CBA Star Student: Rex Brown Jr.

Rex Brown, Jr. was crowned homecoming king on Sept. 17, 2009.

The odds were against Rex Brown Jr. even getting to SDSU. During the trip to San Diego from his hometown of San Francisco, Brown, his mother and his aunt were involved in a serious auto accident. The vehicle was destroyed, but the passengers suffered only minor injuries.

Even his parent’s bankruptcy and the foreclosure of their home last year have not derailed this outstanding management student from pursuing his goal of attending law school after he completes his bachelor’s degree this spring. After his parents fell on hard times, Brown’s tenacity and excellent academic record was rewarded with five separate scholarships, allowing him to continue with his studies.

But there’s a lot more to this story.

In May 2007, the murder of a high school friend inspired the then freshman Brown to make a positive impact on the world around him and to “pay it forward”. Since then, he:

Has developed and marketed a successful non-profit organization, Baskets 4 Hope (www.baskets4hope.org). Baskets 4 Hope creates athletic and educational programs that develop and “enhance the abilities, confidence, and self-esteem of inner-city youth.” The non-profit was recently the recipient of a national Nike Back Your Block grant, which provides funding for “organizations that give back to the community.”
Is in the process of establishing the Eric Campos Memorial Scholarship to honor his murdered friend. The Scholarship will be awarded to a San Francisco high school senior “who demonstrates financial need, leadership potential, and most importantly, a desire to improve his/her community,” said Brown. “With the skyrocketing costs of tuition, I hope the Scholarship will help a student continue his/her dream, much the same way scholarships did for me last year.”
Was one of only 20 students selected (out of 6,000 applicants) to take part in the inaugural TRIALS residential scholarship program at Harvard Law School this past summer.
Was awarded SDSU’s most prestigious undergraduate award, the Quest of the Best, last May.
Was voted SDSU homecoming king during the football game against BYU on September 17, 2009.
Is a member of SDSU’s Business Honors Program (must maintain at least 3.6 grade point average).
Scored in the 95th percentile of all LSAT test takers.
Is currently developing workshops where he will present to EOP students who are interested in law school.
Is coordinating a student-run organization to provide workshops, roundtable discussions, meetings, and presentations to SDSU students from diverse background to help them realize their goals of attending graduate school.
Is establishing an organization which will provide pro bono consulting and mentoring for students around the world interested in starting their own social ventures.

After law school, where will Brown end up? Two professors that know Brown have speculated that he will one day be the president of the United States.