CEW+ admires L’Oreal’s commitment and names her the Mary Lucille Randolph and Lea King Dean Memorial Scholar.

L’Oreal Hawkes-Williams is a master’s student in environmental justice in the School for Environment and Sustainability, and the founder and executive director of the nonprofit No Earth Wasted Living Ecological Awareness Farm (NEW LEAF) in Detroit. L’Oreal’s journey into food systems and environmental security began in her own kitchen: while she cooked dinner for her husband and children one evening, a spinach recall affecting 11 states flashed across the news on television. L’Oreal was shocked to discover that just one facility provided food for an entire region, and her horror only grew as she did more research. She decided to grow food for her own family. But she soon ran into problems: she didn’t know how to grow food, and she didn’t have land to farm. She took some community-led classes in the Ypsilanti-Ann Arbor area, but she found that many of these spaces were inaccessible. 

So L’Oreal decided that she would take community education into her own hands. She enrolled in college classes and, in 2018, graduated from the University of Michigan with her bachelor’s degree. She returned to U-M for her master’s program in 2022. After graduation, L’Oreal envisions further implementing plans for her nonprofit, NEW LEAF, and developing a climate resiliency center in Detroit. 

L’Oreal has persevered in her education through major hardship. Just a few months prior to her return to graduate school, L’Oreal’s household was impacted by a medical emergency that required L’Oreal to become the head of the household. L’Oreal’s dedication to her family, her community, and her education is recognized by all, as one of her academic advisors writes, “L’Oreal is an inspiration to other students and … to respected leaders in Detroit …; few know the obstacles she’s had to maneuver, or they would be in even more awe.” 

CEW+ admires L’Oreal’s commitment and names her the Mary Lucille Randolph and Lea King Dean Memorial Scholar.