Law Week is in Session at Florida Southern College

Law Week is held at Florida Southern College annually to connect students who desire a career in the legal profession with resources and information to aid them in their pursuits. This year’s Law Week activities will take place April 4-6 in the Becker Business Building.

Interested in a Career in Law?

"You should attend law week if you have an interest in law-related paths and want to explore different possible options,” political science major Jessica Valdes ’24 said. “You should also attend if you want to meet with your fellow students who are pursuing similar career paths.”

During Law Week, law school admission counselors, current law school students, lawyers, judges, and other prominent figures in the legal community come to speak to FSC students about the law school process and what life in the profession is like. Students who attend Law Week can ask individuals who have experience in the legal field questions about how to prepare for life in the profession.

"Law Week is a truly premium event for any undergrad, from any major, interested in or headed to law school,” said Dr. Bruce Anderson, the Dr. Sarah D. and L. Kirk McKay, Jr. Endowed Chair in American History for Government and Civics and Miller Distinguished Professor of Political Science. “It’s student centered and student organized, and features speakers and roundtables from all aspects of the legal community.  Alumni return annually for this, to get to hear from 1L students to recent grads to those advanced in careers of all sorts."

Law Week occurs near the end of the academic year when preparation for the LSAT exam is happening. The Department of Political Science sponsors the event, which is organized by a group of Pre-Law and Political Science interns under the direction of the Pre-Law advisor. Law Week was officially adopted in 2019, though it had been held ad hoc for years prior.

“The event is open to any interested student from Florida Southern, Southeastern, Polk State, Polytechnic, and even local high schools,” Dr. Anderson said.

Three Days of Panels

Law Week events will include a Current Student and Alumni Panel, Lawyers Panels, Other Paths in Law Panels, law school admissions counselor booths, and networking opportunities. The schedule of events can be found here.

The Current Student and Alumni Panel consists of: Keifer Exum ’17 who received a B.S. in political science from FSC, is an adjunct professor in the Florida Southern College School of Education, and an attorney with the Elder Law Firm of Clements & Wallace, P.L.; Sabrina Chianese ’17 who received a B.A. in history, with minors in pre-law and political science from FSC and is now an associate attorney at Clark, Campbell, Lancaster, Workman & Airth, P.A.; Alexandra Zimmer ’19 who received a B.A. in criminology with a minor in pre-law studies from FSC, is a rising 2L at Emory University School of Law, and a 1L Representative for the Emory Law School Supreme Court Advocacy Program.

The Lawyers Panel consists of: Brenda Appledorn Freeman, a career staff attorney for the Honorable Anthony K. Black of Florida’s Second District Court of Appeal; Brian Haas, the State Attorney for the 10th Judicial Circuit of Florida, including Polk, Highlands, and Hardee Counties; and Howard L. (Rex) Dimmig, II, the 5th Public Defender in the history of the 10th Judicial Circuit (Polk, Hardee, & Highlands Counties).

The Other Paths in Law Panel will consist of figures in the legal community who are not lawyers, such as law enforcement or people working in corporate related law fields. They will speak on different things one can do if they have an interest in law but do not want to be a lawyer or a judge.

Members of the Other Paths in Law Panel include Ms. Bonnie Godshall, retired Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) Analyst; Officer Dagon Leach, Florida Southern college resource officer; and Sergeant Bobby Brigman, from the Polk County Sheriff’s Office.

“I’m really looking forward to the Other Paths in Law Panel specifically,” said Ashleigh Lowery ’25, who is majoring in biology and minoring in criminology. “I believe that attending will give me a better look into the other side of law as someone planning on going into the field of forensics, which is focused so much on one side of the legal system. Especially if I ever need to testify for a case I’ve worked on.”

Nicholas Martinez, who serves as an Associate Director of Career Services at Florida Southern overseeing the Arts, Sciences, and Education majors across campus will attend Law Week as a representative of career services to give career ideas to students about other paths in law.

The students who organized the event are sophomore Solana Millik ’25 who is from Fort Myers and double majoring in political science and political communications with minors in pre-law, communications, and women & gender studies; Valdes ’24 who is from Lithia and majoring in political science with minors in religion and Spanish; senior Brooke Myers ’23 who is from Lakeland and majoring in political science with minors in pre-law and criminology; senior Olivia Aboulhosn ’23 who is from Titusville and majoring in political science with a minor in pre-law; and sophomore Eion Mitchell ’25 who is from Siesta Key and majoring in political science.