Before DEI became the racial boogeyman, there were the so-called quota hires, and Donna Summerville Smith remembers being on the end of that stick.
Summerville Smith, an attorney with Indiana Legal Aid, was one of two Gary girls who made it into Northwestern University’s law school during a time when admitting BIPOC students was still a rarity, she told a room of Indiana University Northwest students during the school’s inaugural Law Day on Wednesday. It wasn’t unusual for her to hear things like, “So, you must be a quota hire,” she said.
Whether that was true or not, the thought stung, she said, though not as much as the person delivering the sentiment would’ve hoped.
“I thought, ‘If I’m a “quota,” I’m going to be a quota in one of the best law schools in the country,’” she said to cheers.
Local attorney Donna Summerville Smith, right, speaks during a panel discussion of local lawyers on Law Day, Wednesday, April 3, 2024 at Indiana University Northwest in Gary. (Michael Gard/for the Post-Tribune)
The school put together the Law Day because with Valparaiso University eliminating its law school, there seems to be a gap in legal education in Northwest Indiana, IUN Chancellor Ken Iwama said. Since any degree can segue into law – and Iwama knows since he himself is a lawyer – he and some of his administrators wondered how they could facilitate the connection, especially since there are already pre-law classes taught, he said.
“I think about people in the arts all the time: Even if they stay an artist, they know how to protect their work,” said Jana Szostek, director for the school’s Assessment Center and business law professor. “And when you have a family and a job, you can’t just pick up and go two hours away to law school, but you can stay here and get a lot of your credits.”
Law Day brought lawyers from all practice areas to talk to the students about what law school entails and how to navigate it in the morning; a second cohort talked to the more than 40 students who came in and out throughout the day about the careers they chose and why.
Tracey Wetzstein, a supervisor with Indiana Legal Aid, told the group she joined the agency in March of 2020 – right before the pandemic hit and the state leveled an eviction moratorium. She never had so much fun in her life.
Attorney Timijanel Boyd-Odom, right, speaks during a panel discussion of local lawyers on Law Day, Wednesday, April 3, 2024 at Indiana University Northwest in Gary. At left is attorney Kaitlynn Cicillian. (Michael Gard/for the Post-Tribune)
“I was working from home, and I did nothing but fight landlords for evictions, and I loved it!” she said. “My son was home, and he said to me after listening to many of these cases, ‘You are the politest, most aggressive person.’
“We also do wills, guardianships and family law, and it’s all free! This has been the most satisfying way to practice.”
Michelle Wendlinger, a Munster attorney who runs her practice with her husband out of their home, told the students they need to know what they like before they commit to an area of practice. Attorney Eden Strange learned that lesson when he took a job in the Marion County Prosecutor’s Office after he graduated from law school.
“I felt like I was spinning my wheels, but I knew that I wanted to work in human rights and civil rights, so I got into the DEI space and was contracted to create corporate change,” Strange, an IUN undergrad, said. “My story is one of determination: I didn’t get into law until I was 35, so find your passions and then let them work for you.”
Local attorney Tracey Wetzstein speaks during a panel discussion of local lawyers on Law Day, Wednesday, April 3, 2024 at Indiana University Northwest in Gary. (Michael Gard/for the Post-Tribune)
Izabela Kolevska, who’s working on her MBA in Health Management, hadn’t considered law until she took a Health Law class. It completely changed her outlook.
“My advisors gave me great advice and told me to reach for the stars,” Kolevska, of Crown Point, said. “It’s kind of a big leap, but they told me to invest in my life.”
Anyone interested in talking about pre-law classes should contact Szostek at jaszoste@iun.edu.
Michelle L. Quinn is a freelance reporter for the Post-Tribune.
