Jennifer Norton' JD'08
Jennifer Norton's law school search included seven schools from the University of Virginia to Texas, North Carolina, and Northwestern. Being accepted to Indiana's Council on Legal Education Opportunity program sealed her final decision on Bloomington.
Though she's an Indianapolis native and attended IU for undergrad, she says she knew Bloomington had more to offer her.
"Bloomington is a world of experiences. You can find everything here, and you'll see right away that the law school is a community with a range of ages, ethnicities, and professional backgrounds. I sit in classes with students who are judges in other countries!" Norton says.
"At IU, you're able to find a niche and to speak your mind. As a student and as a minority, I was so happy to discover a place where you can speak your mind without assumptions."
She discovered her place at Indiana Law through the Sherman Minton Moot Court Competition and the Black Law Student Association, and she found her passion for family law and criminal defense as an Indiana Legal Services and Protective Order Project volunteer, which she hopes to pursue as a career.
Norton says her transition to law school was eased by ICLEO, a six-week intensive program that builds networks between students and Indiana professionals and, Norton says, "helps with the learning curve by getting you to think like a lawyer."
ICLEO also helps students locate law-related summer employment after their first and second years of law school. With advice from Indiana Law's Career Services Office and those ICLEO connections, Norton landed a position as a summer clerk for the Indiana Court of Appeals in Indianapolis.
"I loved it because I really knew I was doing something," she says. "Plus I saw an insider's view of how judges think and an idea of how to frame arguments to be short and concise."
In her first summer, she researched criminal and civil issues on appeal; reviewed transcripts, exhibits, and evidence presented at trial; and helped write opinions ranging from revocations of probation to the admissibility of evidence.
Though challenging, Norton says that Indiana makes law school an active learning experience. "Law school is intense, but if you pick the right one," she says, "it's not so overwhelming."