Darya Kaboli-Nejad, BA ’19 (international studies), has taken on many roles throughout her life, including walk-on softball player at the University of Oregon, graduate student, attorney, and nonprofit founder. The word she says best defines her through each of these unique experiences though, is underdog. Born and raised in a small town in Nebraska, Kaboli-Nejad knew her life was meant to be built outside of the constraints of Omaha. Her parents, both immigrants from Iran, pushed her to break boundaries.
Kaboli-Nejad's parents, seen pictured here, both immigrated from Iran. Her father immigrated in the 1973 and her mother in 1990.
Azita Soraya, Kaboli-Nejad's mother, influenced her and her sister's relationship with sports heavily when they were growing up.
Her mother, Azita Soraya, pushed Kaboli-Nejad and her sister to participate in any and all athletic opportunities, something she herself didn’t have the chance to do. Growing up, Soraya was ambitious and driven but didn’t feel those qualities were accepted as a woman.
“Being a young woman in an Islamic country, my mother faced far more limitations in participating in sports than women typically do in the United States.
”As a child, Kaboli-Nejad often played four or five sports at a time, sometimes even participating in multiple practices each night. In high school, she honed in on softball—and ultimately, convinced then Oregon Head Softball Coach Mike White that he needed her on the team as a walk-on.
While her mom encouraged Kaboli-Nejad's athleticism, her dad, Jahanshah, put an emphasis on education. To him, there wasn’t anything more important than investing in schooling.
“A lot of people outside the US don't understand how serious sports are because in their countries . . . college sports aren't as big of a deal as they are here in the US. So my dad would say things like, ‘Darya, can’t you just ask the coach if you can skip the game tomorrow so you can study for your exam?’ and I'm like, ‘We're actually in the College World Series, so no, I can't skip the game.’"
”Her parents’ influences carried Kaboli-Nejad through her collegiate career, as she prioritized both softball and her undergraduate studies, pushing through countless challenges to earn a challenging degree from the UO and get into law school. This resilience and grit have driven her success as an attorney and, most recently, as the founder of The Soraya Foundation. The organization, named after Kaboli-Nejad's mother, is on a mission to give former student-athletes the tools and support they need to thrive beyond sports.
The Journey to Oregon
During her senior year of high school, Kaboli-Nejad began to take softball more seriously, fixing her attention on top programs across the country. Competing against athletes who had committed only to softball since early elementary school, Kaboli-Nejad knew the odds were stacked against her, but she was determined. During a visit to Eugene for a skills camp, she brought her grit and boldness to Coach White.
“I went up to Coach White, and I said, ‘I know you don't know who I am. I know this is going to be so random and crazy, but let me play on this team. Let me walk onto this team. I don't care how, I don't care why, I don't care if it's temporary. Let me play on this team and I will not let you down.’ He was so shocked to his core.”
For a head coach who had built an elite championship program, his response was shocking. Kaboli-Nejad remembers him saying that “he didn’t know what was coming over him that day,” as he told her to walk on for a freshman season. She identified herself as the worst player on the best team in the US; despite this fact, she survived the cut her first year and even played. During her end of season meeting with Coach White, Kaboli-Nejad was awarded a scholarship.
“He was like, ‘I've never been more honored to be proven wrong."
Now as a scholarship athlete, she proved to herself that she could do anything. Senior year rolled around, and Head Coach Melyssa Lombardi stepped in. It was Kaboli-Nejad's time to play, but instead, she tore her ACL right before the season began. While heartbreaking, this opened Kaboli-Nejad's eyes to her greater purpose.
Kaboli-Nejad was a member of the Oregon Softball team from 2016–19, starting as a walk-on and ending as a scholarship athlete.
“Even in that moment and to this day, it was so clear to me that my purpose at Oregon was never to be the star. It was never to be the starter or the one who got the hit that won the game for us. It was all about the journey for me and what I learned in college sports. Grinding from the bottom, earning a scholarship, waiting for my shot, then getting injured, all of that led into this foundation and led into my next steps in life.”
From bases to books
Kaboli-Nejad's sights were always set on pursuing law school after completing her undergraduate degree. It was a goal that was influenced by her experiences in her hometown, where she faced bullying that paralyzed her as a young girl, and even drove her to transfer to another school. As an Iranian, Muslim girl who grew up in a predominantly white community, Kaboli-Nejad said it was time to prove that she is worth listening to.
“Law was always in the books. I wanted to be educated. I wanted to know what I'm talking about. I wanted people to listen to me for once. I was like, ‘who do people listen to in this world?’ And it's truly an attorney."
The journey to get to law school wasn’t easy, but Kaboli-Nejad never took her eyes off her goal. In her last year at the UO, balancing coursework, softball team commitments, taking the LSAT, and an injury proved to be a challenge.
“I think I took my LSAT two times while I was in college and got such a low score. No school let me in; it was miserable.”
After graduating from the UO, Kaboli-Nejad took a gap year to reset and focus solely on getting into law school. With countless hours of studying, she saw her scores jump “an insane number.”
“I got into all the law schools I wanted,” she recalled with pride.
She landed at the University of San Francisco, initially offered a small scholarship. Without the time commitment of college sports, she was able to dedicate greater time and energy to her studies, which quickly paid off. Kaboli-Nejad finished her first semester of law school number one in the class and earned nearly a full-ride scholarship for the remainder of her time in law school.
Kaboli-Nejad graduated Magna Cum Laude from USF School of Law in 2023. After a stint working for a law firm in Los Angeles, she earned a spot at Simpson Thacher & Bartlett LLP, a law firm among the top-ranked firms in the world, where she works from the company’s New York City headquarters.
Kaboli-Nejad graduated from the University of San Francisco School of Law in 2023. She would go on to work at one of the top-ranked firms in the world.
Dreaming big for student-athlete support
Before moving to New York City, Kaboli-Nejad began brainstorming ideas for how to give back to the student-athlete community and to walk-on athletes. She talked with friends Katie Harbert and Alexis Cross Smith, BS ’18 (business administration), both staff members for University of Oregon Athletics. A phone call with Harbert, who works as associate athletic director for student-athlete development, gave her inspiration.
“We thought, ‘what's something that I care about, and I would want to donate to, but also part of my experience, but that's a need in the student athlete community?’ And Katie was like, ‘it's so simple, postgraduate support.”
The idea for The Soraya Foundation was born from a need for greater support for student-athletes as they transition out of college, Kaboli-Nejad said. She emphasized that the need is particularly great for those with no opportunity for a lucrative pro career.
“There need to be internships and counselors and mental and physical health advisors,” Kaboli-Nejad said. “This transition out of being an elite [athlete]—especially at Oregon, being a professional athlete in a sense—and then going into sitting at a desk job from nine to five needs so much more support.”
Through The Soraya Foundation, Kaboli-Nejad is striving to help former student-athletes navigate life after sports through mentorship and scholarships that make postgraduate degrees more accessible nationwide. Harbert can see already the impact The Soraya Foundation can make for student-athletes.
“I am often asked by student-athletes who are applying to graduate schools if there are scholarships to apply for and unfortunately there are not many,” Harbert said. “The Soraya Foundation will be able to help fill the gap. I love that Darya is making it about more than just money to go to school. The foundation will provide 360-degree support to the scholarship awardee to really make it a life-changing experience.”
Kaboli-Nejad's dream is for the foundation to reach students in every state and to inspire other organizations and athletic departments to partner in her vision. While she admits she is dreaming big, Kaboli-Nejad knows her dreams are within reach, thanks to her mom’s example.
As a child, Kaboli-Nejad's mother was a major influence in her athletic development. The Soraya Foundation is named after her mother, Azita Soraya.
"My mom worked two to three jobs just to turn around and give me cash to go to the best batting coach in Nebraska. She spent all the money that she had to get me to my tournaments and my camps . . . She truly showed me that my dreams are not unattainable.”
The Soraya Foundation launched on January 1, 2026, and Kaboli-Nejad is eager for the next step: awarding a scholarship to their first student-athlete this spring. Awardees will receive financial assistance to help offset postgraduate education costs, specialized mentorship, and support from a financial advisor to advance financial literacy.
“We want to target all people who gave their life to sports and who may have struggled with the transition [out of college athletics] or who were forced to transition because of an injury or the end of a career.”
Kaboli-Nejad's belief in herself and her unrelenting work ethic makes this all possible.
“It's almost like I've changed my goals a little bit. It's not to be the home run hitter. It's not to be the person who has the first thing to say during the case or the best response or rebuttal. I'm just the person that knows the most and that works the hardest on it.”
—By Olivia Arciniega, class of 2026 (business administration), UO Alumni Association student writer