Spirit of La Verne Ceremony Honors College of Law Community
Three members of the College of Law community received awards during the Spirit of La Verne Recognition Ceremony on April 26 at the Church of the Brethren in La Verne.
Each year the University of La Verne honors individuals and groups who exemplify and further the University’s core values as demonstrated through work in the areas of civic and community engagement, diversity and inclusivity, and interfaith cooperation.
Alumna Soheila Azizi ‘93 received the Community Engagement Recognition, which honors individuals and groups that further the University’s institutional commitment to the value of community engagement and community service, acknowledging the importance of mutually beneficial and reciprocal relationships needed to build strong communities. Ms. Azizi, who is a principal in the law firm Soheila Azizi & Associates, P.C., was also awarded the Interfaith Cooperation Award, which honors people and programs that have made an outstanding contribution to furthering interfaith cooperation and/or exemplifying spiritual values shared by many traditions. Azizi’s awards recognize her tireless advocacy through her role as co-founder of Women on the Move, a non-profit corporation whose mission is to promote the empowerment of girls and young women, and in her capacity as President of the Upland Interfaith Council and Vice President of Upland Spirituality Assembly.
- Professor Diane Klein received a Diversity and Inclusivity Award. The Diversity and Inclusivity Recognition honors people and programs that have made outstanding contributions to furthering diversity, equity, and inclusivity. Professor Klein’s award was given in recognition of her ongoing efforts to create a more just and inclusive University. Professor Klein has organized a Trans Studies conference, helped lead a gender-neutral bathroom initiative at the University, and arranged for Nikki Araguz Loyd, a well-known activist for transgender issues, to present at the main campus and at the College of Law. She teaches, among other things, Antidiscrimination Law at the College of Law and The Legal Construction of Sex and Gender as part of the University’s FLEX program for traditional undergraduate studies.
The College of Law’s Interim Director of Student Experiences, Dr. Issac Carter, received a Diversity and Inclusivity Award in recognition for several initiatives that he spearheaded with the goal of increasing Diversity at the College of Law. Those initiatives include hosting diversity events with the Law School Admissions Council to Support Diversity and Access to Legal Education, helping the College of Law rank third for Diversity in the National Jurist Magazine, co-creating a professionalism class that supports law students’ understanding of diversity and leadership, and developing pipeline programs with local community colleges to support access to legal education. In addition to his contributions at the College of Law, Dr. Carter is co-director of the University’s Men of Color Initiative, Vice Chair of the Coalition for Diversity, and teaches the Black Experience in America in the University’s College of Arts and Sciences and co-teaches the Art of Leadership and Social Change for the Terrance E. Deal Leadership Institute.
