Commencements

On countless university campuses, new graduates prepare to receive their degrees, leave the familiarity of academia, and make their marks on the “real world.”

This year, I will be among the happy supporters attending the graduation of my mentee, Charlie Bingham, who will receive his J.D. from Howard Law School as a member of the Class of 2008. It seems like only yesterday that Charlie and I met at a reception for first-year law students. I feel honored to have played a small role in his professional development. Over the years, we’ve learned much from each other and, as he starts his legal career as an associate at Arnold & Porter, I have every faith that he will continue on his pathway of excellence.

As Charlie concludes his law-school experience, my newest mentee, Daria Grayer, is just getting started. Daria is a first-year law student at the University of Maryland School of Law, my alma mater. Daria’s personal and academic achievements are so super-impressive that sometimes I wonder who will mentor whom. I look forward to offering my best advice as she explores her professional goals. And before long, Daria will be graduating too.

But this year belongs to the Class of 2008. MCCA congratulates Charlie Bingham, his fiancée TeErra Henderson (Howard ’08), the inaugural class of scholars and fellows of the MCCA’s Lloyd M. Johnson, Jr. Scholarship Program, and the many other law graduates in our network. We wish you every success!  DB

Veta T. Richardson

---

From the May/June 2008 issue of Diversity & The Bar^®