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Applications Are Open!
Applications for the second installment of the Justice Adolpho A. Birch Jr. Scholarship are now live and will remain open until July 8th, 2024. This $5,000 award will financially support an incoming student at an ABA-accredited law school. To apply, please visit the scholarship portal.
Similarly, it is recommend that applicants also download A(mateur) to B(arrister): A Comprehensive Guide to Conquering 1L to enhance their academic toolkit prior to matriculating into law school.
Congratulations to Kamilah Newton, winner of the Justice Adolpho A. Birch Jr. Scholarship Fund!
After a very competitive application cycle, please join me in congratulating Kamilah Newton, the first-ever recipient of the Justice Adolpho A. Birch Jr. Scholarship Fund! Kamilah is a current law student at Fordham University School of Law and graduate of Hunter College.
Kamilah's interaction with the criminal justice system inspired her to catalyze the change she wanted to see. Through rehabilitative programming offered by the WPA, she received intensive media training that then facilitated her support for the expansion of alternative-to-incarceration programs and reentry assistance. Given this passion for advocacy, she became a published writer and producer for Yahoo!, where she leveraged her journalistic expertise to highlight issues within the Black community. Following law school, Kamilah plans to pursue a career in civil rights and design creative, equitable solutions that address systemic issues affecting underrepresented groups.
When I first created this scholarship, I remained keen on selecting a student that exemplified the qualities my grandfather constantly imparted onto me: a commitment to social activism, selflessness, and integrity. Kamilah embodies each of these characteristics and my family and I are very excited to watch all the great things she will do in what will certainly be an impactful legal career.
Congratulations again, Kamilah!
The Justice Adolpho A. Birch, Jr., Scholarship Fund
To honor Justice Birch's contributions to the legal field and his commitment to helping others, Amateur to Barrister has created a $5,000 scholarship in his name. Details about the scholarship can be found HERE, and applications are due July 15th, 2023. We suggest applying early and reading our book before submitting an application.
More About Justice Birch:
Birch was born in Washington, D.C. in 1932, the son of an Episcopal priest that raised his children as a single parent. His father’s professional concerns for his parishioners left Birch with much time on his own, and he often raised small amounts of money for himself by picking up soft drink bottles for their deposit values and distributing newspapers. Birch graduated from Washington D.C.’s esteemed Dunbar High School in 1950. After high school, he attended Lincoln University from 1950 to 1952. He then attended Howard University in Washington D.C., where he earned Bachelor of Arts and Doctor of Jurisprudence degrees, serving on the Howard Law Journal and graduating in 1956. He also joined the Epsilon Chapter of Kappa Alpha Psi Fraternity, Inc. while in college. A Naval Reservist, he served on active duty 1956–1958.
Birch is the only person in Tennessee history to serve at every level of the state’s judiciary. In 1969, Governor Buford Ellington appointed him as a General Sessions Court judge in Davidson County, making him the first African American to serve in that office. In 1970 he was elected to the judgeship, the first time an African American won election as a judge in the county.
On March 2, 1987, Birch was appointed to the Tennessee Court of Appeals by Governor Ned McWherter. In August 1990, Birch was elevated by the voters under the provisions of the Tennessee Plan to the Tennessee Supreme Court, becoming only the second African-American ever to serve on that body to that time. In October 1994, Birch was selected Chief Justice by his fellow Justices, serving in that capacity until May 1996. In August 1998, Birch was confirmed for another eight year Supreme Court term, and served again as Chief Justice from July 1997 to August 1998 and September 1999 to August 2001. In 2006 Birch announced his retirement, ultimately retiring from the bench on September 1, 2006. The A. A. Birch Jr. Criminal Justice Building in downtown Nashville, completed in 2006 to house Davidson County Criminal Courts, was dedicated in his honor in June 2006. A bust of Birch is also displayed in the entrance of the Tennessee Supreme Court Building in Nashville.