Student Spotlight: Natalie Escudero '09
Coming from Miami, I grew up with many other first generation Cuban-Americans. When I was admitted to Notre Dame Law School, I knew it would be my opportunity to further not only my academic growth, but my personal growth as well.
I joined the Hispanic Law Students Association (HLSA) last year as a 1L to help myself assimilate with the law school community and share some of my Cuban culture. I enjoy the time I spend with my peers, and have found the balance between my studies and extracurricular activities to be really rewarding. It is self-enhancing to become involved in organizations whose goals coincide with one’s beliefs, and HLSA offers such a conduit for me.
This year, I’m proud to say that HLSA reached out to the broader South Bend community by inviting students, faculty, and staff to donate toys to La Casa de Amistad families—Hispanic families who could not provide gifts for their children—and we received enough donations to meet all of their needs. HLSA members arranged the gifts and personally delivered them to the families. It was truly a blessing to see the faces of the parents and of some children (who came to the door to peek).
We’re also in the process of preparing for the Graciela Olivarez Awards, an annual event hosted by HLSA honoring an outstanding Hispanic lawyer or judge who has made a significant contribution to the legal community. Olivarez was the first woman and the first Hispanic to graduate from Notre Dame Law School.
It is a pleasure to be a part of the history of an organization like HLSA and a law school like Notre Dame, both which have paved the way for minority students like me.
