Scholar Entries - Hispanic Lawyers Scholarship Fund of Illinois

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Are you a past recipient of an Hispanic Lawyers Scholarship Fund award?

Yes

Name

Damaris Hernandez

Current Mailing Address

1122 North Clark Street, Apt 2909
Chicago, IL 60610
United States
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If mailing address is temporary, expected date when current mailing address is no longer valid

05/31/2026

Permanent Address (only if different from Current Mailing Address)

1516 North State Parkway, 10D
Chicago, IL 60610
United States
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Phone

(517) 290-6083

Connection to Illinois

I moved to Illinois for undergrad in 2016 and have lived here ever since.

In what city do you intend to practice law upon graduation?

Chicago

Name of Law School

Northwestern Pritzker School of Law

Class year

2nd year law student

Full Time or Part Time Student?

Full Time

Date you began attending THIS law school

08/01/2024

Anticipated Graduation Date

05/31/2027

Current GPA

3.931

Law School Honors, Awards or Special Recognitions

Dean's List - Fall 2024, Spring 2025, Fall 2025
2025 HLSF Scholar
Orville Taylor Law Scholar - 2024-2025
Northwestern University Law Scholarship

Name of Undergraduate Institution

Northwestern University

Degree (BA, BSE, etc.) and Concentration/Major

Bachelor of Science in Education and Social Policy; Double Major in Learning Sciences and Mathematics

Undergraduate Graduation Date

06/01/2020

GPA

3.619

Undergraduate Honors, Awards, or Special Recognitions

Dean's List
Northwestern Scholarship 2016-2017
Arch Scholarship 2016-2017
Alfred W. Chase Scholarship 2017-2020
1851 Scholarship 2017-2020
Segal AmeriCorps Education Award 2017-2020

Were you employed in 2025?

yes

If yes, please identify your employer(s).

The Academy Group Chicago
Northwestern Pritzker School of Law
Kirkland & Ellis

What was your immediate family’s (including you and your spouse or domestic partner, if applicable) estimated income from all sources for the 2025 Tax Year?

100,000

Do you expect to be employed in 2026?

yes

If yes, please identify your employer(s).

The Academy Group Chicago
Northwestern Pritzker School of Law
Kirkland & Ellis

Please estimate your immediate family’s (including you and your spouse or domestic partner, if applicable) income from all sources for the 2026 Tax year

50,000

Please estimate your parent's average annual household income over the last five years

80,000

Do your parents own or rent their home? Please describe, if necessary

Own

Describe your parents' health insurance situation. Do they have employer-sponsored health insurance, health insurance through the exchange, or no health insurance?

Employer-sponsored insurance

LIST below your total EXPENSES for attending law school for ONE YEAR (Please refer to example in FAQs)

Total Tuition Cost $

79,772

Books Cost $

2,000

Fees Cost $

862

Housing Cost $

13,200

Food Cost $

5,000

Other Costs $ (describe)

11,700 = Transportation: $3,000 + School supplies: $200 + Health care (health insurance, co-pays, deductibles, etc): $8,500

Total Expenses $ (add above entries)

112,534

LIST below your total FUNDING sources you plan to use to pay for these expenses (Please refer to example in FAQs)

Student Loans $

32,534

Scholarships and Grants $

20,000

Work Study, if any $

Personal Contribution (Savings/Employment) $

60,000

Family Contribution $ (include parents, spouse, partner, etc.)

Other Sources $ (describe)

Total Funding $ (add above entries)

112,534

For 2Ls and 3Ls, what is your current TOTAL loan debt from the previous law school years?

64,000

Please list any community service activities with which you have been involved in the last ten years, paying particular attention to activities in support of the Hispanic community. For each activity, please include the dates of your participation, a short description of the organization and the community they serve, and a description of the activity you performed to help them. (Please read FAQs before completing)

National Honor Society (September 2014 - June 2016): National Honor Society is a student organization for high school students that promotes scholarship and community service. In NHS, I planned and implemented regular community service events like food/supplies drives, blood drives, and clean-ups to support those in need in my hometown community (Okemos, Michigan).

Afterschool Program Tutor & Mentor (September 2014 - June 2016): I mentored K-8th grades students struggling academically and/or socially in my school district (Okemos Public Schools) through regular after school activities and tutoring sessions.

Special Olympics Coach (September 2016 - June 2017): Special Olympics is an organization that provides sports training and competitions to individuals with intellectual disabilities. As a special olympics coach, I coached and trained adult athletes with disabilities who lived in Evanston in swimming events.

Tutor/Classroom Assistant (September 2016 - June 2017): I facilitated one-on-one and small group instruction to enhance math and literacy skills in 1st-6th grade classrooms in Evanston Public Schools.

She is Code (September 2016 - June 2020): She is Code is an Evanston nonprofit that aims to increase opportunities in STEM for girls and students of color through technical skills programming. At She Is Code, I planned and facilitated STEM-based workshops for students in grades 6-12 in Evanston and advised a small group of middle school students through the creation of websites and mobile applications for local organizations.

Playworks (April 2019 - June 2019): Playworks is a national nonprofit that seeks to help elementary school kids build valuable social and emotional life skills through the power of play and recess. At Playworks, I designed year-long curriculum and lesson plans focusing on leadership and social emotional learning through play for AmeriCorps coaches to implement in under-resourced Chicago elementary schools.

Jumpstart (October 2017 - June 2020): Jumpstart is a national nonprofit that seeks to increase kindergarten readiness in under-resourced preschools. Through Jumpstart, I implemented early childhood literacy curriculum in preschools in Evanston and Chicago.

Northwestern Residential Services (April 2018 - June 2020): Residential Services serves Northwestern students living in dorms to ensure their safety and build community. As a Resident Assistant, I organized residence hall programs and conducted regular wellness checks to foster an inclusive community for first-year students.

Tarkington School of Excellence/Teach for America (June 2020 - July 2022): I served as middle school math teacher, middle school soccer coach, and 8th grade community service advisor at an under-resourced school in Chicago.

Embarc (July 2022 - July 2024): Embarc is a Chicago nonprofit that aims to increase experiential learning opportunities for underrepresented students in order to increase college and career readiness. At Embarc, I coached high school teachers and school leadership teams in under-resourced Chicago Public Schools through the design and implementation of experiential learning programming, and I advised a student voice committee in partner schools to promote student leadership opportunities.

The Academy Group Chicago (June 2018 - present): The Academy Group Chicago is a scholarship program for underrepresented students in the Chicago area. As a learning designer, I create and implement experiential learning curriculum in business, civics, and math for students in 4th-7th grade to expose students to opportunities aligned to their interests and build professional skills.

StreetLaw (October 2024 - present): StreetLaw is a student-led organization dedicated to educating historically marginalized youth in Chicago on legal issues relevant to their lives and empowering students to be change agents in their communities. As president, I coach general members through lesson plan development and facilitate training on lesson plan implementation to ensure alignment with student needs and culturally responsive teaching practices.

Please provide a statement describing your background and focus your statement on your reasons for pursuing a legal career and your legal career goals. This statement is important. Please give it appropriate attention. (min. 1000 characters) (Please read FAQs before completing)

As a child, I always dreaded going to school. Between fighting symptoms of an undiagnosed thyroid disorder and microaggressions from my school community, I didn’t feel like I belonged. My teachers made snide comments about my “bad behaviors” and poor attendance, despite my exceptional grades, doctors’ notes, and later, formal accommodations. Twice, I was placed in remedial English, predicated on the mistaken belief, stemming from my last name, that I was an English Language Learner. When it was time to apply to colleges, I was told to consider something “more realistic” like community college or alternative pathways. Thankfully, my parents were fierce advocates who had fought the school many times before on behalf of my brother, who had an almost identical experience.

Given my sour experience with K-12 education, I wanted to attend college away from home and pursue a career that would minimize the amount of time I needed to remain in school. I originally believed that engineering was the best choice, as it only required a bachelor’s degree, and because I was interested in how engineering and design could be applied to better support diverse communities like my own.

During my second year in undergrad, I began volunteering in the local preschools. While I initially envisioned myself playing pretend and finger painting, I quickly learned my students needed much more. Many of my students barely spoke English beyond “mama” and “help,” while others didn’t speak at all. Basic skills like counting to five and speaking in short sentences seemed like nuclear physics to them. I recognized the look of defeat in the eyes of other volunteers and teachers, who had written off kindergarten readiness as an impossible goal. However, I was determined to be the teacher that I had longed for as a child, and I was convinced that with the proper support, these children could thrive.

I turned to online teaching forums for resources on working with bilingual students and students with special needs. I even leaned on my father for support translating family engagement materials to ensure that there was effective communication between the preschool and the families. As I started to see my students grow, I started to recognize a passion and purpose within education. Soon after, I changed my major and found myself accepting a position as a middle school math teacher through Teach for America.

As I settled into my new career, I noticed that my bilingual students and my students with learning disabilities were the ones most often enrolled in remedial classes and in detention for "unsatisfactory classwork.” My school’s norms, mindsets, and teaching practices silently messaged that “these kids” couldn’t succeed. Having lived through the same harmful stereotypes, I felt a duty to advocate for change. I adapted my classroom, incorporating technology to individualize lessons to the unique needs of each student and to create flexibility with pacing. After finding success with this approach, I later brought my individualization techniques, as well as a heightened sensitivity for students with differing needs, to high schools across Chicago as I coached school leadership teams though the development of systems for experiential learning.

While my efforts increased accessibility to learning and resulted in higher grades and attendance, I knew that the systems I built were not sustainable. Without external policy change, these systems and practices would disappear soon after I left. This ultimately drove my decision to pursue a career in law. With a legal background, I hope to defend students’ right to learn both through direct representation and through formal policy changes. This has already started to unfold through an internship with Equip for Equality, where I leveraged my background as a teacher attuned to special needs to support legal teams in their advocacy for more appropriate special education services, including bilingual support. Upon graduation from law school, I plan on pursuing a career as a transactional attorney in Big Law. While in Big Law, I hope to leverage my background to push for more diverse spaces and expand access for historically marginalized law students by demystifying the legal field and Big Law. I also plan to continue my relationship with Equip for Equality through pro bono work by leveraging my legal drafting and negotiation skills to support parents as they seek legal remedies from their schools. Longer term, I plan to leave BigLaw and find my way back to the schools. Armed with a legal degree and training, I hope to apply my skills to redesign public school systems that better accommodate students like my younger self, and to empower all students to be lifelong learners.

Please upload a copy of your financial award letter labeled as follows: LastName.FirstName.FinAwardLtr*

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Hernandez.Damaris.FinAwardLtr.pdf

Please upload a copy of your resume labeled as follows: LastName.FirstName.Resume*

Please upload a copy of your law school transcript labeled as follows: LastName.FirstName.LSTranscript*