Alumnus, local lawyer aim to increase diversity through gift

Bert Greenwell

Bert Greenwell, a 1998 graduate of Louisville Law who now practices with Morris Bart in New Orleans, and John Selent, a partner at Louisville's Dinsmore & Shohl LLP, hope their new scholarship helps increase diversity in the legal profession.

The gift will fund, for six years, the tuition for a student who either identifies as LGBTQ or who has made significant contributions to the community.

“Having practiced in both corporate and firm environments in Louisville, New York and now New Orleans, I know that a diverse legal employment pool is vital to the longevity of every practice,” says Greenwell. “Of course, concerns of fairness, equity and social justice are reason enough to support scholarship funds such as this one; even those aside, business expediency demands it. Corporations diversified their employment resources years ago, and without mirrored efforts in the legal community, some law firms will find no seat at the table.”

John Selent

Selent expands on the value of encouraging diversity.

"Our society is a diverse society. The more we empower all peoples, diverse and otherwise, to succeed and work together to do so, the more we will be as one people," he says.

Diversity is important in all aspects — ethnicity, gender, LGBTQ status and otherwise," Selent says. "Without diversity, particularly in the educational environment, we deny ourselves the perspectives and talents of members of these communities. That is not healthy for these individuals or for our society."