Pennsylvania Bar Foundation Names Three Stoudt Memorial Scholarship Recipients

HARRISBURG (Jan. 26, 2022) — The Pennsylvania Bar Foundation named Magali Duque, third-year student at University of Pennsylvania Carey Law School, Philadelphia; Lark McAllister, second-year student at Drexel University Thomas R. Kline School of Law, Philadelphia; and Haley Norwillo, second-year law student at Villanova University Charles Widger School of Law, as 2021 James W. Stoudt Memorial Scholarship Fund award winners. Each of he named law students will receive $3,000.


The scholarship was named to memorialize a steadfast supporter of the Pennsylvania Bar Foundation, James W. “Jim” Stoudt, who was instrumental in the creation of the Pennsylvania Bar Trust, where he served in many capacities for more than 40 years. Awarded annually, it offers up to three $3,000 scholarships, two of which are specifically designated to support minority law students, to candidates attending any of the nine accredited law schools serving Pennsylvania.


Duque’s inspiration to advance ethnic diversity and racial equity through the law arose from her experiences mentoring for an organization that helps young women make positive life choices, and from growing up among neighbors from diverse racial and socioeconomic backgrounds. Her contributions to the Penn Law community include serving as online managing editor of the University of Pennsylvania Law Review; vice president of diversity for the Penn Law Women’s Association; and executive board member for the Black Law Students Association, through which she launched a financial equity project that resulted in three full-tuition scholarships. She plans to begin her law career in labor and employment litigation. Duque received a B.A. in history from Stanford University, and an M.S. in inequalities and social science from London School of Economics and Political Science.


McAllister’s passion to address diversity in the legal field stems from her ability to navigate and overcome the obstacles of growing up in a socioeconomically challenged neighborhood in Philadelphia. Her perseverance to be a positive role model in law school led her to becoming the secretary of the Black Law Students Association, member of Kline Law’s Moot Court team and member of the school’s Alternative Dispute Resolution Negotiation team. Her accolades include placing second in the regional ABA Law Student Division Negotiation Competition and receiving a Barristers’ Association of Philadelphia Scholarship and Drexel’s Keystone Scholarship. McAllister is committed to using her law and life experiences to advocate for clients with diverse backgrounds. She earned her B.A. and M.A. in government and politics from St. John’s University, Queens, N.Y.


Norwillo’s determination to provide legal advocacy for vulnerable individuals, especially children, evolved from her teenage experiences babysitting and her compassion toward her family members’ health challenges. Her law school activities include being a peer mentor for the Student Bar Association, member of the Women’s Law Caucus and member of the Pro Bono Society. In addition, Norwillo served as a law clerk to Judge Iris Aida Santiago-Flores, U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission; intern for the Juvenile Court Division, Philadelphia District Attorney’s Office; and student attorney for Villanova’s Clinic Asylum, Refugee and Emigrant Services. Upon graduation, she plans to use her law degree to support social justice initiatives that provide positive changes for deserving populations. She earned her B.A. in psychology and B.S. in criminal justice from Chestnut Hill College, Philadelphia.


The James W. Stoudt Memorial Scholarship Fund is administered by the Pennsylvania Bar Foundation, the charitable affiliate of the Pennsylvania Bar Association. For more information on this and other scholarships, visit www.pabarfoundation.org.