender expression, marital status, military service, disability, or any other characteristic or condition protected by applicable law. Considerations for selection include applicants who have completed their first year of a full-time J.D. program and demonstrated commitment to promoting diversity, equity, and inclusion in their communities and/or in the legal profession. More information is available here.