What makes you a Difference Maker?    

Choosing to leave everything I knew and join a profession of arms created a sense of pride and leadership in me. As a soldier, I was committed to protect and lift up my brothers in arms even through the darkest of times. I have carried this commitment into my time here at UM-Dearborn by helping my fellow students with their struggles and discipline towards academics. Every day I’m faced with new challenges and I try to overcome them and encourage and assist my classmates to do the same. My ability to adapt and lead by example has made me become humbler, has helped shape my priorities and has given me more focus and direction into my future endeavors. That is what makes me a Difference Maker.

Highlight your campus achievements:

I was selected to participate in UM-Dearborn’s strategic plan by giving effective input on the future plans for COB. This opportunity allowed me to have a positive impact on COB and its success and development of students in the world of business. Along with this, I’ve also attained various personal achievements since transferring to UM-Dearborn, some of them include: 
•    Dean’s List every semester since attending UM-Dearborn
•    Becoming a Beta Gamma Sigma scholar
•    Graduating with High Distinctions and Honors in April

Highlight your leadership experiences both on and off campus:

Leadership is very important to me and one of the things that has highlighted my leadership experiences is recognizing my strengths and weaknesses while trying to fine tune how to be a more effective leader in various life events. I’ve had many opportunities to stand in leadership roles both in the military and during my time at UM-Dearborn.

Upon completion of my deployment to Iraq, I was offered the opportunity to work directly under the company’s president to assist and maintain personal records and weekly meetings for a company of 150 employees. In this leadership role, I was responsible for updating all relevant policies to stay in compliance, ensured employees were up to date with their job qualifications and assisted in small legal matters.

After the military, I’ve had several opportunities at UM-Dearborn to stand out as an effective leader. One situation where I showed my leadership was in a business project where I chose to be the team leader for a group of six. For the project, it was my prerogative to understand the milestones and deliverables, and ensured that the team aligned to given tasks and the rigorous timelines. For this project—as well as others that followed—I organized a sheet of deliverables, delegated tasks accordingly, and developed a buddy system which allowed my team members to get help when they needed. Every project that I led not was not only successful, but the projects allowed me to build a network within COB and stand as a leader among my peers. 

What is your dream career and/or long term life goal?

I’d have to say my dream career is to work as general counsel for a fortune 500 company. Anything involving mitigating disputes and/or contract negations is incredibly attractive to me.

My love for the law stems from the idea that nothing is written in black and white and how you interpret and strategize into those gray areas is what makes a great lawyer. Since entering UM-Dearborn, I’ve seen many opportunities to use what I’ve learned here to fill in those gray areas. 

Giving back has always been a passion of mine and as a future law student and lawyer, I want to help veterans—past and present—with the legal troubles they may face. I strongly believe that veterans are the backbone of this great nation and without them, our economy and nation would immediately collapse. Giving back to them and making sure they’re cared for is my number one priority, and I plan to dedicate my future as a lawyer to these individuals.

What was your most defining moment at UM-Dearborn?    

Recognizing that everything I’ve learned at UM-Dearborn’s COB would drive my passion of becoming an attorney was my most defining moment. I always wondered how my business degree would fit into the elite professions of law and with my professor’s experiences and teachings, and tools from a broad range of courses that I have acquired over the years. Now reflecting back, I’ve realized that all of it will play a part in bridging the gap between business and law, as well as arm me with the resources that will contribute to becoming a successful attorney.