DIVERSITY CORNER
DIVERSITY CORNER
Diary of a Palm Beach County Bar DIP Intern
MYA SIMMS ISABELLA GILBERTO ADA ERAZO
DIP Intern Mya Simms was selected to work in the Palm Beach County School District Office of General Counsel(“ OGC”). The School District also has an in-house Summer Internship Program for District High School Juniors and Seniors and College Students who recently graduated from a District High School.
Mya served as a mentor to the high school interns in the OGC. The following is a glimpse into their experience:
Entry 1: Summer 2025
This summer, we had the amazing opportunity to work with the School District’ s Office of General Counsel( OGC). Interning with the OGC has been a unique experience. The OGC serves as legal advisors to a diverse range of departments within the district. This internship has allowed us to gain invaluable experience as we navigated through each department. Over the course of our internship, we engaged in matters related to employment law, risk management, business operations, governance, and academics.
In the employment and labor law department, we dealt with various cases regarding Florida’ s Public Whistleblowers Act. With this, we learned how to efficiently research issues that arise regarding School Board procedures and policies. We also learned about the Americans with Disability Act and how the District complies with the Act through the accommodations requested by its employees. Lastly, we have assisted with drafting potential deposition questions and opening statements for cases. This not only helped us gain first-hand experience on how to draft trial materials, but it has also helped the attorneys with their workload. We consider employment law our favorite department, as we were able to learn so much while getting firsthand experience from Attorney Middleton and Attorney Williams.
During our time in risk management, we learned about how the District manages injury cases. We were able to get handson experience to brainstorm what the claims were and how the claims arose by reviewing police reports, medical records, and bills. This department introduced us to a new perspective of law where we had to combine our legal knowledge with new medical terminology.
In the business operations department, we were exposed to the world of contracts, policies, surveys, title insurance, audit committee meetings, and negotiations. Essentially, we explored the internal processes that ensure the district functions efficiently. We sat in meetings with business partners to collaborate on contracts that benefit students. Additionally, we participated in contracts and surveys training, which further educated us on the District’ s real estate operations.
During our time in Governance, we learned about the structure of the District and all its moving parts that make up the organization. This information has helped us put into perspective how the school district operates, who does what, and how they do it. The biggest takeaway from the governance department is the importance of collaboration and how it enhances success when multiple people all have a common goal to achieve. Most importantly, during governance week, we had the pleasure of meeting the board members, the superintendent, and attending inperson School Board meetings.
Last but not least, the academics department educated us about Exceptional Student Education( ESE). This included the laws, accommodations schools must provide, understanding individualized education plans( IEPs), and the collaborative efforts between educators and support staff. Additionally, we attended truancy court, which gave us a unique perspective on how the district and Palm Beach County address chronic absenteeism. This initiative has been positively recognized by The Sun Sentinel.
This internship has been the highlight of our summer. We have learned so much from the wonderful attorneys in the office and each other. This unique design, the district incorporated by pairing a law student, a rising undergrad student, and a senior in high school, allowed us to share perspectives, exchange ideas, and grow together. As proud products of the School District of Palm Beach County, we are inspired by this experience and hope to give back to the community that helped shape us.
Mya Simms is an intern via the Palm Beach County Bar Diversity Internship Program. She is a graduate of Palm Beach Lakes Community High School’ s Law Academy. She received her B. S. degree from the University of Central Florida in legal studies. Currently she is a third-year law student at NSU Shepard Broad College of Law.
Isabella Gilberto is a recent graduate of Palm Beach Lakes Community High School’ s Law Academy, Class of 2025. She will be attending Nova Southeastern University this fall majoring in Criminal Justice with a minor in Business Administration.
Ada Erazo is a rising Senior at Palm Beach Lakes Community High School’ s Law Academy, Class of 2026. She is currently President of Law Club and Law Honor Society.
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