TaSheena Cunningham-Rimmer ’06: Young Alumna Award citation & response

TaSheena Cunningham-Rimmer ’06, today you are being honored with a Young Alumni Achievement Award. This is an honor especially notable because you are the first person in your family to attend college. You now serve as assistant general counsel to
the Chicago Housing Authority.

Your time on the Hilltop was an indicator of your boundless energy and enthusiasm. Then as now you lived a busy life. You majored in international relations and American history and participated in the pre-law program. You worked in a residence hall, served as a telecounselor, and worked in the library. You were also part of Eyes of the World, Sister 4 Sister, the executive council on multiculturalism, and Phi Alpha Delta, Cornell’s pre-law fraternity you helped found. It was at Cornell you found your path to the law.

In your current position, you do public interest law: policy writing/ implementation and litigation for the Housing Authority. You have said that Cornell’s continual encouragement for students to be active in the world around them has had a major influence on you. In turn, you have given back by serving on the Alumni Board of Directors and by mentoring Cornell students, especially those interested in pursuing careers in the law. You volunteerto help them with applications to law school and tutor them prior to taking the bar exams.

You have seized opportunities as you found them, to the benefit of those with whom you have contact. You are passionate about justice and equality for all people and giving back to the community, which are sorely needed today. You are helping intercultural life with an alumni group that will work with students of color on campus.

On behalf of Cornell College, we are proud and pleased to present you with a 2020 Young Alumni Achievement Award.