Luciana Chunga, Intern

On Tuesday February 10th, the Utah Legal Center of Inclusion (UCLI) was excited to host an LGBTQIA+ student networking event at Canyon Peak Events Center. The event was centered around attorneys, law students, and pre-law students with the hope of showing them the strength of community in the state of Utah.

The event began with the guests socializing with one another, giving law students and pre-law students the chance to network with other individuals in the legal field. Our main hope for this event was not only to demonstrate the strength of the community, but also to showcase many of the different and inspiring stories of LGBTQIA+ and allied attorneys. The conversation was accompanied by dinner as more students and guests joined.

At the event, we were honored to hear from esteemed guest speaker Professor Daniel Aaron, Associate Professor of Law at S.J Quinney College of Law at the University of Utah. He opened his talk with “I was told I was supposed to make this ‘inspiring’,” as he did while sharing his experience as an out and proud gay attorney. His speech detailed the importance of representation. He touched on the many ways that the media has shaped the way that LGBTQIA+ community is viewed and how many, younger and older, have felt seen. He shared the importance of having representation in the legal field as many attorneys, like him, can often feel isolated or limited due to their orientation. Professor Aaron shared his hope that slowly but surely the legal profession will build that representation, and that others will be able to relate to and continue their own journey to the law. 

Following Professor Aaron’s talk, the conversation opened up to our other guests; they engaged thoughtfully on political issues and discussed ideas for ensuring that everyone in the community can feel included in our state. This met our goal of community engagement, and we were glad attendees felt comfortable enough to network and engage with the community.

Towards the end of the networking section of the event, pre-law and law students were asked to shift to various tables giving them a great opportunity to network with new attorneys as well as learn about their peers that they hadn’t had the chance to meet before. This was the perfect transition to the raffle, where everyone participated in a game of chance to win three incredible prizes to finish up the night.

We honor all those who joined us to have a conversation about the LGBTQIA+ law community in Utah. We especially want to thank Professor Daniel for taking time and effort to share his wonderful talk with us. We also express gratitude to the B.W. Bastian Foundation for providing a generous grant that allows us to devote time and energy to these community events.

Networking activity including attorneys, pre-law, and law students.

Attendees of the event including UCLI staff, attorneys, pre-law students, and law students.

On January 17, the Utah Center of Inclusion hosted the first seminar for the Pre-Law Fellowship cohort of 2026! The UCLI team was incredibly excited to welcome the new Fellows and walked them through the many resources available to them as part of the program, while facilitating opportunities for everyone to get to know each other. The seminar was hosted in the Utah Law and Justice Center. 

Fellows were introduced to program offerings, such as access to the incredible resource of the Spivey Consulting Group, a consulting firm made up of former law school admission officers, meant to help mentor our fellows. Also as a benefit of the program, Fellows will receive access to an attorney mentor to help them along their law school application journey. Fellows are also eligible to receive travel subsidies and reimbursement of LSAT-related expenses, in addition to fully complimentary LSAT study resources. 

The Fellows received an insightful introduction to the LSAT exam by the founder of LSAT Rise – and UCLI’s 2026 LSAT partner for the program – Laura Baragona Damone. Fellows were walked through the LSAT Lab tools, where they learned about the many options to ensure their success in the program and help them in their LSAT journey. LSAT Lab offers Fellows not only the opportunity to track their progress through diagnostics, official LSAT questions, and drills but also provides them with live online classes and tutoring. We hope this packed resource will be used and navigated by the Fellows, helping them reach their desired LSAT score.

Fellows also had the opportunity to hear from Brent Dunn, founder of the LSAT study prep program ACE Test Prep. In his presentation on the importance of the LSAT he shared the many benefits that come from studying, such as scholarships for law school, and emphasized the time needed to truly dedicate to it. He shared the value of the LSAT and how preparing for it is a crucial part to help carry students on their law school journey. As he stated, “you’re going to need to take time to build up the stamina. It isn’t a test that you build up for in a week or in a month.” He also shared his belief in the Fellows: “I’m really a big believer in this program, and I’m a big believer in the need for you to be in the law.”

Towards the end of his presentation, Fellows had the opportunity to share their questions and concerns about the exam, getting first-hand advice from the instructors in their introductory seminar. The group got the chance to learn about the many ways that they should approach the LSAT in the initial stage of their test preparation. It’s through these questions of accuracy, time management, and additional material that helped fellows get a broader perspective of how they can approach the LSAT – gaining strong study habits.

To round off the seminar, Fellows had a surprise visit from some attorneys next door who had been participating in a mediation training. Thanks to the initiative of UCLI Founding Board member Nate Alder, eight attorneys joined the end of the event to offer personal stories of overcoming hardships to join the legal profession and encouragement to the Fellows. It was the perfect ending to a great seminar.

The UCLI team is excited to see the growth of the 2026 Pre-Law Fellows throughout the year and to celebrate their achievements. UCLI offers a warm thank you to Laura Baragona Damone and Brent Dunn again for their valuable presentations, and thanks the Utah State Bar for allowing the use of the Utah Law and Justice Center. It is only with the help of many partners and participants that UCLI is able to provide the Pre-Law Fellowship program. We gratefully acknowledge the 2026 Pre-Law Fellowship Sponsors and Sustaining Sponsors below.

2026 Pre-Law Fellowship Sponsors:

B.W. Bastian Foundation

Florence J. Gillmor Foundation

Larry H. & Gail Miller Family Foundation

Sustaining Sponsors:

Holland & Hart

Intermountain Health

Kirton McConkie

Magleby Cataxinos

Maschoff Brennan

Parsons Behle & Latimer

Snell & Wilmer

Spencer Fane

Utah Bar Foundation

Workman Nydegger

The 2026 Pre-Law Fellowship cohort