Promising young law students

We didn't get in last night until after 10:00 and it was just too late to blog. . However, I did jot down some notes because I wanted to be sure to share with you details of the wonderful evening we had at the Law School Donor Recognition Dinner. We attended this event last year after the details of John's scholarship were finalized but he didn't have a scholarship recipient at that time. The recipient was selected over the summer and John received a nice letter or note from the young man several months ago, but this was their first face-to -face meeting. John and I we were seated with his scholarship recipient, James, a 1L (first year law student), and Andrew a 1L, Nadia also a 1L, Courtney a 2L, and Tony a 3L. Andrew is from Lake Forest, IL and completed his undergraduate degree at UC Berkeley. Nadia is from the area and completed her B.A. at Boston College, incidentally this is where John's younger daughter attends college. Courtney is also from the area and graduated from Northwestern U in IL where John's oldest daughter is a senior. James is from the area and graduated from Carleton College; his older brother recently completed a law degree at Yale '08 but is back in the area working at a small business firm. Tony is from Nebraska and I missed where he completed his undergraduate work, but he's in his 3rd year of law school and is about to venture out into what he described as a tough market. I found them all so interesting and eager but Tony was the most compelling of the group. Tony is a mix of confidence and fear, intelligence and skepticism. He's looking at all avenues including the Air Force JAG program, large and small firms, government agencies, etc. The reality of tough economic times hasn't been lost on Tony, he believes fewer than 20% of his classmates have clear prospects at the end of the semester. Back in John's day it was common for well over 70% of graduates to know exactly where they would be working upon graduation and passing the bar. The 1L's are just trying to keep up with the tremendous demands of law school, the 2L is swimming comfortably in the deep end of the pool now that she has her footing,. The 3L is climbing up the ladder and out of the pool with knowledge, experience, and confidence but heavy school loan debt and no real prospects for employment. I learned a few things about the UMN Law School at last night's program. The average LSAT score for applicants admitted is 167 or (96th percentile), the U of MN ranks in the low 20s according to US News and World Reports ranking system, and within 3 years all state aid for the law school will dry up due to budget cuts. Now more than ever colleges and universities are needing to rely heavily on the generosity of alumni and donors to attract and graduate the best and the brightest and that's what the night was all about… recognizing donors and the students being helped by these funds. One such student was Forest T. a young man who spoke about his journey from a public high school in the area, to Stanford U., and to the UMN Law School. Forest is a member of the Comanche Nation and his interest in the law began when he Googled his unusual last name, a last name that in the Comanche language translates to “young man who wakes before dawn.” The unique last name came up in his Google search and was linked to a lawsuit filed by a young Comanche man who once sued Fort Collins and the State of Colorado over its decision to renege on a promise to provide full college scholarships to academically qualified native american students. The young Comanche man won his case against the state of Colorado and to this day the college awards academic scholarships to Native American students attending Fort Collins. It turns out the young Comanche gentleman who took on Fort Collins and the state of Colorado was the father of this young man, Forest! Forest said his dad never mentioned the lawsuit perhaps because he never attended Fort Collins or perhaps because he didn’t think it was such a big deal. It was this discovery as a high school sophomore that sparked Forest’s interest in law and led him first to Stanford (he is obviously very bright) and then to the UMN law school. While attending Stanford he was not only a top student but also a star athlete (track). He even ran track as a 1L at U MN because he had a year of eligibility left. This young man is such an inspiration and his story will stick with me for a very long time. The night was also a reminder of the transformative power of education and the importance of recognizing and nurturing talent and curiosity from the start.

Article from our local paper re: the changing economy and tough road ahead for law school graduates
http://www.startribune.com/business/40447957.html