Kia Barrett, Alisha Harris, Timisha Henley and Cynthia Hernandez from Elon Law's Class of 2020 will work this summer in top legal placements through the North Carolina Bar Association's Minorities in the Profession 1L Summer Associate Program.
Four Elon Law students – more than from any other North Carolina law school – were selected this winter for a North Carolina Bar Association program that promotes diversity and inclusion in the legal profession by placing accomplished first-year students into top summer internships.
Kia Barrett, Alisha Harris, Timisha Henley, and Cynthia Hernandez accepted invitations for the NCBA’s Minorities in the Profession 1L Summer Associate Program, which is coordinated through its Minorities in the Profession Committee.
It is the third year in a row that at least three Elon Law students have secured such placements.
The summer associate program “provides corporate legal departments and major law firms in North Carolina with a recruiting vehicle through which to interview and offer summer internship positions to 1L minority law students from each of North Carolina’s law schools.”
Kia Barrett
Hometown: Greenville, North Carolina
Placement: Fox Rothschild
B.A., M.Ed., University of North Carolina at Greensboro
Career Interests: Varied
“I am honored to have been selected to participate in the Minorities in the Profession program. As a first-generation college graduate and law student, I appreciate being given the opportunity to gain valuable experience to strengthen my lawyering skills and to make connections in the profession.”
Alisha Harris
Hometown: Charlotte, North Carolina
Placement: Duke Energy
B.A., University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill
Career Interests: Business/Corporate Law
“I am incredibly excited to be placed in Charlotte at Duke Energy in its in-house legal department. With aspirations to work in-house, I am very grateful to experience this rare opportunity as a first-year law student. Additionally, I intend to return to Charlotte post-graduation, and I am excited to be able to make connections during my summer internship. As a first-generation college graduate and law school student, I am thoroughly appreciative of the MIP program and gaining valuable legal experience that will be instrumental in my academic career as a law student and within my future legal profession.”
Timisha Henley
Hometown: Kernersville, North Carolina
Placement: GlaxoSmithKline
B.A., University of North Carolina at Greensboro
Career Interests: Business/Corporate Law, Employment Law
“One of my goals coming into law school was to participate in the Minorities in the Profession Summer Associate Program. Not only does this program give law students an opportunity to gain real experience, but it does so while promoting the importance of diversity in the legal profession. I am excited to spend my summer gaining invaluable experience with a company that prioritizes diversity and inclusion in the workplace.”
Cynthia Hernandez
Hometown: Severn, Maryland
Placement: Lawyers Mutual
B.A., University of Maryland, College Park
Career Interests: Varied
“I am honored to have been selected as a summer intern at Lawyers Mutual through the NCBA Minorities in the Profession 1L Summer Associate Program and am thrilled to work for a corporation that prides itself in serving the legal community of North Carolina. I am especially proud to have the opportunity to promote diversity, equity, and inclusion in the profession as an Elon Law student.”
The NCBA Minorities in the Profession Committee solicits applications from all North Carolina law schools. Schools invite students who identify as a minority to submit an application, which consists of a resume, transcript, writing sample and a diversity statement concerning how the applicant will contribute to diversification of the North Carolina State Bar.
An Elon Law panel identified select students to take part in an NCBA interview day in Raleigh. Each student interviewed with each potential employer in a day of round robin interviews. At the conclusion of the interview program, each employer selected one or more candidates to work as a summer associate.
“Elon Law’s candidates for the 2019 Minorities in the Profession Summer Associate Program were an impressive group of students, with varying educational backgrounds and professional goals,” said Melissa Duncan ‘06 L’09, assistant dean for career & student development. “Their extensive preparation for the interviews with participating employers was reflected in their selection for the program. I’m proud that Kia, Cynthia, Timisha and Alisha are building upon Elon Law’s tradition of success in an important program that offers substantive summer opportunities and an opportunity to network with members of the legal profession and the bar association early in their legal career.”
Elon Law students with an interest in similar internship opportunities can find more information in the Office of Career & Student Development.