Dean’s Award Recipient
Student Fellow, Community Equity Initiative
How did you decide to pursue law?
For as long as I can remember I have wanted to be a lawyer. As a kid, I was outspoken and would often talk back to my parents, so the law seemed like the right path for me in the stereotypical sense. At some point in undergrad, I wavered a bit on this path. After receiving my bachelor’s degree, I worked at Deloitte in their Government and Public Services practice. I approached that experience with an open mind, thinking that if I ended up really liking consulting, I would stay.
However, even on a project where I was utilizing the skills I most enjoy—interviewing, researching, synthesizing, analyzing, and writing—I still wanted to be approaching the issues I was dealing with from a different perspective. At Deloitte I took the systems as they were, but I wanted to understand those systems and learn how to change them if needed. At that point, I could no longer deny that law school was the next step for me.
You’re a 3L this year. Do you have any advice for incoming students?
I have a few pieces of advice for incoming students. The first is to spend as much time in reflection learning about yourself and have an idea about what you want to get out of your law school experience. I think it is vitally important to learn about your strengths and areas for growth, which can inform which opportunities you decide to pursue or forego. That way you can make the most of your [time] in law school, and have no regrets.
The second is to be intentional in the community you build for yourself both within and outside of the law school. Life is not meant to be lived alone, and law school is not meant to experienced alone. You need people to study with, people to hold you accountable, people to laugh with, people to lighten your load. At the same time, law school doesn’t have to be your entire life. My tribe of both fellow NYU Law students and people I met beforehand and along the way outside of the law have been invaluable to me, making me feel supported and helping me stay grounded and motivated.
As you are building your law school community, do not be afraid to look in unexpected places. The people you end up being closest to very well might be people who you appear to have little in common with at first glance.
You’re also a student fellow at the Community Equity Initiative. Tell us about that experience and what you’ve learned there.
At the Community Equity Initiative, I have had the immense honor of working with and learning from [Margaret B. Hoppin Professor of Clinical Law] Deborah Archer, Professor Noah Rosenblum, and David Chen. Through three different projects, I have been able to explore different facets of legal work and ways to contribute to the cause of racial justice and equity. Each of the three projects requires different skillsets, [which has] allowed me to better understand some of my strengths and opportunities for improvement, as well as gain more clarity on the kinds of work I enjoy and would like to pursue in the racial equity space.
Which Law School class or experience has had the biggest impact on you?
I have had several incredible learning experiences here at NYU Law. One stands out, and that is my experience in the Family Defense Clinic.
In late February 2024, we were in an emergency hearing in a child neglect proceeding. About three or four weeks prior, we had secured a unusual result where the court allowed two out of our client’s three children to go home with her on an essentially extended unlimited overnight visit. This was in response to the horrors they were experiencing in their current foster home. However, ACS—after no more than two weeks—sought to have the children returned to foster care.
In that hearing, I was able to conduct a cross examination of the foster care agency’s caseworker and deliver the summation, or closing argument. I had, of course, prepared and practiced a whole statement, but after the first paragraph, I knew I had to change my script to not lose the judge, because I knew he was leaning [toward] our side. We were asking for the kids to be released to the custody of our client, or in the alternative, keep them under her care under what is called a trial discharge. Requesting a release at [this] stage was a bold move—and yet the court granted our request! This meant that the children were out of the care of the foster care agency.
That result was a testament of how much our team had pushed the case forward, [including] my incredible partner [Olivia Dure ‘25] and the social work student on our team [Greta Nagy ‘24], and [thanks to the] guidance of Professor Chris Gottlieb. Chris made sure we knew what we needed to know while allowed us to be as aggressive as we wanted, and gave us feedback without inserting her own stylistic preferences.
What do you most like to do outside of class? What’s your favorite way to spend a day in New York City?
I really enjoy crafting. I love to crochet, and I’m trying to pick up knitting. Needless to say, I have many works in progress! One of my favorite things to do is to crochet while watching a television show. I also love to cook and enjoy hosting my friends, although my studio apartment means I can only host one person at a time.
My favorite way to spend a day in New York City is to take a walk in a park—typically Prospect Park because I live so close to it—[and] catch up with a friend over a treat, typically at a coffee shop.
Have you read any books or heard any podcasts lately that you would recommend?
The following books are ones that I have read recently, loved, and would absolutely recommend: The Death of Vivek Oji by Akwaeke Emezi; The Girl with the Louding Voice by Abi Dare; Finding Me: A Memoir by Viola Davis.
The Death of Vivek Oji, set in 1980s–1990s southeastern Nigeria, tells a complicated and infuriating story of a child whose family struggled to understand them. The Girl with the Louding Voice is about a young girl living in rural Nigeria around 2014. [Both books] allowed me to connect with my home country and learn new things while exploring themes such as identity, societal roles, and what it takes to live out one’s dream.
In Finding Me, Viola Davis tells her story and what she’s learned from her experiences. I listened to Finding Me, and it increased the impact of the storytelling. I learned from [Norman Dorsen Professor of Civil Liberties Emeritus] Burt Neuborne and Chris Gottlieb the importance of crafting a strong and compelling narrative in successful litigation. Each of these books are written in very different styles, yet all evoke such strong emotions. I aspire to do the same in my writing and advocacy.