Students, Alumni Honored for Social Justice Work 

Winners of the UC Law SF Social Justice Awards for 2026 at a celebration event on May 8, 2026.

UC Law SF students and alumni who have devoted thousands of hours to working with disadvantaged people who lack access to legal services were honored by peers, mentors, friends and family at the school’s annual Social Justice Celebration on May 8.

Charlie Rosgen, who took part in several pro bono and social justice programs, addresses attendees at the 2026 Social Justice Awards.

This academic year, 300 students participated in a variety of clinics and externships, assisting more than 200 clients in the in-house clinical program alone, according to Professor Gail Silverstein, the school’s Associate Dean for Experiential Learning and Faculty Co-Director of the Center for Social Justice.

“This celebration of justice today – this uplifting of those who have and will continue to pursue social justice in their careers – feels particularly important and especially necessary,” she said.

Alumni honorees included C.J. Connolly ’21, supervising attorney at East Bay Children’s Law Offices; Sacha Steinberger ’07, mediator with the California Department of Civil Rights and founder of Legal Link: and Niki Solis ’95, a deputy public defender in San Francisco. All are committed public service mentors to current UC Law SF students.

Grace Perez, selected by this year’s graduating social justice concentrators for her volunteer work, addresses Social Justice Award attendees.

Fourteen students received Social Justice Achievement Awards for their commitment to social justice efforts. The Class of 2026 as a whole completed more than 14,000 hours of pro bono work in their three years through on-campus initiatives, Alternative Spring Break trips to support underserved communities and more.

Student speakers who discussed the impact of their work included Charlie Rosgen, whose volunteer contributions include working with Prisoner Legal Services and the Center for Social Justice’s Student Advisory Board, serving as the leader of Homeless Legal Services in 2024-25, and as the 2025-26 student coordinator for the legal advice and referral clinic operated by the Bar Association of San Francisco’s Justice & Diversity Center.

Student speaker Grace Perez, selected by this year’s graduating social justice concentrators for her social justice work – including her advocacy for criminal defendants via the policy team at the San Francisco Public Defender’s Offices and her efforts with the school’s Mediation Clinic – emphasized the positive impact her family had on her law school journey.

A full list of honorees from the 2026 Social Justice Celebration can be found here.

Friends and family came to the event to support student honorees.