If I am being honest, I had never heard of PLEN until about two months ago. One day after class, I was going through my email when one of the career coaches at my school had forwarded me information about PLEN because she thought I would be interested in it. She couldn’t have been more right. Struck with curiosity, I began to research all that PLEN had to offer and I was hooked. Their Law and Legal Advocacy Seminar caught my attention, and because there was less than a week until the deadline, I made the swift decision to take a leap of faith and register. I am so thankful my past self decided to step out of my comfort zone because the Law and Legal Advocacy taught me so much about myself and how to navigate life in my future career.
Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, this seminar was completely online, however the warm and inviting presence of all the other attendees, speakers, and PLEN staff, made it feel as if I was with them in person. The Law and Legal Advocacy Seminar was incredibly rewarding. I learned so much about the importance of networking, something that I had never considered before this seminar. I met so many influential women who were more than willing to teach us attendees a plethora of skills and to answer all of our questions. All of the speakers were very personable and incredibly knowledgeable.
A common theme throughout the three days of this seminar was for the attendees to split up into breakout rooms that were each led by different women. This is where I was introduced to Nasim Fussell, who led one of my favorite sessions of the seminar. After giving us a brief background on her career and how she got to where she was in life, each of us were able to ask personal and pertinent questions about her career. It was easy to converse with her and she was more than willing to answer any questions we had. One piece of advice that stuck with me days after the seminar was her telling us to never stop learning and growing, and if we wanted to take a new route in our future careers, to not be afraid to take that leap.
I met so many amazing women and leaders throughout the seminar. I learned so much about the importance of legal advocacy in policy making and was able to discuss current events. Because of PLEN, I have grown as a person and feel so much more prepared to go to law school and begin my career. The Law and Legal Advocacy seminar was an amazing opportunity. I walked away from PLEN feeling sad that the three days were over so quickly, but so thankful for the opportunity to learn and grow. I finished this seminar feeling empowered as a woman and as a leader.
Quinn Fabish attended the 2021 Law and Legal Advocacy Seminar. She is a junior at Augustana College majoring in History.