DIVERSITY CORNER
DIVERSITY CORNER
Where Are They Now: AOIP Success Stories( Continued)
JEAN MARIE MIDDLETON
AMBER SANDERS
What the four paths have in common
All four are practicing in Palm Beach County. Two were hired by the office that hosted them. One is prosecuting in our county court, and one went from a publicsector placement to private practice carrying an understanding of how a public client actually works, which is not a thing law school teaches.
The pattern is not an accident of four strong résumés. A summer placement does two things a résumé line cannot. It puts a student in a building where lawyers can watch them work, which is how hiring decisions get made in a county this size. And it gives the student a reason to come back, because by August they know the courthouse, the judges, and a dozen lawyers by name.
The second effect is the one the Bar should care about most. These are students who had no particular reason to choose Palm Beach County prior to their internships. They chose it anyway.
What this asks of the rest of us
AOIP needs two things from the membership, and they are both small.
The first is a desk. If your firm, chambers, or office can take one student for a summer, that is the entire ask. You do not need a formal program, a mentorship curriculum, or a diversity committee. You need work that needs doing and someone willing to explain it.
The second is money, for the members who cannot host an intern. Donations fund the stipend for an intern placed with a judge or a government agency as these agencies offer the most formative experiences and are the least able to pay. After all, judicial internships should not be limited to students who can afford an unpaid summer. students and for employers, are posted on the Bar ' s AOIP page.
Four lawyers. All staying in Palm Beach County. That is what AOIP success looks like!
Jean Marie Middleton, Esq. is a Sr. Counsel practicing Employment and Labor Litigation for the Palm Beach School District.
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