Cardinal Gibbons sophomore Daniella Bridges recently completed the Future Lawyers Fellowship, a Harvard-student-mentored pre-law program that introduces high school students to legal reasoning, advocacy and the academic and professional world of law.

Daniella has long been interested in becoming a lawyer. When she learned about the fellowship through an announcement from Dr. Spanich, she immediately knew she wanted to participate.

Throughout the program, Daniella analyzed real and hypothetical cases, practiced the FIRAC method of legal analysis, developed thesis statements and outlines, completed LSAT-style questions and learned more about the college admissions process from her Harvard student mentors.

Her favorite part of the fellowship was participating in a moot court exercise, which gave her the opportunity to practice public speaking while experiencing what presenting a case in a courtroom may be like. She also gained a better understanding of how to structure and write a legal argument.

Beyond developing practical skills, Daniella took away an important lesson from her mentors: find a purpose and use it to make an impact.

The experience further strengthened Daniella’s desire to pursue a future in law. She is especially drawn to the opportunity to advocate for others and help those who may feel their voices are not being heard.

“I like to help people by speaking up for them,” Daniella shared.

Congratulations to Daniella on this impressive accomplishment and for continuing to pursue her passion for law, leadership and service!