Two Touro Law Students Named NYC Bar Diversity Fellows
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Two Touro Law Students Named NYC Bar Diversity Fellows
February 26, 2016Touro Law Center is pleased to announce that two students have received New York City Bar Diversity Fellowships. Stephanie Hibbert will be placed at MetLife. Dorothy Kong will work at the New York County District Attorney’s Office.
“The New York City Bar Diversity Fellowships is a competitive program and Stephanie and Dorothy are excellent representatives of Touro Law,” stated Dean Patricia Salkin. “These students will gain valuable experience from their work this summer. We are proud of their accomplishments and look forward to following their success in the future.”
Stephanie Hibbert is a second-year part-time evening student originally from Jamaica, West Indies. Law school was the right choice for Stephanie for a number of reasons. Her desire to effect a positive generational change within her family, while being committed to becoming the best advocate for her future clients are at the forefront. The learning opportunities and invaluable experience that await Stephanie at Metlife, a leading global provider of insurance, will be pivotal to her legal career path. Currently, Health Law is an area Stephanie anticipates practicing upon graduation. However, she does not intend to be limited to one aspect of law because her growth as a successful attorney is dependent on varied legal experiences."
Dorothy Kong is a second- year part evening student from Glen Cove, NY. With the principles of hard work firmly embedded in her, she has always recognized that the day you stop learning, is the day you stop growing. She was motivated to be a lawyer since her early youth, because she believed in a just and fair legal system. Realizing that everyone’s voice mattered, she passionately endeavored to be an advocate and role model. She brings forth a great deal of zeal and promise and strives to instill fairness, while helping to carry out justice at the New York County District Attorney’s Office. She is excited to learn more about the legal system, be exposed to a diverse range of cases and gain invaluable skills and knowledge that will make her a successful lawyer.
The New York City Bar Association Committee on Recruitment and Retention of Lawyers has been the proud sponsor of the City Bar's Diversity Fellowship Program since 1991. Since then, more than 300 diverse and talented first year law students from eleven New York City area law schools have been given a rare and valuable opportunity: to spend their 1L summer in a law firm, or corporate or government legal department to better prepare them for careers in the law. The goal of the program is to provide first year law students from underrepresented populations the chance to spend a summer in one of New York’s most exciting legal environments.
Touro Law’s Director of Diversity and Inclusion Erica Edwards O’Neal, stated “I am extremely proud of Dorothy and Stephanie for being awarded these fellowships. Both students are deserving of these prestigious placements and have bright futures.”
The selection criteria for Program Fellows are demanding, including a legal writing requirement, preparing a personal statement and being interviewed by a faculty-dominated screening committee and then, if selected by that committee, interviewed again by a panel of attorneys and other school representatives. The interviewing panel also reviews the candidate's undergraduate and law school transcripts, resume, personal statement and legal writing sample. Only those who pass this final hurdle are assigned to a participating employer.
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Touro College Jacob D. Fuchsberg Law Center’s 185,000-square-foot, state-of-the-art law school is located adjacent to both a state and a federal courthouse in Central Islip, New York. Touro Law’s proximity to the courthouses, coupled with programming developed to integrate the courtroom into the classroom, provide a one-of-a kind learning model for law students, combining a rigorous curriculum taught by expert faculty with a practical courtroom experience. Touro Law, which has a student body of approximately 650 and an alumni base of more than 6,000, offers full- and part-time J.D. programs, several dual degree programs and graduate law programs for US and foreign law graduates. Touro Law Center is part of the Touro College system.
Touro Law’s newly implemented Portals to Practice is a cutting-edge, experiential learning program that reconceives and restructures the law school experience. Portals to Practice expands the scope and quality of legal education by focusing on the development of legal professionals, from pre-law through post-graduation.
About the Touro College and University System
Touro is a system of non-profit institutions of higher and professional education. Touro College was chartered in 1970 primarily to enrich the Jewish heritage, and to serve the larger American and global community. Approximately 18,000 students are currently enrolled in its various schools and divisions. Touro College has 29 branch campuses, locations and instructional sites in the New York area, as well as branch campuses and programs in Berlin, Jerusalem and Moscow. New York Medical College, Touro University California and its Nevada branch campus, as well as Touro University Worldwide and its Touro College Los Angeles division are separately accredited institutions within the Touro College and University System. For further information on Touro College, please go to: http://www.touro.edu/news/
Patti Desrochers
Director of Communications
pattid@tourolaw.edu
(631) 761-7062