Meet UMB’s Student of the Year

About Danielle D. Basdekis

Danielle Basdekis is a third-year Juris Doctor student at the University of Maryland Francis King Carey School of Law who has distinguished herself as a student, scholar, and leader. She has received a Rose Zetzer Fellowship, which is awarded to students who demonstrate a strong intellectual interest and commitment to women and leadership issues. As a research assistant to Paula Monopoli, JD, she has contributed to the Distinguished University Professor’s scholarship on constitutional law and feminist theories. She also has been an editor for the Maryland Law Review. Over the past two years, she has worked as an intern for the Baltimore firm Nathans & Ripke; the Baltimore City Public Schools’ Office of the Legal Counsel; Judge Kathryn Grill Graeff of the Appellate Court of Maryland; and FreeState Justice, a Baltimore nonprofit that provides legal services to low-income LGBTQ+ Marylanders. After graduating next spring, Basdekis will be a clerk for Justice Angela Eaves on the Supreme Court of Maryland.

Impact

Basdekis is currently executive president of the Student Bar Association (SBA), which acts as the student government for the school, after serving as executive vice president in her second year. As president, she presides over the Executive Council, helping to interpret the SBA constitution and bylaws and setting the agenda for the group’s meetings. Basdekis is a member of the board of the Maryland Public Interest Law Project, a student-run nonprofit that provides summer funding for students who want to engage in unpaid public interest internships. She has been the group’s public relations chair, president, and is serving as treasurer in the 2025-26 academic year.   

Quotes

“Maryland Carey Law stands out as a leading public interest law school and continually reaffirms its commitment to public interest lawyering through its various initiatives. The school has opened the door to more opportunities than I even imagined, and it has certainly prepared me to be a better advocate for my future clients.” — Basdekis

“Danielle truly cares about making Maryland Carey Law a stronger, thriving community and has clearly committed herself to doing that in various ways. What has impressed me the most is her approach to leadership. Whether she is working with other students or raising an issue with the law school administration, she is professional, collaborative, thoughtful, and kind.” — Deborah Thompson Eisenberg, JD, professor and vice dean, Maryland Carey Law