NORTHEASTERN UNIVERSITY SCHOOL OF LAW MAGAZINE

Martín Espada ’85 will be honored in September with a 2024 Mass Humanities Governor’s Award, which recognizes individuals whose public actions enhance civic life in the commonwealth through a deep appreciation of the humanities. Espada, a professor of English at the University of Massachusetts Amherst, has been singled out for his “work as a poet, editor and essayist with a focus on using writing and storytelling to address pressing issues and reclaim historical narratives, including those of the Puerto Rican community in Massachusetts.” Espada and three other recipients will be celebrated at a ceremony presented in partnership with Governor Maura Healey ’98 at the John F. Kennedy Presidential Library and Museum in Boston.

Ragini Shah ’99, a clinical professor at Suffolk Law who founded that school’s first Immigration Clinic, received the Legal Award from Justice at Work at its 13th Annual Celebration and Solidarity Awards in June. Shah was recognized for her “movement-based leadership over the past year in the labor-based immigration relief context … [and] long career of strategic, impactful legal support, delivered with her remarkable intellect, courage and charm.”

In May, the Suffolk Law class of 2024 offered its highest praise to Professor Sarah Schendel ’09, selecting her as Faculty Member of the Year. Schendel, an associate professor in Suffolk’s Academic Support Program, was also honored with the Charles P. Kindregan Scholarship Award, which recognizes outstanding faculty achievements in research and scholarship.

Mari Newman ’97, a Colorado-based civil rights and employment lawyer, was profiled by Denver’s Westword in February for representing prisoners held at Guantanamo Bay Naval Base and seeking justice for Elijah McClain, a 23-year-old African American who was forcibly detained by police, injected with 500 mg of ketamine by paramedics and died three days later. In the McClain case, Newman represented the Estate of Elijah McClain and his father; the case was settled for $15 million, the largest settlement in civil rights litigation in Colorado history.

Elyse Cherry ’83, CEO of BlueHub Capital, was profiled by MassLive in February as one of the commonwealth’s LGBTQ+ leaders. “By claiming a seat at the table, I help to ensure our communities are represented, our many identities are recognized, our needs are met and that inclusivity becomes the norm we all practice,” said Cherry.

Alexandra Tarzikhan ’19, legal advisor for Southwest Asia and North Africa with the ABA Justice Defenders Program, was named in March to the Arab America Foundation’s 40 Under 40 list for 2024. Tarzikhan specializes in human rights advocacy, humanitarian operations and global health, focusing on forced displacement, conflict-affected settings and climate change.

BronxWorks, a large social service organization dedicated to uplifting Bronx residents that serves more than 60,000 annually, promoted longtime executive director Eileen Torres ’95 to chief executive officer in January. Torres’ new title testifies to the organization’s impressive growth under her leadership.

After nearly a decade representing Daniel Gwynn, who spent almost 30 years on death row in Pennsylvania, Gretchen Engel ’92, executive director of the Center for Death Penalty Litigation, secured his exoneration in February. In an interview with Northeastern Global News about the case, Engel said, “Death row cases are supposed to be the ones we treat differently. We give defendants two lawyers instead of one, the state’s highest court reviews the case, etc. But the error rate is appalling. If this were any other government program, we would not continue it.”

In April, the judges of the US District Court for the District of Massachusetts selected Jessica Hedges ’99, a criminal defense attorney, to be a magistrate judge, sitting in Boston. Hedges began her legal career as a term law clerk at the Massachusetts Superior Court. She then entered private practice at a small Boston criminal defense and civil rights firm. Most recently, she was a founding senior partner of Hedges & Tumposky.

Congratulations to Massachusetts Governor Maura Healey ’98, selected for the no. 1 spot (for the second year in a row) in Boston magazine’s 2024 list of the 150 Most Influential Bostonians, and to Betty Francisco ’98, CEO of Boston Impact Initiative, who landed at no. 55. This is Francisco’s third year on the prestigious list.

Avana Epperson- Temple ’15, an associate attorney at Peabody & Arnold, was inaugurated in May as president of the Massachusetts Black Lawyers Association (MBLA) for a one-year term. She also serves on the board of Pine Street Inn, and she is a member of the Anti-Defamation League’s associate board and regional board for the New England region. She was also recently featured in the Pro Bono Spotlight column of Massachusetts Lawyers Weekly.

In April, Eduardo Gonzalez ’16 received the Institute for the Advancement of the American Legal System’s 2024 Alli Gerkman Legal Visionary Award. Gonzalez, a program officer for civil justice at the American Academy of Arts and Sciences, was recognized for facilitating “a narrative change for civil justice — one that right-sizes the role of courts, lawyers and new and existing community advocates and social services; reframes civil justice as an empowerment tool to build community resilience; and one that restores trust in our legal system.”

Janene Asgeirsson ’01, chief legal officer and corporate secretary at Analog Devices, was named in March to Manufacturing Digital’s Top 10: Women in Manufacturing North America list. Asgeirsson is also a certified yoga instructor.

In May, the Massachusetts Black Lawyers Association (MBLA) honored Joseph Feaster Jr. ’75 (left) with its Lifetime Achievement Award and Rahsaan Hall ’98 (right) with its Trailblazer Award. Feaster’s career has included numerous leadership positions in private practice and government, and he currently serves as chair of Boston’s Task Force on Reparations. Hall is president and CEO of the Urban League of Eastern Massachusetts and a former prosecutor and director of the ACLU of Massachusetts’ racial justice program.

In March, J. Stephen ’84, a viticulturalist based in Athens, New York, won the Atlantic Seaboard Wine Association’s Birchenall Award, given to members of the wine media for promoting knowledge of the East Coast wine industry. Casscles was recognized for his seminal work, Grapes of the Hudson Valley and Other Cool Climate Regions of the United States and Canada. In addition to being an author, Casscles is an accomplished grape hybridizer and winemaker.

At the 2024 Breckenridge International Snow Sculpture Championships, David Rothstein ’97 (second from right, pictured with team) was part of the four-person Team Mexico, which captured the Gold Medal and the People’s Choice Award and shared the honor of the Artists’ Choice Award. This is only the second time in 33 years that one team has captured all of the awards. Team Mexico’s 16-foot-tall sculpture, titled The Beggar, was made from 25 tons of snow.

Nicole Bluefort ’10, founder of the Law Offices of Nicole M. Bluefort, was honored in June with the Massachusetts Black Women Attorneys’ Ida B. Wells Award. Bluefort was among many friends at the celebration, including MBWA President Desiree Murphy ’13 and Tara Dunn ’17, who takes over as president this fall.

Carmelyn Malalis ’01 has been named the first head of impact at Level Forward, a film, theater and television studio dedicated to producing story-driven and impactminded work. Malalis now oversees all aspects of the company’s impact work, including impact partnerships, activations, programming and learning workshops, impact measurement and the Level Forward Impact Advisory Group. Malalis previously served as chair and commissioner of the New York City Commission on Human Rights for seven years.

Stephen Kohn ’84 has been named to Forbes’ inaugural list of America’s Top 200 Lawyers in recognition of his impact and achievements in whistleblower advocacy. A partner in the Washington, DC, law firm of Kohn, Kohn & Colapinto, Kohn is also an award-winning author, cofounder of the National Whistleblower Center and a part-time faculty member at Northeastern Law. He has helped draft key whistleblower legislation and regulation, some of which was incorporated into the Sarbanes-Oxley and Dodd-Frank Acts.

“Although I am honored by this designation, all of our cases are a team effort by lawyers dedicated to demanding that whistleblowers be fully protected and awarded,” said Kohn. “But the persons deserving recognition are our clients, who have saved lives, returned billions to the taxpayers and risked everything to serve the public interest.”