SCHOOL OF LAW NEWS
CONGRATULATIONS, SUMMRA MOHAMMADEE SHARIFF! At the ninth annual Alumnae
Brunch on Nov. 2, the School of Law honored Summra Mohammadee Shariff ‘07 J.D. as the 2019 Law Alumna Achievement Award recipient. Shariff is the executive director and president of Twin Cities Diversity in Practice (TCDIP), a professional association that works to strengthen the efforts of law firms and in-house legal departments in the Twin Cities to recruit, advance and retain attorneys of color and create a vibrant and inclusive legal community. “Anyone who has spent 10 minutes with Summra has been touched by her magic,” Anna Petosky ’07 J.D .
Summra Mohammadee Shariff ’07 J.D., right, was presented the 2019 Law Alumna Achievement Award by Anna Petosky ’07 J.D. and Erin Bryan ’08 J.D. at the annual Alumnae Brunch.
said at the brunch in her introduction of her former classmate and friend. “She is at once thoughtful, intelligent and serious. And in any conversation, she can be counted on to lend an important, practical and often unique perspective. At the same time, nearly any encounter with Summra will be punctuated by her infectious laughter and her disarming sense of humor. “But we are not here today just because Summra is a delightful human,” Petosky continued. “We are here to celebrate a distinguished alumna who has consistently lived her values, in particular, of service and of a commitment to increasing and promoting diversity in the [legal] profession and in the Twin Cities business community.”
WELCOME, INFINITY PROJECT
The Infinity Project will now be housed at St. Thomas Law. The project is a multi-state collaborative network of judges, lawyers and legal scholars whose mission is to increase the gender diversity of the state and federal bench to ensure the quality of justice in the Eighth Circuit.
“We are thrilled to have The Infinity Project join us at St. Thomas,” said Associate Dean Lisa Montpetit Brabbit, one of the organization’s founders and a past president. “The organization’s mission and the work that it is doing will be a great addition to our law school.” Though St. Thomas Law is now its sponsoring institution, The Infinity Project will remain an independent organization, with its own staff, board of directors and finances.
Page 8 St. Thomas Lawyer
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