- Posts: 1
- Joined: Jan 04, 2016
- Mon Jan 04, 2016 12:44 am
#21457
Good evening,
I was hoping this could be critiqued, have some feedback.
If you asked my parents when they first thought I would be an attorney, they would probably point to when I was five years old and tried to get out of trouble by exploiting what I thought was a loophole. “No Mom, I was just swinging my arm in a circle and he just ran into it. It’s not my fault, see?” -My- moment of realization was far less devious. Perhaps at some level, it was when I realized that I masochistically enjoyed researching state statutes and administrative regulations. Or maybe it was when I realized I was pretty good at the whole writing and speaking thing. In all actuality,
the moment I understood that I found my calling was when I realized that all the talents and traits that I possessed could be coalesced, could be formed into a rational plan of life, one that involved a career in the law, one that would allow me to do the most good for myself and my community. To understand why this is the case, I look to a few key factors in my development; extracurricular involvement in public policy and “real-world” experience working in banking regulatory compliance.
It was with my external experiences, beyond the safety-net of college, that I was able to start developing my plan. Over the past two years, I have had leadership experiences in student government that pushed me outside into the world of public policy. As the Student Governing Association’s Chief Economist and the State Relations Director, my major initiative was developing a medical amnesty policy for our university and our state. To this end, I threw myself into reading every state law and university policy that I could find. Building on these, I crafted a policy and a state law. However, I knew that for this to truly work, I needed more than a stamp of approval from our student government and our administrators. I made sure that we reached out to stakeholders in the community. I wanted more than anything for my personal work to become a collaborative, community based solution to a community problem, one that incorporated as many outside perspectives as possible. That wasn’t enough for me, however. The policy wasn’t going to be able to save students beyond the walls of campus or a high school student in Lindsborg. When it came time to write the legislation, what I submitted, despite scrutiny from attorneys in the Revisors Office, emerged virtually the same and became Senate Bill 133. After introduction, I spent several months working tirelessly with lobbyists, meeting with legislators, providing testimony to committees, and monitoring committee action. As a result of hard work and some tense moments, the bill passed the Senate with a high margin. My work will continue in the 2016 Legislative session and I will continue until this becomes a law that can save children across the state of Kansas. I am driven to make sure that I leave an impactful legacy on my organization, my institution, and the state that I call home.
Although my time in SGA government relations was certainly influential, the capstone of my time in public policy occurred during my internship with the Kansas Association of School Boards. I had an experience that most students working in Topeka never did. In large part, this was because each of my bosses took it upon themselves to treat me more like they were mentors rather than employers. Rather than ordering me to get coffee or make copies, each one taught me valuable skills. Scott Rothschild took the time to give me advice on writing press releases and allowed me to eventually publish my own. Mark Tallman, the director, made sure to involve me in meetings with other lobbyists, senators and the interviews with the media and pass on his knowledge about school finances. Tom Krebs showed me the reality of the process. A former history teacher, he enjoyed quoting Bismarck and his core philosophy, “Laws are like sausages. It is better not to see them being made”. He stressed to me that as a future attorney, I would be wise to be unafraid of the process (perhaps like a butcher and sausage making). If I knew how laws were truly made I would be better at interpreting them in the long run. He made sure I understood every detail of the complicated nature of lawmaking, from the backroom deals to the best ways to present testimony before a committee. Tom helped me excel further in the reading between the lines of the law, the importance of legislative intent and the communication of complicated issues. More importantly, they instilled in me an insatiable desire to continue helping those less fortunate than myself.
It was my experience in the real-world of employment that gave me a more practical sense of how I could continue helping the public good. After working with the KASB, I realized that the work I was doing at Community First National Bank was something that I not only enjoyed, not only did I excel in it, I could also use it to benefit my community. I only moved into auditing on a permanent basis after my experience at KASB. No more was it a job I performed during my school breaks, not more was it something to simply make money. Rather, I realized the importance of my work for not just my employer, but for our society as well. The Home Mortgage Disclosure Act, my area of focus, is designed to make sure that everyone, no matter their race, their income, or where the live can own a place to call home. After this revelation, I went about my work with new found fervor, digging into files, looking at them as a complete as a complete picture, trying to understand what the officer was doing so that I could then properly apply the law. I learned how gray areas of the law could be and the thought process and research necessary to properly apply the regulations in our work. Even something as simple as determining the purpose of a loan or property type required skills that I could have only learned through trial by fire.
I knew, however, that I did not want to be an in-house auditor for the rest of my career. As I looked more to a career in law, I realized that my experience working in compliance would give me an edge if I were to work in banking law. I have been in the trenches, I know the struggles that audit departments face, the demands of regulatory agencies. Whether I worked for a Treasury agency punishing wayward banks or for a firm representing a financial institution, I would be able to see from all sides involved in a way that many others may not.
As I look forward into the future, I can see now what I want to accomplish. I want to build off the successes I have had, I want to continue to benefit the public, and I want to continue working in a field that I enjoy. To this end, pursuing a law degree is the perfect culmination of all of my experiences. My love of public policy and experience in the banking world can be combined with training as an attorney to finally round out my rational plan for life in a way that not only allows me to accomplish my goals but to make sure others can accomplish theirs as well.
I was hoping this could be critiqued, have some feedback.
If you asked my parents when they first thought I would be an attorney, they would probably point to when I was five years old and tried to get out of trouble by exploiting what I thought was a loophole. “No Mom, I was just swinging my arm in a circle and he just ran into it. It’s not my fault, see?” -My- moment of realization was far less devious. Perhaps at some level, it was when I realized that I masochistically enjoyed researching state statutes and administrative regulations. Or maybe it was when I realized I was pretty good at the whole writing and speaking thing. In all actuality,
the moment I understood that I found my calling was when I realized that all the talents and traits that I possessed could be coalesced, could be formed into a rational plan of life, one that involved a career in the law, one that would allow me to do the most good for myself and my community. To understand why this is the case, I look to a few key factors in my development; extracurricular involvement in public policy and “real-world” experience working in banking regulatory compliance.
It was with my external experiences, beyond the safety-net of college, that I was able to start developing my plan. Over the past two years, I have had leadership experiences in student government that pushed me outside into the world of public policy. As the Student Governing Association’s Chief Economist and the State Relations Director, my major initiative was developing a medical amnesty policy for our university and our state. To this end, I threw myself into reading every state law and university policy that I could find. Building on these, I crafted a policy and a state law. However, I knew that for this to truly work, I needed more than a stamp of approval from our student government and our administrators. I made sure that we reached out to stakeholders in the community. I wanted more than anything for my personal work to become a collaborative, community based solution to a community problem, one that incorporated as many outside perspectives as possible. That wasn’t enough for me, however. The policy wasn’t going to be able to save students beyond the walls of campus or a high school student in Lindsborg. When it came time to write the legislation, what I submitted, despite scrutiny from attorneys in the Revisors Office, emerged virtually the same and became Senate Bill 133. After introduction, I spent several months working tirelessly with lobbyists, meeting with legislators, providing testimony to committees, and monitoring committee action. As a result of hard work and some tense moments, the bill passed the Senate with a high margin. My work will continue in the 2016 Legislative session and I will continue until this becomes a law that can save children across the state of Kansas. I am driven to make sure that I leave an impactful legacy on my organization, my institution, and the state that I call home.
Although my time in SGA government relations was certainly influential, the capstone of my time in public policy occurred during my internship with the Kansas Association of School Boards. I had an experience that most students working in Topeka never did. In large part, this was because each of my bosses took it upon themselves to treat me more like they were mentors rather than employers. Rather than ordering me to get coffee or make copies, each one taught me valuable skills. Scott Rothschild took the time to give me advice on writing press releases and allowed me to eventually publish my own. Mark Tallman, the director, made sure to involve me in meetings with other lobbyists, senators and the interviews with the media and pass on his knowledge about school finances. Tom Krebs showed me the reality of the process. A former history teacher, he enjoyed quoting Bismarck and his core philosophy, “Laws are like sausages. It is better not to see them being made”. He stressed to me that as a future attorney, I would be wise to be unafraid of the process (perhaps like a butcher and sausage making). If I knew how laws were truly made I would be better at interpreting them in the long run. He made sure I understood every detail of the complicated nature of lawmaking, from the backroom deals to the best ways to present testimony before a committee. Tom helped me excel further in the reading between the lines of the law, the importance of legislative intent and the communication of complicated issues. More importantly, they instilled in me an insatiable desire to continue helping those less fortunate than myself.
It was my experience in the real-world of employment that gave me a more practical sense of how I could continue helping the public good. After working with the KASB, I realized that the work I was doing at Community First National Bank was something that I not only enjoyed, not only did I excel in it, I could also use it to benefit my community. I only moved into auditing on a permanent basis after my experience at KASB. No more was it a job I performed during my school breaks, not more was it something to simply make money. Rather, I realized the importance of my work for not just my employer, but for our society as well. The Home Mortgage Disclosure Act, my area of focus, is designed to make sure that everyone, no matter their race, their income, or where the live can own a place to call home. After this revelation, I went about my work with new found fervor, digging into files, looking at them as a complete as a complete picture, trying to understand what the officer was doing so that I could then properly apply the law. I learned how gray areas of the law could be and the thought process and research necessary to properly apply the regulations in our work. Even something as simple as determining the purpose of a loan or property type required skills that I could have only learned through trial by fire.
I knew, however, that I did not want to be an in-house auditor for the rest of my career. As I looked more to a career in law, I realized that my experience working in compliance would give me an edge if I were to work in banking law. I have been in the trenches, I know the struggles that audit departments face, the demands of regulatory agencies. Whether I worked for a Treasury agency punishing wayward banks or for a firm representing a financial institution, I would be able to see from all sides involved in a way that many others may not.
As I look forward into the future, I can see now what I want to accomplish. I want to build off the successes I have had, I want to continue to benefit the public, and I want to continue working in a field that I enjoy. To this end, pursuing a law degree is the perfect culmination of all of my experiences. My love of public policy and experience in the banking world can be combined with training as an attorney to finally round out my rational plan for life in a way that not only allows me to accomplish my goals but to make sure others can accomplish theirs as well.
