School of Law graduate Michael L. Goldberg (J.D.’97) is furthering his support of our law students by making an additional gift to the Michael Louis Goldberg Scholarship Fund. Goldberg initially created the fund in 2016 to support law students who participated in high school or collegiate athletics.
“I feel like student athletes may be underrepresented in law school because the time-consuming nature of playing sports can affect your grades and your opportunities,” Goldberg said. “I could have invented the internet with the amount of time I spent playing basketball in college. This scholarship is a way to even the playing field and help give student-athletes a better shot at attending the University of Georgia School of Law.”
Goldberg noted that his experiences on the court helped him as he earned his law degree.
“I remember in my first year of law school that people were scared to death of going to Professor [Perry] Sentell’s class because he would stand you up and antagonize you if you did not know the answer to his questions. I had coaches yell in my face so close that spit would hit me, and so Sentell seemed like a teddy bear compared to that,” he said. “Sports prepares you for life and for being a lawyer. I hope this scholarship will help student athletes see that they actually have a leg up on the competition in being a lawyer because of their experiences in sports.”
First-year student and current Goldberg scholar Caroline Bailey, who played soccer at Washington and Lee University, agreed with Michael’s sentiment in a note she composed earlier this year: “My experience as a student-athlete prepared me for law school in more ways than I could have expected. I am so grateful for my opportunity to begin my legal career at the University of Georgia School of Law.”
Dean Peter B. "Bo" Rutledge thanked Michael for making this additional investment in the current – and future successes – of students seeking a law degree so they can contribute to state and society.
"This gift is yet another example of the strength of our law school community, and I am grateful for his commitment to make the School of Law the nation’s best return on investment in legal education," he said.