I still vividly remember the phone call I received from then Assistant Dean, Martha Hoff, asking me in an anxious voice, “We received your letter. The professor who was scheduled to teach our Law and Development seminar has taken a leave of absence. Are you available to teach?” This was late November and the LL.M. seminar was scheduled to start in January, about 6 weeks away! Nevertheless, I said, “Of course, it will be an honor.” And thus began a wonderful journey for me as an adjunct law professor teaching a subject close to my heart.

At the time, I was an attorney with the Office of the General Counsel, U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID). My constant travel abroad to negotiate nearly every legal agreement under the sun for USAID’s various development programs gave me a bird’s eye view of what international development means, and how law intersects with it. It led to my writing a text, INTERNATIONAL DEVELOPMENT LAW, a Fulbright Scholarship, and now, an appointment this year as an Assistant Professor at the Uniformed Services University, School of Medicine, the Pentagon's medical school for its active-duty med students. However, I am teaching them law and not medicine! Thank you Georgetown Law for this wonderful and continuing teaching and life experience.

Professor Morrison made it so easy all I had to do was not trip up the stairs and drop the glass box (don't worry, it didn't happen) holding the amazing Zulu necklace RBG promised to wear every day! I will treasure that memory for the rest of my life. As for the impact of my WLPPFP year, after my fellowship, I returned to California to begin my career as a lawyer defending immigrants against deportation for the next thirty-seven years. It was my fellowship assignment with the Mexican American Legal Defense and Educational Fund (MALDEF) to advocate on the hill on behalf of the Chicana Rights Project to support legislation to combat the increasing feminization of poverty. This placement turned out to be my boot camp for fearless lawyering. For that, I am ever grateful.

She took a chance on me when I know she didn’t have to or need to. The Program catapulted me to new heights and helped me to understand my strengths, weakness, and blindspots. Her charisma, confidence, and love for the Program (and its students) was infectious and made me realize how blessed I am to call Jill my mentor, my friend, and my teacher

I will never forget his classes! Thank you so much, Professor Wolf!

This is a photo of Ms. Dory Mayer, me, my newly-born son Constantine and my husband at my LL.M. graduation in 2002. Today my grown-up son, Constantine Grozdanoff, wants to continue the legacy and is applying for the School of Foreign Service and is hoping, later on, to get in the Georgetown Law Center for a JD program.

She was hosting one of her events organized during her famous tour over Europe to promote the LLM program (which Caryn now continues to do for our great pleasure here in Brussels!). I had flown back from Scotland just for the event. I remember like it was yesterday, Dory’s dedication to the program, and the way she talked about Georgetown and the LLM community - there was that little something in Dory that made me want to go to Georgetown. Without Dory that night, there probably would have never been any Georgetown for me!