🙌🏿 JDReady x AccessLex Kick Off Event 🙌🏿

We kicked off our JDReady cohort in a big way with the JDReady AccessLex Kick Off Event, bringing this year's participants together for their first look at the program. This group includes current Saint Joseph's University students, as well as working adults over the age of 25 from the greater Philadelphia area, all preparing for law school alongside everything else life brings.

Every participant was selected because of their drive and potential, whether they're the first in their family to pursue law school or are learning the ropes of the admissions process without a built-in guide. Powered in partnership with AccessLex Institute, JDReady helps them build the foundation they need before they ever sit down for the LSAT or start an application, from academic readiness to demystifying the admissions process itself.

For many, the kickoff was their first time in a room (virtual or otherwise) with others who share the same ambitions, and that sense of community, along with one-on-one mentorship and application guidance, will carry them through the year. Our goal is to help them not only get into law school, but thrive once they're there.

🎓 A Story Worth Celebrating 🎓

Behind every cohort is an individual story, so we wanted to share one of our own, in her own words. Hannah is a first-generation college graduate who found her calling to law through hands-on work on cases involving elder abuse and fraud. But with no lawyers in her family and limited access to guidance, the admissions process felt overwhelming, especially learning how to tell her story after years of writing in a scientific voice.

Through the Barrier Breakers Scholars Program, Hannah received individualized advising, essay coaching, and mentorship that carried her all the way from application to acceptance.

Here's what that meant to her:

🎯 Specialized, high-touch advising
👥 Being part of a supportive scholar community
💪🏿 Gaining the confidence to tell her story her own way
🌱 Knowing the support would continue even after she hit submit

We're proud to share that Hannah has been accepted to NYU Law!

▶️ Watch Hannah's Story Below ▶️

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🤝🏿 Help Us Build for the Future 🤝🏿

As Barrier Breakers grows, we're building the infrastructure to match, and we need your help to get there. We're looking for six donors who would consider making a special $2,000 capacity-building gift, above and beyond their annual giving.

And, as always, introductions to others who may be interested in supporting this next stage of Barrier Breakers are incredibly valuable.

Our goal is to raise $60,000 in dedicated capacity-building support to retain experienced outside development expertise and expand our capacity for:

🔍 Grant prospecting, writing, and submission
🤝🏿 Funder research and relationship cultivation
📋 Grant management and reporting
⚙️ Development pipeline and systems management
🎯 Strategic support as we pursue larger institutional funding opportunities

We see this as a catalytic investment in growth. $60,000 in additional development capacity now can help us build a stronger, more diversified philanthropic pipeline for the years ahead.
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💛 Reply to this email to join our Development Capacity Fund 💛

🍷 An Evening with Barrier Breakers 🍷

Building Opportunity in the DMV

Please join Ayana Dow and me in Silver Spring, Maryland, for an intimate gathering of wine, charcuterie, conversation, and community, in support of students across the DMV (DC, Maryland, and Virginia).

Barrier Breakers helps ambitious students access higher education, scholarships, and the opportunities that can transform their lives. This year, we're already serving 19 high school students across the DMV, and we're ready to deepen our impact here at home.

Eight of these students are receiving comprehensive college advising completely free of charge, including three young people who have been impacted by the child welfare system. And our support doesn't end when a student receives an acceptance letter. For $2,500, Barrier Breakers can provide one student with free advising and support from 11th grade all the way through college graduation.

We're bringing together a small group of friends, attorneys, faith and community leaders, and supporters who believe that a student's circumstances should never determine how much guidance they receive or how big they're allowed to dream.

Over wine and charcuterie, you'll hear more about the students we're serving, our vision for reaching more young people across the DMV, and how you can help build this next chapter here at home.

This is a fundraising reception benefiting Barrier Breakers, and guests will be invited to make a tax-deductible contribution in support of our DMV students and programs.

📅 Saturday, October 17, 2026, 3:00 to 5:00 PM
📍 Silver Spring, Maryland, hosted at the home of Ayana Dow (address provided upon RSVP)

🥂 If you're in the DMV, reply to this email and let us know! 🥂

One More Way to Help

🏡 Bring Us to Your Community 🏡

We also want to create more opportunities to introduce new communities to Barrier Breakers in person. In addition to Silver Spring this month and Ann Arbor in March, we would love to schedule four more gatherings between now and June 2027. These can be small: a dinner, brunch, reception, fireside conversation, or a gathering of 15 to 30 people in your home or community.

We're also looking for opportunities to host more in-person events where families can learn about our paid college advising programs, helping us grow the earned-revenue side of our work while expanding the community of families connected to Barrier Breakers.

🏠 Reply to this email to host a gathering or make an introduction 🏠