Poised to practice
security, making the transition to full-time practice,
strategic analysis, and work-life balance.
Irreplaceable experience
“The experience I’m gaining from my
externship matches everything I do in the
classroom,” says 3L Jamel Greer, who has also been
a member of two Loyola moot court teams. “Law
school prepares you to think like a lawyer or judge,
but adding these kinds of experiences lets you hit
the ground running once you graduate. It’s great
being able to walk into an interview and say, ‘I’ve
got hands-on experience doing X, Y, and Z.’ That’s
powerful in a tough job market.”
Greer, who hopes for a career in education
law, has done two externships. At the Chicago
firm Franczek Radelet PC, where he’s now a law
clerk after finishing one externship, he conducts
research, drafts memoranda, and prepares articles
advising clients of new laws that affect them. In his
externship with Hon. Nathaniel R. Howse Jr. (BA ’73,
JD ’76), appellate judge for Illinois’s First District,
Fourth Division, Greer reviews case materials and
helps draft opinions in his second externship.
Externing not only provided him with concrete
employment skills; it also helped him define his
career trajectory, Greer says.
“I feel like I’ve found my niche. Having an
externship at Franczek brought me one step closer
to knowing what I want to do. And working with
Judge Howse has let me see the law from his
vantage point before I go out to practice,” Greer
says. “It’s a blessing to work for another African
American male who’s risen to this position; it gives
me confidence that if I want to, I could follow the
same path later on.”
Howse, who has extended externship
opportunities to a number of Loyola students, says,
“We give students a broader view of what they’re
learning in law school. They learn to draft opinions
and Rule 23 orders—work that has real impact
on real people—and it’s rewarding to see their
enthusiasm. Because we incorporate their writing
and research into our work, it benefits us, too.”
Take two . . . or three
Like Greer, many students find their initial
externships so rewarding that they go for a second
round. 3L Sunethra Muralidhara is a three-time
extern. At Chicago’s Federal Defender Program, she
researched and wrote memoranda regarding search
and seizure, illegal reentry, narcotics, and more, as
well as meeting with clients. With her 711 license,
she took depositions, conducted an arbitration, and
argued all motions before the Circuit Court of Cook
County on behalf of her second externship provider,
the City of Chicago Torts Division. In her current
externship with Federal Magistrate Judge Michael
Mason, Muralidhara attends criminal and civil court
calls and is tasked with drafting a Social Security
appeal decision.
Muralidhara is grateful for the diverse skills she
attained in her trio of externships—“I came straight
from undergrad to law school and really valued the
chance to explore my likes and dislikes,” she says—
and, like Greer, found her career path through one
of them. “I concluded I really enjoy criminal defense
work. Long term, I’d love to be a public or federal
defender,” she explains.
“With all potential employers, though, my
externships have been a focus in interviews,” she
adds. “These practice-ready skills are something
employers want to see. Employers seem less
interested in knowing you aced the bar course
than in finding out you’ve counseled clients, taken
depositions, and argued motions in court.”
Loyola: top
choice for externs
Under the leadership of Vice President, General
Counsel, and Secretary Jodi J. Caro, Integrys has
hosted about six Loyola students, including Stan
and current extern Giselle Kalen.
“Our goal is to benefit the extern—make sure
it’s a meaningful experience that ties into what
they’re learning in the classroom—while being a
good corporate citizen,” Weathersby says. “Loyola’s
sent us strong candidates who perform well; that’s
allowed us to continue the program.”
(CONTINUED FROM PAGE 7)
C
omplementing the School of
Law’s academic experiential
learning programs—externships,
clinics, simulation courses, and
practica—the Office of Career Services
sponsors several programs and
initiatives designed to help students
make the transition to practice.
“Today’s employers are under a
lot of marketplace pressure from
clients to be as efficient and affordable
as possible, and that means limited
investment in training new lawyers,”
says Marianne Deagle, assistant dean
for career services. “We strongly
encourage students to acquire as
much hands-on practical experience
as possible in law school to show
employers the immediate value they
will bring to an organization. We also
work closely with students to ensure
they effectively showcase their skills
and accomplishments on résumés and
in interviews.”
The office has launched a new
initiative, the Illinois Supreme Court
Commission on Professionalism’s
Lawyer-to-Lawyer Mentoring Program,
which pairs experienced lawyers with
new attorneys to provide professional
guidance and practical knowledge
during the critical transition period from
law student to legal practitioner. This
year, the office matched 12 alumni with
a dozen 2013 graduates.
“Lawyer-to-Lawyer is a structured
mentoring program that includes at
least eight in-person meetings
during the course of a year,”Deagle
explains. “The mentor and new
lawyer create a mentoring plan that
focuses on very practical, action-related
activities. For instance, the mentor
might discuss law office management
matters, proper behavior during
discovery, common malpractice
traps, ethical violations, roles and
responsibilities of new attorneys, and
client confidentiality.”
“Based on my interactions
with young lawyers and law students,
I can report that they relish any
opportunity for experienced attorneys
to discuss their views on what
happens in the real ‘practice’ world
and how they will be expected to
act when they are in it,” says
participating mentor Donald Brown
(JD ’73), founding partner at Donohue
Brown Mathewson & Smyth.
“The program connected me with a
mentor who shares my career interests
and is able to provide candid insight into
the profession, which I found extremely
beneficial,” says Brown’s mentee, Jenna
Steffy (JD ’13), who worked as a law clerk
with Cooney & Conway and recently
joined the law firm Burke Wise Morrissey
Kaveny as an associate.
Deagle and her colleagues welcome
additional alumni participation in the
Lawyer-to-Lawyer Mentoring Program
and the many other career-related
programs they sponsor.
■
F O R M O R E I N F O R M A T I O N , E - M A I L
M D E A G L E @ L U C . E D U
.
A major reason Loyola has become a go-to source
for externs is the personalization Gough brings to the
program. Although she’s proud of having stepped up
the number of Loyola externs, “It’s not just about the
quantity of field placements; it’s also the quality,” she
says. “We focus on developing partnerships with field
placements, recognizing that one size does not fit all.”
Adds Kaufman, “Rigorous supervision is critical
to making externships work. Josie and her team
do a tremendous job of selecting and monitoring
their externships.”
“Josie’s done a great job in paving the way,
reaching out and communicating,”Weathersby says.
“She stays in contact to see how things are going.
That’s made the difference, because if there’s an issue,
we feel comfortable bringing it to her.”
Weathersby and Howse join many other alumni
who find that offering externships to Loyola students is
a meaningful way to contribute to their law school and
help shape the next generation of attorneys. As counsel
with the Metropolitan Pier and Exposition Authority,
Gough supervised numerous externs before joining the
School of Law, and she regularly reaches out to other
graduates to pitch externships at their organizations.
“I’m proud to be a Loyola alum, and helping
students grow and develop keeps me connected to
the law school,” says Weathersby, who is also a member
of the Dean’s Diversity Council.
Says Stan, “This is a tremendous way for alums
to give back to new attorneys. Externships are a
one-of-a-kind way for students to get real experience,
to be competitive with their peers, and to stand out
to employers. I feel incredibly grateful to have had
these opportunities.”
■
Josie Gough, director of experiential learning, meets with 3L Michael Tien as part of his externship seminar experience.
Mentorship program teaches practical
skills, professional expectations
“Externships are a one-
of-a-kind way for students
to get real experience,
to
be competitive with
their peers, and to stand
out to employers.”
—Alexandra Stan, third-year law student
››
Jamel Greer gained
valuable work experience
from externship opportunities
with a Chicago law firm and
an Illinois judge.
Donald Brown (JD ’73) and Jenna Steffy (JD ’13)
SPRING 2014
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LOYOLA LAW
