Law Student Profile
Renee Ahlers, the University of Chicago Law School By Teresa Cajot Rene Ahlers’ attraction to the field of law is not new. The second-year law student at the University of Chicago School of Law in Illinois has long held an interest in all aspects of international law, from immigration and human rights issues to working directly with international clients.
The East Northport, New York native’s interests were encouraged from a young age, initially stemming from an appreciation of various cultures. With a grandmother from Rome and a grandfather from Ecuador, Ahlers quickly learned that people of different cultures are often tied together by simple connections, such as a love of enchiladas. She was intrigued by this notion as a child and is still captivated by it today. As a result she has spent much of her life examining these connections. While attending Brown University, Ahlers assisted local immigrants through the English for Speakers of Other Languages (ESOL) program that served immigrants in the area. The student-led program’s main purpose was to provide immigrants with free English classes. Instead of using school breaks as a time to escape from her responsibilities, Ahlers used the down-time to explore overseas internships. As a result she had the opportunity to research social policies for the Council of Europe in Strasbourg, France; work in an orphanage in Ghana; and study in Salamanca, Spain. She graduated from Brown University in 2009 with a degree in International Relations and Hispanic Studies.
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Following her graduation, Ahlers spent a year in Toluca, Mexico with the Fulbright Scholar Program. During this time she served as a teacher’s assistant within the English department of a small university, where she led workshops on a variety of issues of concern to both Mexicans and Americans. Ahlers’ experience has also included a five-month internship for Associate Judge Laureen D’Ambra with the Rhode Island Family Court in Providence and a summer internship with Cleary Gottlieb Steen & Hamilton LLP in New York, New York. She spent last summer with the Legal Assistance Foundation of Metropolitan Chicago where she was involved in an immigration project. The prospective 2013 graduate has also benefitted from the close knit community provided by the University of Chicago Law School. “The faculty are as impressive as they are approachable. It’s not every day that you casually sip coffee and chat with a professor who has argued numerous times before the Supreme Court.”
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