Lloyd Gaines Banquet

The University of Missouri-Columbia chapter of the Black Law Students Association (BLSA) is hosting the 27th Annual Lloyd L. Gaines Scholarship Banquet on Saturday, February 2, 2013 at 5:00 p.m. at the Reynolds Alumni Center on the University of Missouri’s main campus. This annual event pays tribute to the late Lloyd L. Gaines who fought to integrate the University of Missouri-Columbia School of Law in the late 1930’s. (Missouri ex rel Gaines v. Canada, 305 U.S. 337)

This year’s keynote speaker is Mr. Nimrod (Rod) Chapel, Presiding Commissioner at the Administrative Hearing Commission (AHC) for the State of Missouri. Mr. Chapel received his law degree from Tulane University in 1995 followed by an LLM in Tax from Washington University in St. Louis in 1997.  Before being appointed Commissioner Mr. Chapel worked for two Kansas City law firms as an associate and served as Director of Missouri’s Labor and Industrial Relations Board. Mr. Chapel is also president of the Jefferson City, Mo., NAACP chapter and is actively involved in MU Law School’s diversity mentorship program.

BLSA’s fundraising goal for this event is $15,000. Proceeds from ticket sales and donations will help MU-BLSA award two academic scholarships to deserving law students. The scholarships recipients will be announced on the night of the banquet, Saturday, February 2, 2013.

In conjunction with this year’s banquet MU BLSA has also partnered with the Good Hope Education Initiative. Your separate contribution to this organization will go toward helping African school children achieve their educational goals. Please follow the link above to learn more.

***THIS EVENT IS APPROVED FOR CLE CREDIT***

Saturday, February 2, 2013
Cocktail Hour— 5:00 p.m.   Dinner—6:00 p.m.

Individual tickets & sponsorship purchases may also be used to host current & prospective MU law students. All levels of support are appreciated and will be recognized during the program.

**Charitable Donations: MU BLSA is currently restructuring the organization and is in the process of filing for a local tax exempt number. We have filed our 501(c)(3) application with the IRS and the current status is pending. At the moment, the University of Missouri Black Law Students Association is not a charitable organization. However, if our organization ultimately qualifies for exemption for this period, according to the regulations established by the IRS, any contributions toward this event will be tax-deductible. We do not foresee any circumstances preventing approval of our application. Thus, if you would like for your sponsorship to qualify as a “charitable gift and should you pay with a check, please make your checks payable to “University of Missouri Law Students Association.” If you have any questions or concerns, you may contact Brittany Leeper, Vice President, at (314) 494-6094 or at bnl7v7@mail.missouri.edu. Thank you and look forward to receiving your support for this event.