Merissa Spaulding ’25 Honored for Leadership at Northeastern University’s 2025 Academic Honors Convocation

04.22.25—Merissa Spaulding ’25 was honored with the Outstanding Professional Doctorate Student Award in Leadership at Northeastern University’s 15th annual Academic Honors Convocation, held on April 16, 2025. The event celebrates the university’s highest student and faculty achievers across its 13 global campuses. Spaulding plans a career in corporate/transactional law and intellectual property law, and is highly engaged in the law school community. She recently served as the 57th Combined Northern New England Sub-Regional director for the Northeast Black Law Students Association. During the 2023–2024 academic year, Spaulding served as a co-chair of Northeastern Law’s Black Law Students Association Kemet Chapter as well as Northeastern University’s Christian Fellowship. She is currently a senior editor for the Northeastern University Law Review and serves on its DEI Committee.

“Receiving this award is both humbling and motivating. It reflects my dedication to advancing legal advocacy and social justice, particularly through my mentorship in the Legal Skills in Social Context ‘law office’ and leadership within the local and Northeast regional Black Law Students Association. These experiences have allowed me to build support networks, uplift peers and help shape a more equitable future within the legal profession,” said Spaulding, who also recently won the Massachusetts Black Lawyers Association Fletcher “Flash” Wiley Scholarship and has been selected to receive Northeastern Law’s 2025 Denise Carty-Bennia Memorial Bar Award, which recognize students who exemplify a commitment to social justice and academic excellence. “This honor reinforces my commitment to continue leading purposefully and advocating for meaningful change. I am grateful to those who have supported me throughout this journey—this recognition belongs to all of us.”

“When we look at all your achievements and all that you have done, we are extremely excited about the future of this university, the future of this nation and indeed the future of this world,” Joseph E. Aoun, president of Northeastern, told the audience at the Honors Convocation. “We cannot afford to be pessimistic when we see the enormous talent in this community. Our future is in your hands, and I want to thank you.”