Charging Ahead on Multiple Fronts
Mulling her options, Arellano attended a Zoom seminar for pre-law students organized by the La Alianza Law Students Association. Little did she know the affinity group would become a cornerstone of her UC Berkeley Law experience.
“It’s been a huge highlight of my social community here,” says Arellano, who now co-chairs the group. “In my role, I get to see all of the work that goes on behind the scenes and it’s amazing how much of a resource La Alianza is — not just to Latine students, but to everyone.”
Charging Ahead on Multiple Fronts
Mulling her options, Arellano attended a Zoom seminar for pre-law students organized by the La Alianza Law Students Association. Little did she know the affinity group would become a cornerstone of her UC Berkeley Law experience.
“It’s been a huge highlight of my social community here,” says Arellano, who now co-chairs the group. “In my role, I get to see all of the work that goes on behind the scenes and it’s amazing how much of a resource La Alianza is — not just to Latine students, but to everyone.”
“You can just tell how much care all of the students before us have put into making this organization be the organization it is today,” she adds. “To have the presence that it has on campus and to, year after year, provide so many resources to 1Ls and to students generally, is fantastic.”
In typical UC Berkeley Law fashion, Arellano is busy on multiple fronts. She’s deeply involved in the student-led Post-Conviction Advocacy Project, which helps incarcerated people with the parole process. The client she has worked with for more than a year recently had a parole hearing, and Arellano is grateful to gain that substantive experience as a student.
She is also a Thelton E. Henderson Center for Social Justice Scholar, a program that provides students who demonstrate a standout commitment to social justice before law school with scholarship funds and mentoring opportunities.
“I’ve been able to try a lot of different things, and hopefully I can try a few more before I’m done,” Arellano says. “When you first start law school, it feels like such a long time. But now that I’m more than halfway done, I’m realizing how few semesters I have left, and I feel like I have to pack everything into them.”
“When I came to law school, I expected to not be able to focus on it as much, so it’s surprising and really cool to take these classes,” she says. “I’ve been able to get back in touch with things that interested me in the past and tie that in with my law school education.”
Arellano’s multifaceted experience is exactly what attracted her to UC Berkeley Law, and she’s taking full advantage.
“As 1Ls, we can participate in pro bono projects and journals. There’s an excess of things to do, and it can be difficult to choose,” she says. “But it’s really nice to know that all of those options exist. Knowing that we can make the most of it is really reassuring, because it helps me feel like I know what I’m getting myself into when I graduate.”