Admissions Team

Maria Alejandra Canon Aguilar (she/her/hers)

2L, Part-time blended, Anchorage, AK

Maria.CanonAguilar @mitchellhamline.edu

Occupation while in law school: Paralegal and equal opportunity leader, Army Reserves

Focus: Criminal Law

Favorite class in law school so far: Criminal Law

Education

• University of Alaska Anchorage, B.A., legal studies, Anchorage, AK

First generation law student Army veteran Parent Wayuu Indigenous from Colombia

Ashley Pattain (she/her/hers)

3L, Part-time blended, Minnetonka, MN

Ashley.Pattain @mitchellhamline.edu

Occupation while in law school: Senior pharmacy benefit management analyst

Focus: Health Law

Favorite class in law school so far: Constitutional Law: Liberties

Education

• Southwest Tennessee Community College, A.A., Memphis, TN
• Thomas Edison State University, B.A., Trenton, NJ

First generation law student Lesbian Mother LGBTQIA+

Sayna Parsi (she/her/hers)

Recent graduate, Full time, West St. Paul, MN

Sayna.Parsi @mitchellhamline.edu

Occupation while in law school: Law clerk

Focus: Public Interest

Favorite class in law school so far: Introduction to Business Organizations

Education

• Winona State University, B.S., legal studies with business law and Spanish minor, Winona, MN

First generation law student Immigrant Persian/Iranian

Iris V. Anderson (she/her)

3L, Part-time blended, Dallas, TX

Iris.Anderson @mitchellhamline.edu

Occupation while in law school: Educator

Focus: Juvenile Law

Favorite class in law school so far: Criminal Law

Education

• Texas Woman's University, B.A., Denton, TX
• Texas A&M University–Commerce, Master of Education in Curriculum and Instruction, Commerce, TX

First generation law student 40s Mother Three sons Educator Student of color Muskogee Creek Nation

Brooke Riley (she/her)

3L, Full time, Eden Prairie, MN

Brooke.Riley @mitchellhamline.edu

Focus: Family Law

Favorite class in law school so far: Family Law or Child, Parent, and the State

Education

• University of Minnesota–Duluth, B.A. in political science and sociology, Duluth, MN

First generation law student

Kaeli Smit

3L, Part-time blended, Fort Riley, KS

Kaeli.Smit @mitchellhamline.edu

Occupation while in law school: Education center lead, Fort Riley

Focus: Everything! Trying not to box myself into one area since we still have several moves ahead of us.

Favorite class in law school so far: Property Law was tough but fascinating. I’m really looking forward to Employment Law this fall.

Education

• University of Louisville, B.S. in business administration (equine business concentration), Louisville, KY

Military spouse Moved four times in first two years of law school First generation law student

Tara Phelps (she/her)

3L, Part-time blended, Fort Wayne, IN

Tara.Burge @mitchellhamline.edu

Occupation while in law school: Director of therapy compliance and audits

Focus: Healthcare/Corporate Compliance

Favorite class in law school so far: Legal Research and Writing with Professors Carson and Raths

Education

• Indiana University–Bloomington, B.S., speech and hearing sciences, Bloomington, IN
• Ball State University, M.A., speech-language pathology, Muncie, IN
• Western Governors University, MBA, healthcare administration, Indianapolis, IN

First generation college student First generation law student Employed full time

Christina Jackson (she/her)

3L, Part-time blended, El Paso, TX

Christina.Jackson @mitchellhamline.edu

Occupation while in law school: Full-time law student

Focus: Corporate and International Law/Government Practice

Favorite class in law school so far: Appellate Advocacy

Education

• University of Central Oklahoma, Edmond, OK

Christian Military spouse Parent Small Business Owner

Dwan Samuel (she/her)

3L, Part-time blended, Hopkins, SC

d.samuel @mitchellhamline.edu

Occupation while in law school: Realtor

Focus: Sports law, Estates and Trusts, and/or Appellate Practice

Favorite class in law school so far: Critical Race Theory

Education

• Florida State University, Tallahassee, FL
• University of South Carolina, Columbia, SC

First generation law student Student of color Parent

Joe Schulz (he/him)

3L, Part-time blended, Sugar Land, TX

Joe.Schulz @mitchellhamline.edu

Focus: Education Law/Commercial Real Estate/Immigration/Agency Law

Favorite class in law school so far: Constitutional Law: Powers, Administrative Law, Education Law, Property, Transactions and Settlements

Education

• Washington University , B.A., St. Louis, MO
• Trinity University, M.ad., San Antonio, TX
• Texas A&M–Kingsville, Ed.D., Kingsville, TX

Parent Married Employed full time Educator/school administrator

Danielle N. Suess (she/her)

Recent graduate, Part-time blended, Minneapolis, MN

Danielle.Suess @mitchellhamline.edu

Focus: Trademark/Brand Management

Favorite class in law school so far: Constitutional Law: Civil Liberties and Wrongful Convictions Seminar

Education

• University of Minnesota–Morris, B.A. in history, political science, social science, and secondary education, Morris, MN
• Minnesota Paralegal Institute, Post–Bachelor Paralegal Certificate, Minneapolis, MN

Parent Employed full time while a student Paralegal