Guajardo & Marks Announces $1,000 Scholarship Winner

    DALLAS, TX, August 12, 2020 /24-7PressRelease/ -- Guajardo & Marks is pleased to announce the firm's 2020 scholarship winner, Angel Torres. Angel is a first-year student this summer at Texas A&M University Law School where Angel has shown outstanding academic initiative. The $1,000 scholarship can be used for books and tuition.

"We couldn't be prouder of Angel and believe that Angel will excel as a future lawyer," said Michael Guajardo, partner at Guajardo & Marks. "We had many applicants for this award, and Angel rose to the top because of the exhibited skill as a writer, commitment to academics and keen interest in the law."

Angel, who completed undergraduate studies at St. Mary's University, chose Texas A&M University Law School for its rigorous academic standards and strong national reputation.

"I am super excited and grateful that I have been selected as the winner of the 2020 Guajardo & Marks Scholarship," Angel said. "Financial comfort isn't something I had growing up. The scholarship will help me achieve financial comfort during law school and alleviate some of the debt that comes with a law degree."

"It is because of generous law firms that provide scholarship opportunities, like Guajardo & Marks, that make law school more accessible to diverse students. Just as the firm Guajardo & Marks is making a difference in society, I too, in the near future will make a difference. This scholarship will allow me to spend more time working on my craft and on my studies, instead of finding avenues to alleviate the debt I will accrue."

The scholarship is designed to encourage creative authorship and use the power of the written word. As part of the application process, candidates must submit a completed application, a letter of acceptance from their intended law school, and a copy of a previously published article.

Informing various audiences is part of the legal profession. The ability to clearly and accurately relay a message is crucial, whether it is addressed to a person inquiring about legal services, a client, a judge or a jury.

"By emphasizing writing and publishing as part of the scholarship application, we believe we're teaching law students early that communicating clearly and persuasively is a critical legal skill," said Greg Marks at Guajardo & Marks.

Scholarship applicants must submit a sample of their writing that has previously been published in a newspaper, magazine, professional blog or academic publication. It is not necessary that the subject matter be related to the law; its primary purpose should be to inform readers.

Angel authored a story about justice being sought 70 years after the youngest boy in the 20th Century was executed. The story titled "Deadly Mistake: 14-Year-Old Boy Exonerated 70 Years Later" appeared in STMU History Media. The story opens with this paragraph:

"June 16, 1944 was execution day at the Central Correctional Institution in Columbia, and next on the docket to confront the electrical chair was George Stinney, a 14-year-old African American boy from Acolu, South Carolina. George weighed merely 95 pounds and stood at only 5" 1′ at the time he was strapped to an electric chair too big for his physique.1 Due to George's small physique, extra holes needed to be punched into the chair's leather bindings before the bindings could fit onto George's limbs. This extra step bought George a couple extra minutes of life before he faced the electric chair.2 What was 14-year-old George Stinney thinking about right before execution? Surely not that he would soon become the youngest person executed in the 20th century."

You can read the full story here.

"When reading Angel's story, you can see the clear gift for the written word," lawyer Michael Guajardo said. "This ease and skill with language will serve Angel well as an attorney."

About Guajardo & Marks: The top-rated Dallas personal injury law firm has helped countless clients get the justice they deserve by providing aggressive and skilled legal representation. Law firm leadership has 50 years of combined legal experience in the Dallas area. Michael Guajardo and Greg Marks are distinguished by their courtroom experience and have a history of success in complex personal injury cases.

# # #