Dear LSJ Alumnus:
As you likely remember, we require each LSJ major to take our internship course. As you also likely remember, we ask each student to analyze the organization where they worked, and to reflect on what they gained from the experience.
One of the most moving conclusions to any of those analyses arrived not too long ago from Shaila Bolger, one of the members of our graduating class of 2018. She described her work at Mary’s Place, which provides shelter and other services to homeless families. Shaila ended her analysis this way:
I’m incredibly grateful for my experience at Mary’s Place, as it has made me part of a community I otherwise would likely know nothing about. It has also helped me develop one of my own personal values – the commitment to living life outside of my comfort zone, and allowing myself to be challenged by people with different cultures, backgrounds, and beliefs other than my own.
Each of our graduating seniors can likely relate to Shaila’s sentiments. To major in LSJ is to accept the challenge of being pushed outside your comfort zone, and of being asked to consider a wide range of perspectives. I am heartened to learn that Shaila appreciated those challenges. I strongly suspect that her sentiment is shared by her fellow graduates.
If you want to see how some of our graduates assessed their LSJ experience, please check out this year’s convocation video. And if you want to learn more about what’s been happening in the Department, please check out the articles in this newsletter.
And, of course, please know that we cherish each of you as members of our community, and please know that your support enables us to keep that community strong and vibrant.
Sincerely,
Steve Herbert
Mark Torrance Professor and Chair of Law, Societies, and Justice