Hometown: Chelsea, Michigan

Major and class standing: Junior, Humanities Pre-law

Instagram: @Kennedy.parkerr

Internship: 30th Circuit Court, Ingham County

What were your internship title and role/responsibilities?

 As an intern, I have a great number of roles and responsibilities that I certainly did not yet didn’t feel fully qualified to complete as they were tasks taught and learned in law school. I had the opportunity to write up many different law documents such as bench memorandums, 6500 orders, and motions to deny or withdraw in addition to many others. I also dealt with organizing case files into categories of either open case, probation, or closed which challenged my critical thinking as far as determining the correct category along with challenging my alphabetical skills. Additionally, I was able to directly assist with the jury selection process where I would monitor jurors and instruct them on what to do as well as construct the jury information binders regarding the legalities behind the case set forth for them. I also got to assist the judicial assistant with answering legal phone calls and making notes of the messages. Frequntly I monitored the court zoom as each case was occurring to make sure no participants were disruptive and that the necessary parties could be placed into a zoom breakout room if needed.

How did you obtain your internship? What resources did you utilize to secure your internship?

 I obtained my internship after Judge Aquilina met and spoke to my college law group, Empower Women in Law. I pretty much jumped at the idea of obtaining an internship with her because she’s most definitely my idol and I also knew I had to fulfill an internship requirement for my studies. I obtained her email and directly contacted her email stating my interest in an internship and was so anxious. Judge Aquilina responded within minutes telling me that I had gotten an internship with her and I was absolutely ecstatic. This was over a year ago at this point and I’m still continuing the internship!

What did your daily routine include?

 My daily routine consisted of arriving at the court at 8:30am, buzzing into Judge Aquilina’s court officials, and signing and checking in with my supervisor Logan. I would either receive an assignment from Logan or he would provide me with another one to work on and afterward, we would quickly ready ourselves to enter the courtroom to endure a full morning of court.

Your favorite experience from the internship (2-3 sentences)

 My favorite part of the entire process was getting to witness every court proceeding whether it was something as simple as an illegal concealed weapon or something as extreme as murder. It was such a unique and unfathomable experience that I will truly remember fondly for the rest of my life.

What was your least favorite part of the internship?

 Honestly, if I had to pick my least favorite part of the internship it would simply be the fact that I had to wake up so early in the morning to attend. I loved every aspect of the internship to the point where there’s nothing that I would even consider complaining about.

What skills did you learn and/or build upon during your internship?

 I learned numerous skills. I learned how to properly cite cases, which is extremely different from simply citing an article in a paper for school. I also learned how to write a variety of different documents important and necessary in the legal field, learned exactly how court proceedings take place, learned how to deal with zoom on a much more complex level, and how to instruct and monitor jurors during jury selection among many others. Most importantly, I was able to develop my critical thinking skills and expand my horizons as far as law knowledge goes.

What did you learn about the industry or your career path as a result of the internship? What are your future plans?

 Honestly, I learned that it’s much more complex and difficult than I had anticipated. However, I also learned that I love law and that it’s truly so much fun as a result of the fact that something new is at hand each and every day. As far as my future plans, I’m still continuing my internship and plan to do so during the summer and the entire course of next year. I’m also currently studying for the LSAT and hope to attend law school after obtaining my degree here at MSU.

What advice do you have for other students seeking out internship opportunities?

 As someone who always struggled with anxiety, do not be afraid to as I would say, get out there and get after it. The world has so much to offer as far as knowledge and experiences so don’t let simply the idea of having to get an internship for school credit or the fear of reaching out to potential internship employers stop you. It’s one of the most rewarding experiences I’ve ever endured.