Miller & Martin on November 1 hosted an event that provided undergraduate minority and female students from the University of Tennessee at Chattanooga with a first-hand look at the legal profession. Attorneys from several of the firm’s practice groups served as panelists in an interactive question and answer discussion about the firm, law school, and various careers within the law.
Miller & Martin member Tom Hayslett said, “Our attorneys establish goals for hiring, development, and retention of diverse attorneys because we think that makes us a stronger law firm and better able to serve our clients. However, this pipeline project with UTC is not about our needs, but rather about whether our law firm can influence the make-up of the law student pool, particularly within our geographic footprint. Miller & Martin might hire some of the students we meet, but that was not our objective. If we can encourage students who otherwise might think a legal career is not open to them to consider law school, then we will have accomplished our goal.
“The UTC staff we worked with was extremely helpful. We had an excellent student turnout and an engaging discussion with them. They asked good questions. We are still sorting through the students’ evaluations, but our impression is that they thought the discussion was helpful, and we certainly enjoyed it. Our intention is to repeat the event a couple of times a year.”
Cynthia Long, Director of the Educational Opportunity Center at UTC, said, “The Educational Opportunity Center recruits low income, first generation students for college admission. We were pleased to be a part of launching a partnership with Miller & Martin to create a mentoring program for students who are interested in attending law school. The time and attention the staff at Miller & Martin is willing to give to UTC students will make a tremendous difference in their path to success. The high number of students who took advantage of this first session proves the need for this program.”
Source: Miller & Martin