Law Center 75th Anniversary 1947 – 2022
Law Center 75th Anniversary 1947 – 2022
For Charisma Nguepdo and her classmates in the University of Houston Law Center Class of 2022, their law school experience was anything but traditional. It was the second semester of Nguepdo's 1L year when the global COVID-19 pandemic caused a seismic shift in all facets of life.
“We left for a much-needed spring break, and some of us just returned to campus for the first time in August of 2021,” Nguepdo said. “Needless to say, it had a major impact. We were really fortunate to experience that first semester together in person. Spending the second year apart was really difficult. We had so many concerns, including concerns about the health of our family members and the uncertainty of not knowing what was going to happen with the virus. Also, we weren't sure what would happen with school.
“A lot of us were worried about grades, decreased employment opportunities during the summer of 2020 as well as after graduation. So, it just created a lot of uncertainty, a lot of questions and a lot of worry. And of course, law students don't need any additional stress.”
Nguepdo noted that the unforeseen circumstances created a bond between classmates and professors, even if it was through a laptop screen instead of an in-person interaction.
“We were able to talk to our faculty members and our classmates in a way that we haven't spoken to one another before,” she said. “Professors were really willing to accommodate their students in really heartwarming and sincere ways. Some professors completely altered the way they instructed their courses, or they may have introduced things that they had never done before just to make students feel comfortable.
“Classmates made an effort to check in with one another. Often times, due to the competitive nature of law school, we lose sight of seeing each other as people. We're so concerned about rankings and grades. Having that experience of all of us going through COVID together, we had to lean on one another. I found myself having really raw and honest conversations with classmates about mental health in a way that we wouldn’t have had this not happened.”
Nguepdo’s time in law school was also marked by the murder of George Floyd in Minneapolis on May 25, 2020. Floyd, a native of Houston's historic Third Ward, which is adjacent to the UH campus, was killed when a police officer knelt on his neck for more than eight minutes. Floyd's death sparked nationwide protests and renewed calls for social justice.
“We had a lot of events during the summer where we were discussing race and the impact of racism. Professor Meredith Duncan piloted the George Floyd Equal Justice course, a one-week class in January of 2021, that was unlike any other at the Law Center. We discussed the intersection of race with other areas of law. We learned about the education system, the criminal justice system, death row and immigration issues. We had the chance to not only have these important, difficult and critical conversations but we were also able to interact with our faculty members.
“Professor Duncan was the named professor for the course, but every day of that week-long course we had different professors who taught the content for the day. We heard from Professor Thompson, Professor Dow, Dean Baynes, Professor Morales and Professor Marrus. These conversations were really important.”
On Jan. 6, 2021, there was an attack on the Capitol where rioters attempted to overthrow the results of the 2020 presidential election. From Feb. 13–17 of 2021, Houston and the surrounding region dealt with a widespread weather event in Winter Storm Uri. While these events were traumatic for Nguepdo and her colleagues, they helped them unite as classmates.
“There were some bright spots in some of the sadness,” Nguepdo said. “One thing I've really come to love about being a student at the Law Center is the sense of community.”
During her time as a Law Center student, Nguepdo made history becoming the first African American editor-in-chief of the Houston Law Review. She described her selection as “surreal” and was inundated with praise from members of the Law Center community.
“I don’t take this honor lightly,” Nguepdo said. “I really never thought about the impact this election would have on our Black alumni. I received a ton of calls, emails and text messages from them after the election. I was reminded by a lot of them that I had accomplished something that many of them could only have dreamt of doing while they were in law school. That's when it really started to hit me that this was bigger than me.
“Their stories motivate me to do an even better job as editor-in-chief. I want to make our alumni proud. I want generations of Law Center students to come to realize that they can dream big and accomplish things they did not think were possible.”
After obtaining her J.D. in the spring of 2022, Nguepdo will work in a federal judicial clerkship for two years in the chambers of Judge Alfred H. Bennett in the Southern District of Texas. Other career aspirations include becoming a trial attorney and eventually a law professor.
“Getting to know the professors at the Law Center has been really nice,” Nguepdo said. “It’s something I could see myself doing in the long run. Being able to connect with students and giving them what our current professors have given to me is something that really excites me about a career in academia.”
As a member of the Law Center’s 75th graduating class, Nguepdo said she hopes the Law Center continues its upward trajectory.
“I just hope that we continue to grow,” she said. “I'm really proud of the work that we've done as a school. Dean Baynes has been really committed to growing our law school in a meaningful way. I hope the Law Center continues to become an even more diverse and inclusive place. We’ve done a great job thus far, but I hope we continue to grow in that area, and that we ensure that all students have the resources that they need to succeed.”
