I was born and raised in Champaign, Illinois — a Big 10 college town four and a half hours from Grinnell.
Grinnell was the last school I toured, in November of my senior year. I immediately fell in love with the people, location, and feel of the campus. I switched from Regular Decision to Early Decision and haven’t looked back!
Volunteering with Animals
One of the first clubs I joined at Grinnell was SAVE (Student Animal Volunteer Ensemble). We went on a bi-weekly basis to help out with socializing cats and walking dogs at the Jasper County Animal Rescue League (JCARL). The staff and animals were always so sweet and it never felt like we had enough time there! I am a big animal lover and this club definitely helped me connect with likeminded people and adorable animals at Grinnell.
Campaign Season
In high school, I had always been interested in politics, but hadn't gotten the chance to get an inside look. Luckily for me, Iowa is the hub for primary politics in the year before the general election! During primary season, I was able to work for former United States Secretary of Housing and Urban Development, Julián Castro.
Iowa Caucus
Caucus time in Iowa, like the primaries, is super special. During this time I went on an Iowa Caucus Economy study tour, sponsored by the Rosenfield Center at Grinnell. I got to learn even more about Des Moines. I also reconnected with Castro at a special event he held at Grinnell in November.
Finally, I got to caucus! It is such a cool experience that you really can't recreate anywhere else.
Grinnell Summer
After being sent home in March 2020, I was itching to get back to campus. So, a friend and I secured remote internships — mine was working part-time with the City of Champaign's legal department, and part-time with the United Way of Champaign County — and pursued them with funding from Grinnell. We were then able to find a sublease off-campus and move in!
It was a weird time, but I was grateful to the town of Grinnell and my housemates for helping me make the most of it.
Semester in Copenhagen
I originally hadn't planned to go abroad, but after doing online school for a semester and a half I was more than ready to be in-person in whatever capacity I could. This Copenhagen-based program, DIS, was one of the only programs offering an abroad experience in spring 2021. I decided to take a chance and try out Denmark!
While I loved getting to learn abroad, I had a little bit more fun getting to explore the city outside of structured class time. Here are some of my favorite moments!
Pre-Law
Alumni Externship
In the spring of my first year, Grinnell's Center for Careers, Life, and Service (CLS) helped me secure an externship, which is an opportunity to shadow the work and home life of a Grinnell alum over the course of a week - typically during spring break.
I was matched with alumna Debbie Gottschalk, who works for the state of Delaware as a nonpartisan legislative attorney. This was my first time seeing government law, and I could not believe how cool it was!
Constitutional Law
In the first semester of my sophomore year I was able to take Constitutional Law & Politics in the political science department. This is one of our more “pre-law” focused classes. One of my favorite moments was when we argued a pending Supreme Court case in front of a mock-Supreme Court in the final weeks of class!
Summer in Chicago Law
Finally, this past summer I was able to work for the United States Equal Employment Opportunity Commission at their Chicago District Office. There, I was able to connect with another Grinnellian, Ethan Cohen, who works as a supervising trial attorney. Chicago was the largest city I’ve lived in so far, and it felt like a preview into post-grad life!
I love learning about how religion, law, and politics intersect in the United States. As a student, I invested much of my time in schooling to dive deeper into this area of study.
