Shakti Belway is Executive Director of the National Center for Youth Law (NCYL). In this role, Belway directs and supports the staff leading the organization’s extraordinary advocacy on behalf of children, youth, families and communities. During her career, Belway has worked in human rights advocacy, as a civil rights attorney, policy reformer and litigator, as an educator, and as a child and youth advocate.
Belway has tirelessly devoted her career to alleviating injustice. As a Skadden Fellow, Belway worked with the Mississippi Center for Justice to challenge racial disparities in public education. Belway also worked alongside other attorneys representing plaintiffs to desegregate Cleveland Mississippi’s schools in 2017. She helped remove a “badge of inferiority” that had weighed down generations of Black students and families in the community. Belway was also the primary author and researcher of Bearing Witness, a comprehensive study of Baltimore’s criminal justice system. She was privileged to spend nearly a year in Baltimore learning from and working with the individuals who contributed to this report. Additionally, Belway authored a groundbreaking report exposing systemic failures plaguing the post-Katrina New Orleans public education system.
Belway’s leadership is rooted in her collaborative approach and innovative advocacy strategies. At NCYL she is spearheading a first-of-its kind project examining the benefits and risks of artificial intelligence for youth today, especially as that technology is used across systems to make critical decisions about child health, safety, and education.”
Belway earned a bachelor’s degree from Yale College in Ethics, Politics & Economics and a law degree from Stanford Law School. Since graduation she has been a dedicated champion of civil rights and children’s rights, advocating for justice and equality in the face of systemic challenges. Through groundbreaking litigation – working alongside the community – she has made a profound impact on the lives of children, youth, families, and communities. Belway’s work serves as a beacon of hope and progress, ensuring that every young person has access to justice, education, and opportunity.
Katharine & George Alexander Law Prize
March, 19 2025
Reception 5:30 – 6:00 pm
Program 6:00 – 7:00 pm
Contact
Noelia McKeever
nmckeever@scu.edu
Katharine & George Alexander
The late Katharine Alexander practiced law for 25 years as a public defender for Santa Clara County and taught law courses for several years at San Jose State University. The late George Alexander served as professor of law at Santa Clara University for 34 years and as dean of its School of Law for 15 years. Both Katharine and George dedicated their lives to instilling in students and lawyers a commitment to justice. Their service to humanity serves as a model for other lawyers.