CEO Selects Inaugural Class of Civil Rights Fellows

Dear friends,

It is with great pleasure that we introduce to you the inaugural class of CEO civil rights fellows. Between Tuesday, August 9 and Friday, August 12, 2022, fellows will participate in an intensive seminar-style program in Washington, D.C.

This fellowship will be a first-of-its-kind program within which fellows will receive instruction and training in civil rights caselaw, enforcement practices, and public policy. For example, fellows will learn the history of passage of major civil rights laws, become familiar with major Supreme Court decisions in this area, and learn about current controversies surrounding civil rights law and enforcement.

The seminars will be led by law and policy experts, litigators, former government officials, and other thought leaders. Fellows will also receive media training on writing effective op-eds, engaging with the media, and making the most of interviews.

We were pleased and a bit surprised by the overwhelming level of interest we received from very talented and worthy applicants. With only a few spots available, we had to make very difficult choices on whom to extend offers. I think you will agree with us that our very first class of fellows is an exceedingly talented and interesting group.

Warm regards,

Devon

2022 CEO Civil Rights Fellows

Peter Abernathy

Peter is a rising 2L at George Mason University’s Antonin Scalia Law School. After serving for two years as a missionary in southern Brazil, he completed a double-major bachelor’s program in Geospatial Intelligence and History at Brigham Young University. After completing undergraduate studies, Peter worked for the Memphis Police Department as a crime intelligence analyst, where he assisted in projects ranging from crime mapping to aerial reconnaissance from department helicopters. He is an avid historian, participating in various living history events where he helps educate the public on U.S. military history. Peter, his beautiful wife, and their two sons live in Chantilly, Virginia.

Miranda Mae Bailey

Miranda is a rising 3L at Brigham Young University Law School. She has lived in multiple states across the nation, but her family currently resides in South Carolina. In her international travels, she witnessed sex trafficking. Abhorred by this clear lack of basic human freedom, she dedicated herself to fighting for the civil liberties and human rights of all. She went to law school to help abolish human trafficking, sexual exploitation, gender and racial discrimination, and violations of religious freedom. She externed for the Honorable Judge David A. Barlow of the Utah Federal District Court, did research for Professor Stephanie Bair on gender discrimination in IP law, and interned at the National Center on Sexual Exploitation. Currently, she volunteers at the Timpanogos Legal Center, works as a law clerk for the Utah Attorney General’s Office in the Special Prosecutions Division, and has been accepted as a participant in the BYU Civil Rights Study Tour. This summer she will work at Bluestein Attorneys at Law in Columbia, South Carolina. She is passionate about becoming an advocate for those whose rights have been violated, whether civil or human.

Melissa Buss

Melissa is a rising 3L at Marquette University Law School. Before going to law school, Melissa received her undergraduate degree in Political Science and Spanish from the University of Wisconsin-Madison. During her time there, she worked in student government and interned for her local representative at the State Capitol. After graduation, Melissa moved to Washington, D.C. to pursue her passion for government and legislative affairs. In D.C., she interned for Congressman Michael Coffman (R-CO), before moving on to non-profit and media settings.
After she graduates law school, Melissa hopes to be able to return to Capitol Hill to fight for the principles and policies she cares about, such as equal opportunity in education and the workforce.

Eric Gallant

Eric is a rising 2L at Seton Hall Law School. Prior to law school, Eric earned a BA, magna cum laude, from the Military College of Vermont, Norwich University. While at Norwich, Eric contracted with the U.S. Army and was allowed to delay his active-duty service to complete law school and to serve as a Judge Advocate General upon graduation. Eric serves on the Student Bar Association’s community outreach committee, joined the Student Veteran’s Association, and has also been active with the Courtroom Advocate Project. Eric is very excited to bring the skills and knowledge from the CEO fellowship to his military service and subsequent legal career.

Samuel Gellen

Samuel Gellen is a rising 2L at the University of Notre Dame Law School. Prior to law school, Sam worked in Finance as a Private Wealth Analyst for two and a half years. This summer, Sam will be joining the United States Commission on Civil Rights as a Summer Law Clerk for the legal team supporting Commissioners Peter Kirsanow and Gail Heriot. Sam was drawn to the legal field of civil rights and CEO in general after reading briefs in Students for Fair Admission v. Harvard and specifically, CEO’s amicus brief for the case. Sam looks forward to expanding his background in civil rights law this summer as a CEO Civil Rights Fellow.

Leo O’Malley

Leo is a rising 3L at the University of Notre Dame Law School. Previously, he attended Wheaton College, IL and graduated summa cum laude with degrees in Applied Mathematics and Organ Performance. During undergrad, he served as a Congressional legislative intern and was also selected to participate in the inaugural 2020 class of Heritage Foundation Academy Fellows. At Notre Dame, Leo is a Showcase Team oralist on the Moot Court Board as well as the Managing Symposium Editor for the Journal of Law, Ethics, and Public Policy. He spent his 1L summer as a legal intern for the Thomas More Society in Chicago. From 2021–22, he also served as a legal intern for the U.S. Commission on Civil Rights and contributed as a student writer to the Federalist Society Blog. This summer, he will be working at the Napa Legal Institute in Washington, DC on a legal fellowship from the Lynde and Harry Bradley Foundation. In his free time, Leo enjoys reading historical fantasy novels, cooking, and spending time with his family.

Ladisa Onyiliogwu

Ladisa is the Director for the Department of Senior Services in Fulton County, Georgia. As a pro-equal opportunity leader in government, she maintains and encourages cognitive diversity consisting of open avenues for all voices to be heard and supported. Ladisa is a certified public manager and lean six sigma green belt experienced in project implementation, organizational development and has a proclivity for simplifying complex issues. She was recently selected as a presenter for the 2022 University of Georgia Certified Public Manager Conference. Ladisa has a B.S. in Chemistry from Clark Atlanta University and earned her M.A. in Government from Johns Hopkins University. Her masters work included “Blueprints for an Omnipotent Administrative State” and thesis “Diluting the Meaning of Life and Death” which examined the treatment of terminology and linguistic choice regarding abortion and euthanasia. Ladisa produces and hosts a monthly local television show on policies, research and information related to older adults and the overall body politic. Her publications have been featured in the ACCG Georgia County Government Magazine and Your Voice Your Ad, an online conservative website that engaged readers in politics and kitchen table topics. She also authored Cleave Notes on Communication.

Anthony Pericolo

Anthony is a rising 3L at Harvard Law School. He grew up in Westfield, New Jersey and attended undergrad at the University of Rochester, where he earned undergraduate degrees in electrical and computer engineering and economics. He spent his 1L Summer as an intern for the Honorable Lawrence Van Dyke on the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals and as a Summer Associate at Knobbe Martens in Washington DC. He spent his 2L Summer at Desmarais LLP in Washington DC. In law school, Anthony is co-president of the Video Game Law Association, founded the Harvard Intellectual Property Law Association, and was a Submissions Manager for the Harvard Journal of Law and Technology. Anthony is interested in promoting equal opportunity because it is central to our national identity. As the son of Italian immigrants, Anthony wishes that the structures that enabled his hardworking parents to move upward can pervade for future generations. Outside of law school, Anthony enjoys reading presidential biographies, playing video games, watching movies, running, lifting, and playing golf.

Justin Rorick

Justin is a rising 3L at St. Mary’s University School of Law in San Antonio, Texas. Justin earned his BA in Sport Administration from Pepperdine University in 2020. At St. Mary’s, he is the President of the Federalist Society student chapter and the Senior Research Fellow of the Warrior Defense Project. Justin currently works for Texas Public Policy Foundation and Bexar County Civil District Court. He will begin working for Fidelity National Title Group this summer and the Texas Office of the Attorney General in the Fall. Justin plans to utilize the invaluable information the Center for Equal Opportunity Civil Rights Fellowship will teach him in his career as an attorney by ensuring his practice is inclusive and nondiscriminatory.

Aurie Serrette

Aurie is a rising 2L the University of Maryland Carey School of Law. A native of New Jersey, Aurie is interested in Juvenile Criminal Defense and education policy and reform. She graduated from Loyola University of Maryland in 2019 with a bachelor’s degree in Biology and Psychology, and a minor in Forensic Studies. Recently, she was selected to be a member of the University of Maryland Carey School of Law’s National Trial Team after spending a year on the Black Law Students Association Thurgood Marshall Trial Team, 1L Defense Team.

Davis Soderberg

Davis is a rising 2L at Wake Forest University School of Law in Winston-Salem, NC. Davis formerly worked as an Associate for the Free Enterprise Project at the National Center for Public Policy Research in Washington, D.C. Prior to joining the National Center, Davis worked at Royer Caramanis PLC in Charlottesville, VA, in the Office of Congressman Darin LaHood (R-IL), and on the Eric Greitens for Missouri Governor Campaign. He is published in The Washington Times, The Washington Examiner, Daily Caller, and Issues & Insights. He is a graduate of George Mason University in Fairfax, VA, where he received a Bachelor of Science in Government and International Politics and played four seasons on the school’s NCAA Division I men’s golf team. Davis graduated as a recipient of the Peter N. Stearns Provost Scholar Athlete Award, a Dean’s List Member, and a four time Atlantic 10 Conference Honor Roll Member. He was inducted into the St. Charles Missouri County Sports Hall of Fame in 2016. Davis was born in Madison, WI and raised in St. Charles, MO.

Raymond Yang

Raymond is a rising 3L at George Mason University Antonin Scalia Law School where he is an active member of the student chapter of the Federalist Society. He received his Bachelor of Arts in economics and political science from the University of California, Merced, during which time he spent a semester in Washington, D.C. as part of the UCDC program and interned at the U.S. Department of Commerce. He also spent his last academic year studying at the University of Hong Kong. Last summer, he was a summer fellow at the United States Free Speech Union.