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Attorney Salesia Smith-Gordon Makes History with Largest Endowment Gift to FSU Law

August 18, 2022

WEST PALM BEACH, FL – Florida State University College of Law Alumna Salesia V. Smith Gordon, Esq. (‘92) gifts $200,000 to the college, making her the first Black alumna to donate a gift of this magnitude in the law school’s history. In honor of her gift, Attorney Smith-Gordon, a board member of the alumni association and co-founder/inaugural president of the FSU College of Law Black Alumni Network (BAN), will have her portrait installed in the Law School Rotunda in September.

The gift will be used to support the education of law students of color who will attend FSU College of Law for years to come. “I have benefited greatly from the education I received while a student at FSU Law and opportunities as an alumna,” said Smith-Gordon, who recently earned her certification as a Circuit Mediator for the Florida Supreme Court and is a Legal Analyst for Law & Crime Television Network. “As such, I felt it was of the utmost importance to find a way to ensure that students of color, especially women, had the support and resources they need to fund their education.” This legacy of excellence began with her mother, Attorney Jeraldine Williams (Smith), a 1981 graduate of FSU Law, becoming the first mother-daughter duo to graduate from FSU Law.

Smith-Gordon’s portrait will be painted and unveiled on Thursday, September 29, 2022, at 3 pm in the Law School Rotunda. She will be the first Black Alumna to grace the walls of the college.