King Hall opened its doors to 31 local high school students last month for Discover Law Day — and the UC Davis Early Academic Outreach Program, or EAOP, made sure every student could picture themselves inside.

Youth from Sacramento and Yolo counties participated in a day filled with campus tours, debate workshops and presentations by legal professionals designed to spark their interest in legal careers. They heard from Chief Justice of California Patricia Guerrero, Yolo County Judge Sonia Cortés and UC Davis Law School Dean Jessica Berg — and even connected one-on-one with current law students over lunch to ask questions, share stories and imagine their future in the field.

Hands-on experiences that close opportunity gap

Discover Law Day is part of EAOP’s ongoing mission to provide underserved, first-generation students with access to academic and career opportunities.

Each year, EAOP offers more than 25 on-campus events that introduce students as young as 10 and as old as 18 to college life and the resources. These hands-on experiences include campus tours, enrichment programs and career-focused workshops that help students visualize their futures in higher education. 

EAOP provides services to over 8,000 youth and hands-on opportunities for nearly 600 students across 50 local school sites. Whether students visit UC Davis for a summer day camp or connect with mentors at Discover Law Day, EAOP staff strive to make sure they leave with a deeper sense of what’s possible and how to get there.

“The high-quality enrichment opportunities EAOP offers to youth in our region allows them to learn more about a multitude of career options,” said Rogelio Villagrana, UC Davis EAOP director. "They gain access to opportunities otherwise unavailable or too costly to pursue.”

Law comes to life at King Hall

The event gave students a rare opportunity to speak directly with legal professionals and current graduate students about what it takes to succeed in law school and beyond.

“One of the law students sat down with me for lunch and I basically interviewed him on all my questions,” one student said. “It was super informational and I got a lot of my curiosities answered.”

Many students said the experience not only helped them learn about the law school process but also made higher education feel more attainable. The visit from one of California’s top judges turned inspiration into something tangible — and personal.

“I received a hand-written note from the Chief Justice — it was so cool meeting her, a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity,” another student said. “My friend and I are even going to print the picture and autographed note to frame it.”