The Serbian Bar Association of America (SBAA) awards scholarships to law students who are of Serbian birth, ancestry, or connubial relationship. Applicants must submit an essay of no more than 250 words detailing how they plan to use their legal education within the Serbian American community and submit a certified copy of their law school transcript.

Deadline: September 13, 2010
Award: 4 scholarships ranging from $500 to $2000
Contact: Anastasia Pavich
Email: apavich@monicopavich.com
Website and Application: http://www.serbbar.org/scholarship/

On Thursday, August 26, there will be an information session presented by UC Berkeley’s Residence Affairs Unit regarding establishing California Residency for tuition purposes. Students currently billed as nonresidents but planning to appeal their residency status for 2011-2012 should attend this informal lunch period gathering from 12:45 -1:45 in Room 100 Boalt. The impact of working out of California this summer and tips for completing the appeal will be discussed by the presenter. There will be time for questions and answers.

If you have any questions,  please contact the Financial Aid Office
financial-aid@law.berkeley.edu
510-642-1563

Berkeley Law Financial Aid

Sidley Austin LLP has been one of the most prominent and progressive proponents of law firm diversity. Sidley’s mission is to attract and retain outstanding lawyers of varied backgrounds who reflect the global marketplace that Sidley serves. Sidley will grant a $15,000 Sidley Diversity and Inclusion Scholarship to a limited number of deserving second year law students who also have an offer to join Sidley’s 2011 summer program.

Interested applicants should submit an application, including resume, official law school transcript, legal writing sample and personal statement to Jenny Connelly at scholarship@sidley.com or Sidley Austin LLP, One South Dearborn, Chicago, Illinois 60603.

Applications will remain open through the Fall 2010 recruiting session and can be found on their website at http://www.sidley.com/careers/northamerica/about/diversityscholars.

The George Hopper Memorial Scholarship offered by the Fresno County Young Lawyers Association will award one scholarship to a second or third year law student in good standing. Applicants must be in good standing in the law school and demonstrate overall excellence and accomplishment in pursuit of his or her Juris Doctorate. Particular consideration is given to civic and academic involvement of the applicant, scholastic achievement, and the applicant’s demonstrated financial need. Applicants must demonstrate a connection to the San Joaquin Valley as well as a desire to enter the practice of law in either Fresno, Madera, Merced, Kings or Tulare County. E-mail completed applications to Brian E. Qualls, Esq. at BQualls@DAKLAW.com.

Deadline: July 15, 2010
Award: $500
Contact: Brian E. Qualls, Esq.
Email: BQualls@DAKLAW.com
Click here to download the application.

Important Financial Aid information for Public Service Graduates pertaining to LRAP, PSLF, Perkins loan cancellation benefits and Grad PLUS “additional six-month” non-payment period

Grad PLUS “additional six-month” non-payment period

We just received an update from Direct Loan Servicing (DL) pertaining to your second and third year Grad PLUS loans. All Boalt graduates automatically receive an “additional six-month” non-payment period for Grad PLUS loans disbursed after July 2008. This “additional six-month” non-payment period is the equivalent of a grace period. However, your first year Grad PLUS loan doesn’t have such an option. You will receive a payment notice within 60 days after graduation if you don’t request forbearance or apply for deferment. Please contact Direct Loan Servicing Center at 1-800-848-0979 for assistance.

LRAP

• Please check the LRAP guidelines for information on extended coverage for “Low Bono”/Union LRAP coverage at our website. This pilot program will be limited to 7 slots for the class of 2010.

• Volunteer work in form of fellowships or uncompensated training programs does not constitute employment and therefore does not satisfy the LRAP or Public Service Loan Forgiveness requirements. You must be employed or have a contract upon which you receive compensation for your service.

• Graduates seeking to participate in LRAP must begin participating in the program within three years after the end of their loan grace period, which normally is six months after graduation. Students who will be graduating this May have the option to enter the LRAP as first-time participants until December 2013 if all eligibility requirements are met.

• Because most educational loans offer a six-month grace period following graduation, May 2010 graduates going directly into qualifying employment will not receive their first LRAP loan until January 2011. The application forms for Spring 2011 will be available on our website by early October and the deadline is November 1.

• Before applying to LRAP please review the application process and our check list of required documents for first-time applicants.

Public Service Loan Forgiveness (PSLF)

Many of you are planning a long-term career in public service and may utilize the Public Service Loan Forgiveness (PSLF), a 10-year program. Only Federal Direct loans qualify for PSLF. You must consolidate or reconsolidate your pre-Boalt FFEL loans into Federal Direct if you want those loans to be eligible for forgiveness: http://loanconsolidation.ed.gov. Please check if your pre-Boalt loans carry a grace period before initiating a consolidation. Consolidations will cancel a grace period and immediately enter repayment.

Please note that under the 10-year PSLF program a consolidation is considered a new loan and therefore the 10-year clock will re-start on the consolidation. For more details about IBR and PSLF please check the LRAP section and external links of our website,  www.IBRinfo.org and  Equal Justice Works.

Perkins Loan Benefits for Public Defenders

Recently the Department of Education published new regulations for the expanded Perkins loan cancellation benefits for full-time attorneys employed in Federal or Community Defender Organizations. Eligible service performed on or after August 14, 2008 will qualify a borrower for cancellation, regardless of whether information on the expansion of the cancellation category appears on the borrower’s promissory note. Since Public Defender employment also qualifies for Public Service Loan Forgiveness (PSLF), please note that borrowers may not be able to use the same service years for both loan cancellation programs. For more information on Perkins loan cancellation benefits please check your servicing agency’s website. UC Berkeley Perkins loans are serviced by ACS.

Please explore the LRAP section of our website for more information. If you plan a career in public service and have questions about LRAP and the Public Service Loan Forgiveness, please schedule an appointment for an individual assessment of your student loan portfolio and repayment options before you leave Berkeley.

Congratulations and Best Wishes!

If you are a New American, please plan to attend the information session for the Paul & Daisy Soros Fellowships for New Americans. The session will be held in 110 Boalt Hall, 2-3 P.M., on Thursday, April 15. Warren Ilchman, Director, Stanley J. Heginbotham, Consulting Director of Selection, and the current Boalt 1L who is now a Soros Fellow, will provide information and insights about how to be a successful applicant for this prestigious $90,000 two-year national fellowship.

A New American is a person who holds a Green Card, or is already a naturalized citizen, or the child of a naturalized parent (the other parent cannot be a US born citizen). A candidate must not be more than 30 years of age as of November 1 of the year of application. Please go to www.pdsoros.org for more information about the fellowships.

Dennis Tominaga
Assistant Dean of Financial Aid

Scholarships are available to all students, both male and female, and are based on financial need, academic excellence, residential or other ties to San Mateo County, and involvement in activities, whether legal, scholastic, public, private or community. Applicants for the scholarship should submit a letter stating their qualifications for the award and the information about why they should be chosen. Please include in the letter, or as a separate attachment, the following information: All law school scholarships received and in what amounts, specify how the law school education is being financed, and include a copy of the current law school transcript.

Please send letters to:

San Mateo County Women Lawyers Education Foundation, P.O. Box 341, San Carlos, California 94070

* Deadline: April 1, 2010
* Award: $1,000 to $4,000
* Contact: Vivian L. Kral
* Phone: 650-367-1771

The Kern County Women Lawyers Association (KCWLA) of Bakersfield, California is an organization that supports and promotes women in the profession as well as issues of gender, diversity and equality. The KCWLA, through its Foundation, awards scholarships to both female and male law students, each year, in April or May. In order to receive a scholarship, the applicant must have ties to Kern County, California, have financial need and/or hardship and have good academic standing and scholarship. The Foundation is interested in candidates who have interests and experiences concerning issues facing the procession and, in particular, those issues important to women. Each year, at least one scholarship for a second, third or fourth year law student is awarded.

* Deadline: April 2, 2010
* Awards: $250-$3,000
* Contact:
Cynthia C. Norris, Secretary
Kern County Women Lawyers Foundation
P.O. Box 2702
Bakersfield, CA 93302
* Phone: 661-868-2736
* Download the Application

Every year the Essex County Bar Foundation offers a scholarship in memory of Joseph J. and Vincent P. Biunno. The scholarships are designed to offer financial assistance to persons with disabilities who are currently attending law school. For purposes of the scholarship, a disability is limited to a permanent physical or mental impairment that substantially limits one of more of the major life activities of the individual having such an impairment. Persons wishing to apply for the scholarship will need to demonstrate a permanent disability consistent with the criterion outlined above and demonstrate financial need, law school achievement and commitment to practice law. Those with connections to New Jersey receive preference.

* Deadline: May 7, 2010
* Email: info@essexbar.com
* Phone: 973-622-6207
* Website and Application: www.essexbar.com

The SABANC (South Asian Bar Association of Northern California) Foundation has a fellowship program that funds public interest fellowships for law students who are interested in dedicating their summers to public interest work that impacts and benefits the South Asian community in the Bay Area.

* Deadline: March 26, 2010
* Contact: Monali Sheth
* Email: mssheth@gmail.com
* Website and Application: http://www.southasianbar.org/saba-foundation/fellowship

Farella Braun + Martel LLP represents a diverse group of clients in one of the most diverse regions of this country and are committed to increasing the diversity of the legal profession. As part of their commitment, they are again awarding Diversity Scholarships to support outstanding diverse Bay Area law students. This year, Farella Braun + Martel will award a total of $25,000 in scholarship grants to be divided equally between three to five law student recipients.

Scholarship applicants must be current first-year, full- or part-time (attending first-year classes) law
students who are students of color, members of the lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender and queer
(LGBTQ) community, disabled, or whose background or experience would otherwise contribute to the
diversity of the legal profession.

Their scholarship committee is composed of attorneys at the firm, and scholarship recipients will be
chosen based upon a combination of merit and financial need. With respect to merit, the committee will
consider each applicant’s academic accomplishments, background, activities, obligations and commitment to community service. Need, as interpreted by the committee, will be determined based upon the applicant’s and the applicant’s family’s income; the applicant’s sources of financial aid, including loans, grants, fellowships and scholarships, if any; assets, if any; expenses; and expected income during the summer of 2010. Preference will be given to applicants who demonstrate a commitment to working and living in the Bay Area.

Applications are available on their website (www.fbm.com), and all completed applications must be
postmarked by March 12, 2010. Scholarship recipients will be notified by April 13, 2010 and will receive their scholarship checks shortly thereafter.

The Public Interest Scholarship Program recognizes top California law students who demonstrate a commitment to public service, an intent to pursue a career in public interest law, academic excellence, and financial need. The Scholarship helps pay the costs of obtaining a law school education, including tuition, fees, books, and related law school education expenses. Awards of up to $7,500 recognize law students who demonstrate superior academic achievement, a sustained and extensive commitment to public service, often while overcoming serious hardships and obstacles, an intent to pursue a career in public interest law, and financial need. Candidates must be nominated by their law school.

The Public Interest Scholarship is awarded in the fall of 2010 for the 2010-2011 academic year. Please visit our Scholarship posting for more information.

The application packet is available online at http://www.calbarfoundation.org/programs/scholarships/lawschool.html

Because each school must nominate applicants for the CA Bar Foundation Public Interest Scholarship, applications will need to be submitted the Law School’s Financial Aid office by 5:00pm Wednesday, March 3, 2010.

For additional information. please contact Jasmine Guillory, Program Director, at 415-856-0780 ext. 302 or jguillory@calbarfoundation.org

This year the Black Women Lawyers Association will award scholarship(s) to second and third year full-time law students as well as fourth year law students enrolled in night programs who intend to practice law in California. Recipients are selected on the basis of financial need, community service, academic achievement and legal writing ability.

Completed applications must be postmarked no later than March 5, 2010. Successful applicants will be recognized at the Black Women Lawyer’s Foundation Luncheon at the Sheraton Delfina in Los Angeles, California, May 1, 2010

The application is available at http://www.blackwomenlawyersla.org/.

The Rhode Island Bar Foundation “Thomas F. Black, Jr. Memorial Scholarship” is a one year, non-renewable award for full-time students who are Rhode Island residents entering their first year of law school in September 2010.

Scholarship awards shall be exclusively for tuition and related expenses for persons who enroll as full-time students in programs leading to the award of the L.L.B. or J.D. degree offered by law schools located in one of the United States or District of Columbia and accredited by the American Bar Association. Each scholarship will be made on the basis of demonstrated financial need, superior academic performance, community and public service, and demonstrated contacts with and commitment to the State of Rhode Island.

For more information, please contact the Rhode Island Bar Foundation office at (401) 421-6541 or e-mail: gcaldwell@ribar.com

* Deadline: received by March 19, 2010
* Award: 2 awards for $15,000 each
* Website and Application: http://ribar.com/foundation/scholarships.asp

The Community Foundation Sonoma County will be awarding the Michael F. O’Donnell Memorial Scholarship in the sum of $2,500.00 to students currently enrolled in law school or pursuing a law-related career, for the Foundation’s 2010 Scholarship Program.

Interested applicants for the scholarship must:
1. Have your permanent address in Sonoma County or have attended a high school located in Sonoma County.

2. Submit a completed application to the Community Foundation Sonoma County no later than 5:00p.m. March 1, 2010.

The application and additional information are located on the Foundation’s web site, www.sonomacf.org. The application must be completed online and should be submitted to the Community Foundation office with an official transcript and any supplemental materials, if required.
Questions? Please contact Dana Johnson, Program Associate, Community Foundation Sonoma County, 250 D Street, Suite 205, Santa Rosa, California 95404, or (707) 579-4073.