2024 Will County Legal Opportunity Scholarship Recipient: Lauren Purchase

Aug 28, 2024 | scholarship

2024 Scholarship recipient Lauren Purchase

2024 Will County Legal Opportunity Scholarship Recipient: Lauren Purchase

By Rachel Barks

Lauren Purchase, a deserving law student from Bolingbrook, Illinois, has been named the 2024 recipient of the Will County Legal Opportunity Scholarship. This scholarship is dedicated to supporting aspiring lawyers who are committed to giving back to Will County.

Lauren with members of the Will County Bar

Lauren plans to attend University of Illinois College of Law in the fall as a part of the class of 2027. She is eager to work within Will County and use her legal expertise to make a positive impact on the community. Throughout her academic journey, she has demonstrated exceptional qualities that make her a perfect fit for this scholarship.

“I knew this scholarship was an awesome opportunity, not just obviously financially, but the opportunity that you can have an externship or internship,” said Lauren Purchase. “There’s also the network connections that are in Will County and being that I want to work in public policy, that will be incredibly valuable.”

The Will County Legal Opportunity Scholarship provides up to $38,000 to deserving Black or Latino law students who agree to practice law in Will County after graduation. This scholarship program aims to bridge the gap in diversity within the legal profession and empower the next generation of legal advocates in Will County.

Scholarship recipients can gain invaluable practical experience through the possibility of summer internships at the Will County Courthouse, State’s Attorney’s Office, Public Defender’s Office, and participating Will County law firms. These opportunities will foster professional growth, enhance leadership skills, and provide a strong foundation for a successful legal career.

Purchase dreams of serving the community as a judge, with career goals including state, federal, or Supreme Court positions.

“As a black woman, I’ve understood and seen racial disparities for the majority of my lifetime going to predominantly white institutions,” Purchase said. “So, having a scholarship that focuses on helping those in the black and brown and Latinx community, shows that Will County cares about diversity and inclusion.”

The Will County Bar Association is proud to invest in the future of legal professionals like Lauren Purchase. By supporting aspiring lawyers from diverse backgrounds, the association is working to create a more just and equitable legal system for all.

“I would like to thank the Will County Bar Association Diversity Committee for the opportunity for me to receive this scholarship,” said Purchase. “And thank you to those I have already met through the Will County Bar Association programs that, right off the bat, have been showing me the care and support I will continue to receive over my next three years.”

This year’s Will County Legal Opportunity Scholarship sponsors are:
Spesia & Taylor Attorneys at Law and McCready Law.

For more information about the Will County Legal Opportunity Scholarship and to see past recipients, please visit https://willcountybar.net/scholarship

Empowering Tomorrow’s Legal Leaders: Announcing the 2023 Will County Legal Opportunity Scholarship Recipient

Aug 3, 2023 | scholarship

2023 Will County Legal Opportunity Scholarship Recipient - Alexandria Wilson

Empowering Tomorrow’s Legal Leaders: Announcing the 2023 Will County Legal Opportunity Scholarship Recipient

By Rachel Barks

The third annual Will County Legal Opportunity Scholarship has found a 2023 recipient – Alexandria Wilson, from Crete, IL, a Will County resident since 2008.

Wilson will be a first-year law student who recently graduated as a double major in Paralegal Studies and Peace and Justice Studies, with a minor in Political Science from Lewis University, in Romeoville, IL. Currently, she works for a real estate attorney.

2023 Will County Legal Opportunity Scholarship Recipient - Alexandria Wilson

Wilson has known for a while that she wanted to apply for the Will County Legal Opportunity Scholarship because last year’s winner, Ayanna Squires, is an old classmate and friend, and they both were AmeriCorps Illinois JusticeCorps Fellows.

“We talked frequently because we took classes together in undergrad, and she told me about the scholarship opportunity; that is when I went ahead and applied for it!” Wilson said.

Working in law and becoming an attorney has been a life-long dream for Wilson, one she has had since second grade. She has had her eye on the prize for many years, the prize of helping the community and those who need it.

“It fostered out of the passion I have seen around the community, and the need,” She said. “I am very inspired and adamant about helping the community that has given to me countless times.”

The Legal Opportunity Scholarship promotes a strong message of celebrating diversity within the legal community. Wilson explains how much this means to her as a black woman entering the field.

“There are only five percent of U.S. attorneys who are African American, and only two percent of those are women,” Wilson said. “People come from all walks of life; I may not understand what a specific client is going through, but if I talk to a colleague, they might be able to help navigate the waters of the differences we have. If we don’t have diversity, we don’t have that support.”

Wilson hopes to become a judge, with an ultimate dream of sitting on the Supreme Court. This scholarship helps her take steps toward those goals and dreams. Recipients of the Will County Legal Opportunity Scholarship, an incoming first-year Black or Latino Law Student, can earn up to $37,000 to assist in paying for their legal education by practicing law in Will County after graduation, which will allow them to further insert themselves into the community.

This year’s Will County Legal Opportunity Scholarship has a number of sponsors, which are as follows:

Reich, Jumbeck, Stole & Reeb
Giamanco Law Partners
Honiotes Law Office, LTD
The Law Office of Eric J. Blatti
Law Office of Craig L. Boston
The Tomczak Law Group
The Law Firm of Rick Munoz

Timothy Reeb from Reich, Jumbeck, Stole & Reeb was part of the Interview Committee that selected Wilson as the winner.

“Alexandria showed a real, genuine desire to continue law school and come back to the Will County community, her home area, to truly give back and serve those who need it,” Reeb said.

“She deeply cares about the Will County community, and that really came across,” He added. “Law school is a big, big investment,” Wilson said. “This scholarship will help me be able to do the job I love. I am so grateful to Will County for investing in me.”

For more information about the Will County Legal Opportunity Scholarship and to see past recipients, please visit https://willcountybar.net/scholarship

First Woman Recipient of Will County Legal Opportunity Scholarship is Named

Jul 20, 2022 | news, scholarship

First Woman Recipient of Will County Legal Opportunity Scholarship is Named

By Rachel Barks

The second annual Will County Legal Opportunity Scholarship has found a recipient, and this year, it has been awarded to its first woman law student – Ayanna Squires, an Algonquin resident.

Squires is a driven and passionate individual, having already received her bachelor’s in criminal justice at Lewis University last May and is returning to school this fall, this time to tackle law school at Northern Illinois University.

WCBA President Tom Manzella, with Ayanna Squires and attorney Frank Cservenyak

“I really like the sense of community that people are there to help you in any way they can to grow and network,” Squires said. “I think it is awesome that different professionals and organizations are coming together for this one scholarship to help someone in their legal field.”

Squires took a gap year from school to jump into working within the legal field and get her feet wet; she is currently the 2021-2022 AmeriCorps Illinois JusticeCorps Fellow in the 12th Judicial Circuit. This is where she found out about the scholarship and waited for months for the scholarship to officially open so she could apply. Squires has a strong sense of love for Illinois, and the Will County community, and can’t see herself practicing law anywhere but her home state.

“One of the things that the scholarship will help with is building these community ties, and making sure to lean on those if I need them in law school, after law school, and while I continue to work within my community,” Squires added. “When I am a licensed attorney, I look forward to helping in any way I can.”

The Legal Opportunity Scholarship promotes a strong message of celebrating diversity within the legal community. Squires supports this and expresses how much this means to her as a black woman entering the field.

“It is really telling of the people that they see this issue within the legal community, a lack of diversity, whether that be with a lack of people of color in the legal field, gender ratios, anything of that sort,” Squires said. “I like that they tailored the scholarship to help an underrepresented minority in the legal field, and that helps me a lot as a black woman entering this field; I don’t have any lawyers in my family or anything as a first-generation student.”

Recipients of the Will County Legal Opportunity Scholarship, an incoming first-year Black or Latino Law Student, can earn up to $46,000 to assist in paying for their legal education by practicing law in Will County after graduation, which will allow them to further insert themselves into the community.

This year Rathbun, Cservenyak & Kozol, LLC joined an annual collaboration with the Will County Bar Association, the Black Bar Association of Will County, Latino Bar Association of Will County, Will County Women’s Bar Association, and Spesia & Taylor Attorneys at Law to sponsor the 2022 Will County Legal Opportunity Scholarship.

Frank Cservenyak of Rathbun, Cservenyak & Kozol, LLC sees great value in giving back to the talented, upcoming professionals of the legal community, which is why they joined the annual collaboration this year.

“This broadens the types of lawyers, from all walks of life, instead of just a narrow walk of life,” Cservenyak said. “And I think that’s good so that we have across-the-board representation of ideas, backgrounds, and all different kinds of cultural experiences when we’re using the law and practicing law.”

Squires looks forward to beginning law school and being open-minded to what area of law she will practice specifically. She plans to take part in valuable internships and externships, taking advantage of what opportunities come her way and developing through those in preparation for graduation and the bar exam.

“One of the most joyous parts has been telling my friends, my family, my coworkers, and just sharing the good news; I’m so very grateful for this opportunity,” Squires said. “Thank you so much to those that created the scholarship and for taking action to have it move forward.”

Rockdale native is 1st recipient of Will County Legal Opportunity Scholarship

Aug 12, 2021 | news, scholarship

Rockdale native is 1st recipient of Will County Legal Opportunity Scholarship

The scholarship program encourages diversity within the legal community of Will County

By Denise M. Baran-Unland

Photo of Adrian Guzman, Robert Bodach, president of the Will County Bar Association, Rolonda Mitchell, Black Bar Association of Will County, Christian Spesia, Spesia & Taylor

Adrian Guzman (second from left) was chosen as the first recipient of the Will County Legal Opportunity Scholarship. He is pictured with scholarship representatives (from left) Robert Bodach, president of the Will County Bar Association; Rolonda Mitchell, Black Bar Association of Will County; and Christian Spesia from Spesia & Taylor. Philip Villasenor of the Latino Bar Association of Will County is not pictured.

A Rockdale resident who dreamed of becoming a lawyer is now one giant step closer to realizing it.

The Will County Bar Association announced at its picnic last Saturday that Adrian Guzman, the son of immigrants from Mexico, was the first recipient of the Will County Legal Opportunity Scholarship, a release from the association said.

Recipients of the scholarship are “eligible to receive up to $46,000 to help repay outstanding legal education debt,” the Will County Bar Association website said. In return, the scholarship recipients will be expected to practice law in Will County.

Scholarship committee members said in a Herald-News story in January that the purpose of the scholarship is to encourage diversity among the legal community in Will County. Guzman agreed the concept is a good one.

“It’s nice to give back to the community you grew up in,” Guzman said.

This scholarship program is a collaboration among the Will County Bar Association, the Black Bar Association of Will County, Latino Bar Association of Will County, Will County Women’s Bar Association and Spesia & Taylor Attorneys at Law. A scholarship committee selected four finalists, the release said.

Read the full press release at:
shawlocal.com

Will County Legal Opportunity Scholarship Program

Learn more about the program and how to apply.

Putting Their Money Where Their Beliefs Are

Jan 26, 2021 | news, scholarship

Putting Their Money Where Their Beliefs Are

Will County lawyers offering unique scholarship to help promote diversity

By Denise M. Baran-Unland

Members of the Will County Bar Scholarship Committee

Members of the Will County Legal Opportunity Scholarship Program committee are, from left: Phillip Villasenor, Shenonda Tisdale, Rolonda Mitchell, Hon. Donald DeWilkins, Jaya Varghese and Chris Spesia.

For perhaps the first time in Will County history, several bar associations in Will County have come together to offer one black or Latino law student a really significant scholarship.

The scholarship recipient will be “eligible to receive up to $46,000 to help repay outstanding legal education debt,” the Will County Bar Association website said.

In return, the scholarship recipient will be expected to practice law in Will County. Scholarship committee members said the purpose of the scholarship is to encourage diversity among the legal community in Will County.

The concept started about six months ago with Chris Spesia of Spesia & Taylor Attorneys at Law in Joliet.

“The events of last year were troubling for everybody,” Spesia said. “So I started to think what we could do that would be positive.”

Spesia started making some calls and discussing ideas, which led to the formation of an official scholarship committee.

Read the full press release at:
shawlocal.com

Will County Legal Opportunity Scholarship Program

Learn more about the program and how to apply.