July 31, 2019

Maintaining Sane through the Storm

July 31, 2019/ LAW SCHOOL … Sí Se Puede

By Viridiana Valdez, Fellow Class of 2014
University of Colorado at Boulder

As I come close to the end of year 3 at the University of Colorado Boulder it excites me to know I am more than half way done with my undergraduate education. It is even more exciting to know I am one step closer to law school. While looking back on the last few years I came to realize it had been a pretty smooth ride for me, until this spring semester. The last few months I have been juggling so much from an internship with the Boulder Public Defender’s office, to schoolwork, other extracurricular activities and on top of that preparing for the LSAT.

I am so thankful for Eliseo Puig for keeping me on track with my LSAT preparation. With such a busy semester, I’m sure if it was not for him sending me emails every week I would not have been getting my preparation in. This semester has been my toughest semester ever at the university and it has felt almost as if I was walking through a storm because it has been exhausting to keep up with it. It feels like I have done so much in so little time because time has flown by so quickly.

Even though at my internship everything is on my own schedule, it still takes up my time. I really enjoy this internship and how I am not just making copies, but rather interviewing witnesses and alleged victims of real cases. That internship has been the best part of my semester because I have learned so much in so little time. I have also received insight on cases that have gone to trial and sat in on one of the trials. I have learned plenty on the justice system and how sometimes defendants are underrepresented in the courts. Everything I have learned this semester I have taken it seriously and applied it to my life. It has helped narrow my career choices and what field I choose to pursue in law. Even though this semester has been a tough and stressful one it has also been my favorite. It has been tough but I have maintained sane and thanks to Law School Yes We Can, I managed to remember to add time in my busy schedule to prepare for my Law School Admission Test.

“Sí, Se Puede” is a phrase born of farmworkers, who, under the leadership of the UFW, César Chávez, and Dolores Huerta, fought valiantly for equal protection under the law. As a result of the efforts of the UFW, “Sí, Se Puede” has become well known as a call that engenders hope and inspiration in those who face similar battles. We thank the UFW, whom we acknowledge to be the sole and exclusive owner of the Trademark SI SE PUEDE, for granting us a limited license to use“Sí, Se Puede” in connection with our efforts to recruit, in Colorado, students of Hispanic or Latino descent for our law school pipeline program. For more information about the programs offered by the UFW, please see UFW’s webpage (www.ufw.org); UFW Foundation’s webpage (www.ufwfoundation.org); and UFWF’s immigration services webpage (www.sisepuede.org)