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(NEW HAVEN, Conn.) — As students prepare to return to school in the fall, one Ivy League law school has a new scholarship aimed at broadening access to legal education by eliminating tuition for students with financial needs.

Yale Law School’s Hurst Horizon Scholarship will erase tuition and pay for college fees and health care costs for law students with the greatest financial need. It’s a first-of-its-kind scholarship that is creating new conversations about what law schools can do to diversify the legal profession.

Yale Law School dean Heather Gerken, the first woman to serve in the role, tells ABC News the scholarship was needed. “We have so many people from low-income backgrounds, who are not going to law school to pursue change because of the debt that waits on the other end for them,” she said.

The scholarship will be given to any Juris Doctor student whose family income is below the federal poverty guidelines and whose assets are below $150,000. The law school tells ABC News that more than 45 students this fall will qualify to be awarded more than $70,000 per year to cover tuition, fees and health insurance.

The program’s aim is to get lawyers to reflect the country’s demographics more closely and to change the demographics of the legal landscape by setting the tone for other top law schools to eliminate tuition fees, the school says. According to a 2021 report from the American Bar Association, lawyers of color only make up 14.6% of the legal profession.

Other Ivy League law schools have made similar efforts in recent years.

In May, Stanford Law School announced it was eliminating tuition for low-income students.

A spokesperson for the University of Pennsylvania Carey Law School told ABC News the school increased financial aid by more than 60% over the past five years, raised $2.5 million to support its First Generation Professional Scholarships and pledged to increase financial support over the next five years by more than $8 million.

Meanwhile, a spokesperson for Harvard Law School told ABC the school “provides 100% need-based financial aid, and spending on financial aid grants has doubled over the past decade.”

Gerken says Yale Law’s scholarship offers much needed benefits for the legal profession.

“If you really just think about this generation and what it’s facing, this generation has inherited problems that are impossible to solve,” Gerken said. “And the job of law schools is to teach them how to solve it. You cannot do that unless everyone is sitting at the table.”

According to U.S. News and World Report, the average percentage of minority students was 28.5% in fall 2020 among 189 law schools surveyed.

“We also still have a system where law students of color graduate with a disproportionately higher loan debt burden,” James G. Leipold, executive director of the National Association for Law Placement, told ABC News.

Leipold said two decades ago, the “bulk of institutional discretionary financial aid moved from a need-based environment to a merit-based environment, I think to the great harm of all of higher ed.”

He said the change was driven by competition for SAT and LSAT scores. Universities began giving scholarships to people with high scores so that they could position their universities or law schools well in rankings, Leipold said.

Gerken said the idea for the Hurst Horizon Scholarship began in 2016 during a conversation between students. Rakim H. D. Brooks, a first-generation law student who grew up in New York City’s public housing, led the conversation that night for students who were restarting the First Generation Professionals program at Yale, a group for students who are the first in their families to attend the school.

It was during that conversation that Gerken noticed many of the students saw law school debt as a family or community debt. “I realized that it’s time for legal education to change if it really wants to achieve equity access and accessibility,” she said.

Brooks, who now serves as president of the nonprofit Alliance for Justice, said the new scholarship, named after founding donors Soledad and Robert Hurst, will allow future law students to pursue their passions.

He says its “quintessentially American to provide the hardest working working class and poor kids the best opportunities, and that’s what this scholarship is going to do.”

Gerken said she believes this scholarship is just the beginning of Yale’s mission to diversify the legal profession and “create a generation of lawyers and leaders who reflect our society.”

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(UVALDE, Texas) — Mandy Gutierrez, the principal of Robb Elementary School in Uvalde, Texas, was reinstated Thursday to her position, her attorney, Ricardo Cedillo, confirmed to ABC News.

“Ms. Gutierrez’s administrative leave with pay has been lifted and she has been fully reinstated to her position, where she will continue to discharge her duties and continue to serve all the families of the UCISD,” a statement read.

Uvalde Consolidated Independent School District superintendent Hal Harrell thanked Gutierrez in a letter obtained by ABC News for submitting responses to the House Investigative report into the May 24 mass shooting that left 19 children and two adults dead.

“As a result of our review, you will be allowed to return to work,” Harrell said in the letter.

The reinstatement comes a day after Gutierrez responded to criticisms lodged against her and her leadership team by the special investigative committee of the Texas House.

Gutierrez was suspended earlier in the week by Harrell. There was no reason given as to why Gutierrez was placed on administrative leave but the decision came two weeks after a report by the Texas legislative committee into the shooting. The report found that Gutierrez, in her first year at Robb Elementary School, was aware of security problems such as a door not locking properly for one of the classrooms the gunman entered, but did not fix them.

Uvalde Schools Police Chief Pete Arredondo was placed on administrative leave without pay in June as the district considers the recommendation of firing him.

Katie Conway and Josh Margolin contributed to this report.

This is a developing story. Please check back for updates.

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(RICHMOND, Va.) — Virginia Gov. Glenn Youngkin declared a state of emergency Thursday night as torrential rainfall and flooding impacted Southwest Virginia.

Heavy rainfall in parts of Virginia, West Virginia and Kentucky slammed the region overnight, causing evacuations, damage roadways and people’s homes and even deaths.

“With more rainfall forecasted over the next few days, we want to lean forward in providing as many resources possible to assist those affected,” Youngkin said in a statement. “Our team will continue to monitor the situation and provide assistance as needed.”

In Kentucky, at least eight people have been killed “in one of the worst, most devastating” floods in the state’s history, Gov. Andy Beshear said.

Beshear has also asked the federal government for assistance as it deals with floods.

“The damage suffered is enormous and recovery will be a long-term effort. This assistance is critical to our efforts and essential for our people,” Beshear tweeted.

Through a state of emergency, Virginia can better assemble resources and send officials with equipment to aid in response and recovery efforts.

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(DANBURY, Conn.) — A Connecticut mother allegedly killed her three children before taking her own life, the Danbury Police Department said Thursday.

Police identified the mother as 36-year-old Sonia Loja and her three children as Junior Panjon, 12; Joselyn Panjon, 10; and Jonael Panjon, 5.

“A truly horrible event occurred in our city yesterday and we mourn the tragic loss of life. In the coming days, mental health and counseling services will be provided through collaboration with the Danbury Public Schools and the City of Danbury. Our community grieves for the innocent lives taken from us. We will get through this together,” Danbury Mayor Dean Esposito said in a statement.

Police found the four bodies Wednesday night after receiving a 911 call from someone distraught and crying, according to WTNH. Police said they believe the mother strangled her children before killing herself.

Autopsies are scheduled for Thursday at the Office of the Chief Medical Examiner in Farmington, Connecticut, authorities said.

Police said the family lived in the home with two other adults. The adults were not present when police arrived on the scene, but they and other family members have been contacted and informed of the incident, police said.

“The kids were really good kids. They were really friendly kids,” neighbor Ralph Baugher told ABC News Connecticut affiliate WTNH. “When you drive by, they would wave and say, ‘How are you doing?’ Wave back to them, ‘Hi, how are you doing?’ They were always happy kids. Always playing in the yard, having fun, laughing all the time.”

The mayor’s office and other local government agencies said they are providing support for family and friends of the deceased and for first responders who responded to the scene, officials.

The investigation is still active, police said.

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(SACRAMENTO, Calif.) — A 7-year-old California boy is being heralded as a hero for his quick-thinking actions that helped save a toddler at the bottom of a pool.

Massiah Browne, of Sacramento, was swimming with relatives at the apartment complex where he lives with his mom and brother when he said he saw something out of the ordinary.

“I was just playing in the pool and then I saw a boy at the bottom of the pool,” Massiah, a second-grade student, told “Good Morning America.” “And I went to go get him.”

Massiah, who was in the pool with a 9-year-old relative, swam down in 6-feet deep water to rescue the boy, according to his mom, Tiara Delvalle, who said she rushed to the scene from her apartment after being alerted by relatives who were with her son at the pool.

Massiah said he noticed the 3-year-old boy, a stranger, with his mouth and eyes open and dove down to get him, grabbing his arm and pulling him to the pool’s surface.

From there, his 9-year-old relative, a girl named Savannah, pulled the boy onto the pool deck, where adults came to help and then called 911.

“Savannah brought him to his mom and then they did CPR on the boy and then they called the doctor,” Massiah said.

A spokesperson for the Sacramento Fire Department confirmed to ABC News that first responders responded to a 911 call at the apartment complex’s pool on July 19.

Bystanders performed CPR on the boy, who was breathing by the time first responders arrived, according to the spokesperson.

“The child was transported in critical condition with advanced life support efforts provided by Sacramento firefighters,” the spokesperson said.

Delvalle said she is in touch with the mother of the boy, whom she reports is doing well.

“It’s a miracle,” Delvalle said of the boy’s survival.

Massiah’s father, Marcus Browne, a boxer who competed for the United States at the 2012 London Olympics, said that although his son swims like “a fish,” he was in shock when he learned of his heroic efforts.

“I just couldn’t believe it,” Browne said of his son, who also goes by his superhero nickname, “Siah Fire.” “He’s a good kid.”

In the U.S., drowning is the leading cause of death for kids between the ages of 1 and 4, and the second leading cause of death for kids up to age 14, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

A report released last year by the American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP) found that male toddlers and teenage boys are at the highest risk of drowning.

Here are four water safety tips from the AAP:

1. Close, constant, attentive and capable adult supervision when children are in and around water, as well as life jacket use among children and adults.

2. To prevent unsupervised access to water, use four-sided pool fencing at least 4 feet tall with self-closing and self-latching gates that completely isolates the pool from the house and yard.

3. In the home, be aware that infant bath seats can tip over, and children can slip out of them and drown in even a few inches of water in a bathtub. Infants should never be left alone in a tub, even for a minute.

4. Water should be emptied from containers, such as pails and buckets, immediately after use.

Check out more information from the full AAP “Prevention of Drowning” report.

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(NEW YORK) — Alena Analeigh Wicker, a 13-year-old from Texas, is not preparing for back to school like most kids her age.

Alena has already been accepted to medical school, with plans to attend the Heersink School of Medicine at the University of Alabama at Birmingham.

“After I was accepted, it was the most amazing moment,” Alena said Thursday on “Good Morning America.” “Just knowing that I’ve reached the goal of getting into medical school at this age was amazing for me.”

She expects to start medical school in 2024, after graduating from the two undergraduate programs she’s currently enrolled in, studying biological sciences at Arizona State University and Oakwood University.

“My goals right now are to definitely make it through college so I can go into medical school,” she said, adding that she wants to become a viral immunologist to be able to “study viruses and really help communities.”

Alena, who on Thursday was awarded the President’s Volunteer Service Award’s lifetime achievement award, graduated from high school last year at just 12 years old.

She is also the founder of Brown Stem Girl, an organization she said she launched to provide an outlet for girls of color in STEM (science, technology, engineering, and mathematics classes).

“I started the organization because when I was about 3 and I had first had my passion of working for NASA, I didn’t see a lot of people who looked like me,” said Alena. “I didn’t see a lot of girls and a lot of women getting into the STEM field.”

“That’s what struck my passion for advocating for them, really giving them those opportunities and showing them that they can do whatever they put their mind to,” she continued. “They can have the same path as me and become whatever they want to become without anybody telling them it’s impossible.”

Only 13% of engineers are women and just 8% of female college students enter their freshman year intending to major in engineering, math, statistics or computer science, according to the Society of Women Engineers.

Among STEM workers, Black individuals make up only 9% of the industry, with that number dropping to 7% for Hispanic individuals, according to the Pew Research Center.

Alena’s mom, Daphne McQuarter, said she saw her daughter’s STEM and academic talents early on.

“She was just always smart, gifted and she was always ahead,” McQuarter said on “GMA.” “There was just something about her that I knew I had to nurture her gift.”

Alena called her mom her “biggest supporter.”

“She always gave me opportunities over things and she believed in me,” she said.

Asked what advice she would give to other kids who also want to dream big, Alena said to ignore those who tell them “no.”

“First I would say don’t let anybody tell you no, because there was a lot of people who told me no, or that I couldn’t do what I dreamed to do,” she said. “I also had that support system. They were there when I needed them and they gave me that support to say, ‘Don’t give up on your dreams.'”

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