“The world is going to be a very different place in the future than anything you or I can envision. You have to continue to prepare yourself through education…My challenge to you is to maximize the opportunities you have before you.” – Dan Bernstine

Born in Berkeley, CA in 1947, Dan was raised in working-class Richmond, CA. His parents were sharecroppers in Natchitoches, Louisiana before moving to California where they stressed the importance of education to their five children. His father Annias (who worked as a janitor) cleaned law offices and would take Dan to work with him on occasion. That is where he first developed his interest in the law. He attended El Cerrito High School in El Cerrito, CA. There, he was on the football team, was class President and was voted “Friendliest Person,” as well. He attended UC Berkeley before moving on to law school at Northwestern University. Dan would go on to receive his LLM from the University of Wisconsin-Madison; serve as a professor of law and interim dean at Howard University; dean at the University of Wisconsin Law School and president of Portland State University (OR) for ten years. In 2007, he was named president of the Law School Admissions Council in Newtown, PA where he served until his untimely death in 2016. In his memory, through generous donations made by his friends and colleagues, The Daniel O. Bernstine Fund has established a scholarship program to assist students residing in Richmond, Berkeley, or El Cerrito, California who plan to continue their education in college or vocational school programs.

This program is administered by Scholarship America^®, the nation’s largest designer and manager of scholarship, tuition assistance and other education support programs for corporations, foundations, associations, and individuals. Awards are granted without regard to race, color, creed, religion, sexual orientation, gender, disability, or national origin.