Background: Got out of the Navy in 1997, University of Georgia undergraduate, editor of the Civilian law student newspaper, president of the Civilian Society, clerked for a small defense law firm in Baton Rouge during the summer.

Why Law: I've always had political causes, and I saw law school as a means of working for those causes.

Why LSU: The LSU Law Center is on the move; it's got momentum. It's the best law school in the state, and it's a fun place to be. We were attracted to Louisiana in general because of it's unique culture. I also liked the study of civil law because of its emphasis on international law. I am getting in on the ground floor of something that's going to be big. At the time I applied, the LSU Law Center was rising significantly in the rankings, and it is continuing to do so.

International Law Options: We had a roundtable for students about international law opportunities in Louisiana to dispel the myth that, to do international law, you have to move to New York or Europe. Speakers included a gentleman who was a partner in a law firm in New Orleans and Bogota; a local plaintiff's attorney specializing in sailors' claims on merchant vessels; and the corporate counsel for Mahatma Rice, in Houston, who does a lot of export-import with South America. The roundtable displayed opportunities that exist here for people who are interested in international law, letting them know they didn't have to move elsewhere.

Hands-on Law: LSU Law is a good experience. I'm one of the people who learn by doing. You have to have theoretical background, but it's the doing law that helps me understand things better, to tie concepts together.

Life in Baton Rouge: The campus has a great atmosphere - football, extracurricular activities, the attractions of college life. It's a college town that's not just a college town, and that attracted me too. At Auburn or Oxford, there's nothing outside the university. Here, it's the state capital. Baton Rouge is not a huge center of industry, but there is some business, there's a downtown area. The dual nature of the town is as attractive as anything.