Saint Louis University School of Law

Office of Diversity, Equity and Inclusion (ODEI)

Programming

Asst. Dean Dantley, Asst. Director Mariajose Ortiz and the staff of the Office of Diversity, Equity and Inclusion create and participate in programming that serves the mission goals of the Office i.e., “to provide development and coordination of diversity, cross-cultural and inclusion awareness, outreach and retention programs for the School of Law.” As well as to, “produce well-rounded and culturally competent professionals who will respectfully serve their diverse communities.“ †

†Office of Diversity, Equity and Inclusion

From: Belinda Dantley -- Assistant Dean for Diversity, Equity and Inclusion

We need your support! Please consider joining us for a variety of events throughout the 2025-2026 academic term. Below is a brief overview of the events our office has planned, and support requested. More information will be provided as the dates approach.

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  Coffee Talks (various dates based on your availability): Informal meetings throughout the year to help law students learn about various practice areas, gain professional knowledge, explore possible career paths, and build connections. Our office will reach out to schedule a meeting depending on your availability. The meetings can take place at the law school, your office, or virtually.

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  Creating Capital (2/18/26, day and/or evening): The goal of this program is to assist students in establishing a strong foundation for a legal network as they begin their journey into the law. The premise of this event is to provide a "speed-networking" style program where students will have the opportunity to build connections with several attorneys while rotating through five stations. Our office will reach out to give you the opportunity to select your station and provide additional information to facilitate the conversation. At each station, participants will work together to answer prompts related to the given station topic. After the students have rotated through all the stations, we will provide an open forum where students can follow up with attorneys they met in the rotation or get to know attorneys they didn't meet during the rotations. Appetizers and non-alcoholic beverages will be provided.

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  Law in the Lou – High School Edition (2/27/26):SLU Law invites high school students to explore a day in the life of an attorney! This event is a collaboration with the Office of Admission to inform aspiring lawyers how to map their pathway to the legal profession. The day will include advising sessions on how to make their law school application shine, tours of the law campus led by current law students, group activities designed to help them "think like a lawyer," and conversations with local attorneys and legal professionals. We need your support during the networking portion of this event. Our office will reach out with further information.

Poverty Simulation Training 2024

Poverty is a reality for many individuals and families. But unless you’ve experienced poverty, it’s difficult to truly understand. The SLU LAW Poverty Simulation bridges that gap from misconception to understanding. This is an interactive immersion experience. It sensitizes community participants to the realities of poverty. It is important to note that this is not a game. It is based on real community members and their lives.

Third Annual Baker Sterchi Cowden & Rice Women in the Law CLE: Perceptions and Misconceptions of Women in Law

Dean Dantley was a guest speaker at Baker Sterchi Cowden & Rice (BSCR), for BSCR's third annual Women in the Law CLE webinar on Nov. 5, 2021, 11 AM –1 PM CST. The webinar discussed what research has illuminated with respect to how jurors and the public view female litigators and judges. The additional challenges faced by diverse female attorneys was also addressed during the session, The speakers included experts in DEI, judicial politics, jury consulting, and more.

Racism, Bias, and Conflict in the Community: What Happens When Community Harm Occurs? - Recap

On Tuesday, Oct. 19, 2021, the Office of Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion put on a program designed to help us learn more about the different types of community justice and how we can implement justice for our entire community.

The program was a way for the SLU LAW community to learn about the current University policies and procedures surrounding bias related incidents. It was also a way for us to discuss and explore how we can update our SLU LAW policies. Students were encouraged to apply to participate in a committee that would review our SLU LAW Student Honor Code and work on any necessary changes to it to include conduct related issues.

We also had the opportunity to learn from Dr. Amber Johnson about ways to revamp our punitive processes and move toward other forms of justice using restorative and transformative models.

Naturalization Ceremony

The ceremony was held in honor of Constitution Day on September 17, 2021 and took place at the Gateway Arch. Judge Henry Autrey was presiding and Dean Belinda Dantley, J.D. (Saint Louis University School of Law-Office of Diversity, Equity and Inclusion) served as the Courtroom Deputy and delivered a speech in honor of the occasion (see link below). Masks were required and due to the National Park Service’s COVID guidelines attendance was limited to participants on the main level of the venue. However, attendees were allowed to have a limited number of guests view the proceeding from an upper level observation area. There were 30 new citizens and family members present.

Naturalization Speech

The Law School Hustle, with Ashley Kirkwood

Ashley Kirkwood, a lawyer by trade and the author of The Law School Hustle, was the keynote speaker for a virtual program on February 10, 2021. Kirkwood spoke to students about law school academic success tips and confidence. She was invaluable to our students because at the time of the event, the students had just received their grades from the previous semester and were looking for ways to improve their grades, performance and study skills. Hearing from Kirkwood was empowering and resourceful.

The Diversity & Inclusion webinar series was sponsored by the Office of Diversity and Community Engagement along with the Black Alumni Association. This series offered guidance, expertise, and experiences from some of SLU's distinguished professors, faculty, and notable alumni on racial matters that have occurred, and are still present, in not just St. Louis, but in the country. The webinars explored topics ranging from the history of racial injustice as a part of our country's past; to how it has had a profound and continuing effect on the present. This webinar series was a year-long multi-part event examining whiteness, anti-blackness, and anti-racism in society. The series was a part of Saint Louis University's continuing commitment to achieving the values rooted in Ignatian spirituality for realizing social justice and racial equality through the promotion of diversity, equity, and inclusion.

The featured panelists for Topic 1 were Richard Marks, Ed.D., Director of the Cross Cultural Center and served as the host for the series. Belinda Dantley, J.D. the Director of Inclusion and Diversity Education at Saint Louis University's School of Law; Richard Harvey, Ph.D. an Associate Professor of Psychology in the College of Arts & Sciences; and Kathryn Redmond, J.D. an Associate at Armstrong & Teasdale, and two time alumna of Saint Louis University's College of Public Health & Justice 2009 and School of Law 2019.

The webinar took place on Thursday, August 27, 2020 at 12:30 CDT

Topic 2 discussion took a deeper dive into how we can go beyond surface level allyship to form true allyship that is consistent and allows everyone to work together. The featured panelists for Topic 2 were Kira H. Banks, Ph.D., Co-Founder of the Institute for Healing Justice and Equity and Associate Professor, Department of Psychology; Dixie Meyer, Ph.D., Associate Professor for the Medical Family Therapy Program; Lauren Bartlett, J.D., Assistant Clinical Professor of Law and Director of the Human Rights at Home Litigation Clinic here at the School of Law; and Christopher Tinson, Ph.D., Director of the African American Studies Program. Also, Richard Marks, Ed.D., Director of the Cross Cultural Center, served as the host and moderator.

The webinar took place on Thursday, October 8, 2020 at 12:30 p.m. CDT.

The Topic 3 discussion, focused on Women’s History Month (WHM) and struggles like discrimination and sexism that women have had to overcome to get to where they are today. The featured panelists were Karla D. Scott, Ph.D., Professor in the Department of Communication; Ms. Nicole Roach, Assistant to the President; and Jessica Ouyang, M.D., SLU Medical School Alumni & Child and Adolescent Psychiatrist at MedStar Georgetown University Hospital. For moderator and host, we were pleased to have Dr. Frances Pestello, Ph.D., First Lady of Saint Louis University and Professor of Sociology facilitate the discussion.

The webinar took place on Thursday, March 18, 2021 at 12:45 p.m. CT.

CLE: Combatting Implicit Bias at Home

The goal for the continuing legal education training was to give law professionals tools to create a gameplan to reduce, prevent and eliminiate bias-related incidents. It encouraged participants to take a step back, re-evaluate some things and make adjustments when it comes to combating bias.

Topics included cultural competency, types of oppression, privilege, understanding bias, Missouri Rules of Professional Conduct that relate to bias, and steps to reduce the effects of bias in the profession. The training required participants to take an introspective look at how they could be the reason someone felt seen, heard and understood.