Student Ambassadors

Talk to a current student! The best way to learn about being a student at Northeastern University School of Law is to talk to someone who is already walking the walk. Our Student Ambassadors are happy to answer your questions about life at Northeastern.

Name: Adam Bakow (2L)
E-mail: Bakow.a@husky.neu.edu
Hometown: Lexington, MA
Undergraduate College: Eckerd College
Undergraduate Major: Communication
Areas of Legal Interest: Sports and Entertainment Law, Labor and Employment Law
NUSL Activities: Entertainment and Sports Law Society, Northeastern Employment and Labor Law Association, ABA Labor Law Trial Advocacy Competition
Co-ops: Boston Public Schools - Office of Labor Relations
Hobbies: Traveling, Football, Discovering new food and films

Name: Saraa Basaria (3L)
E-mail: basaria.s@husky.neu.edu
Hometown: Pembroke Pines, Florida
Undergraduate College: University of Florida '08
Undergraduate Major: Criminology
Areas of Interest: Public Interest Criminal Defense, Prisoner's Rights, Reproductive and Sexual Health Rights, Restorative Justice
NUSL Activities: South Asian Law Students Association, Student Bar Association Admissions Committee, Ending the Prison Industrial Complex
Co-ops: Committee for Counsel Services, Roxbury/Dorchester; Stern, Shapiro, Weissburg & Garin - Boston, MA; Committee for Counsel Services, Boston Superior Court; International Bridges to Justice - Geneva, Switzerland
Hobbies: Reading, music, movies, and exploring Boston

Name: Barry Bisson (2L)
Email: BarryBisson@gmail.com
Hometown: Worcester, MA
Undergraduate College: Newbury College
Undergraduate Major: Business Administration
Areas of Legal Interest: Litigation, Entertainment Law, Intellectual Property
NUSL Activities: Member of the Governing Council, Member of the Curriculum Committee, Member of the Planning Committee
Co-ops: Clerking for a Massachusetts District Court Judge (Summer 2011)
Hobbies: Watching movies, whitewater rafting, bowling, learning to play golf

Name: Julie Butner (2L)
E-mail: butner.j@husky.neu.edu
Hometown: Odenton, Maryland
Undergraduate College: George Washington University '07
Undergraduate Major: History and Criminal Justice (minored in Political Science and Soccer)
Areas of Interest: Family Law, Alternative Dispute Resolution, LGBT Law
NUSL Activities: Student Bar Association, Queer Caucus, International Alternative Dispute Resolution Society, Admissions Tour Guide, Intramural Soccer and Broomball
Co-ops: PHRGE Fellow at National Law Center on Homelessness and Poverty (Washington, D.C.); Children's Law Center of Massachusetts
Hobbies: Rugby (playing and reffing), hanging out with my dog, baking, knitting, being an assistant homebrewer

Name: Nathan Burk (3L)
E-mail: burk.n@husky.neu.edu
Hometown: Harvard, MA
Undergraduate College: University of Massachusetts Amherst ('02)
Undergraduate Major: Political Science & Economics
Areas of Legal Interest: Intellectual property; general corporate and business practice
NUSL Activities: Editor-in-Chief, Northeastern University Law Journal
Co-ops: United States Attorney's Office (Healthcare Fraud Unit); Alere Inc. Office of General Counsel; Gunderson Dettmer, LLP
Hobbies: Spending time with my wife and two boys!

Name:   Kathryn ("Kate") Dahlen
E-mail:  katie.dahlen@gmail.com
Hometown:  Plattsburgh, NY
Undergraduate College:  American University (Washington, DC)
Undergraduate Major: Political Science and Communications
Graduate University:  American University (Washington, DC)
Graduate Degree/Area:  M.S. in Justice, Law and Society with a specialization in Corrections Policy
Areas of Legal Interest:   Criminal Law; Immigration; Health Law
NUSL Activities:   NELLA; Domestic Violence Program at Boston Medical Center; Physician Advocacy at Boston University Medical School (collaboration between BU Med School students and NUSL students to explore the integration of medical and legal practices in providing patient care and advocacy services)
Hobbies:   Watching sports (I'm a DC sports fan so I follow the Redskins and the Capitals); taking my goofy english bulldog to the dog park; taking CardioBox classes at the Marino Center; and exploring the Boston area.

E-mail: dimaria.j@neu.edu
Hometown: Norwood, Massachusetts
Undergraduate College: University of New Hampshire '04
Undergraduate Major: English
Graduate School: Boston University School of Education '05
Graduate Major: Secondary English Education
Areas of Interest: Estate Planning, Education Law, Civil Rights
NUSL Activities: Student Bar Association, co-chair; Northeastern Law Journal, senior staff; Civil Rights Restorative Justice Project
Co-ops: Cambridge Public Schools, Cambridge, MA; Donovan Hatem LLP, Boston, MA; Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court, Chief Justice Ireland
Hobbies: Playing guitar, trivia nights, day trips, cooking, architecture, reading, watching the worst cinema ever made, and spending time with my dogs

Name: Ivria Glass Fried (2L)
E-mail: ivriafried@gmail.com
Degree Programs: Dual Degree JD and Masters in Environmental Law and Policy (MELP)
Hometown: Lexington, MA
Undergraduate College: University of Vermont
Undergraduate Major: Sociology, Political Science, minor Spanish
Areas of Legal Interest: Environmental Law; Victim Advocacy (focus on rural survivors); Criminal Defense
NUSL Activities: Domestic Violence Institute (DVI); Northeastern Environmental Law Society (NELS); Human Rights Caucus (HRC); Environmental Moot Court
Co-op: Massachusetts Appeals Court (Judge Cohen)
Hobbies: Rock and ice climbing, backcountry skiing, backpacking, and running

Name: Jessica Gustin (3L)
E-mail: gustin.je@neu.edu
Degree Programs: JD/MPH
Hometown: Bedford, NY
Undergraduate College: Gordon College
Undergraduate Majors: International Affairs (Mathematics minor)
Areas of Legal Interest: Human rights, immigration, direct services
NUSL Activities: Admissions Committee, International Law Society, Queer Caucus, Health Law Society, Domestic Violence Institute, and Program on Human Rights & the Global Economy Research Assistant
Co-ops: National Law Center on Homelessness and Poverty (Washington, D.C.); Alaska Legal Services Corporation (Anchorage, Alaska); Human Rights Law Network (New Delhi, India); State of Alaska, Office of Public Advocacy (Anchorage, Alaska)
Post-graduation Plans: Clerking for Judge Miller, Alaska Superior Court
Hobbies: Hiking, running, ultimate frisbee, and travelling.

Name: J. Nicole Knox (3L)
E-mail: knox.j1@husky.neu.edu
Hometown: Chicago, Illinois
Undergraduate College: University of Wisconsin - Parkside '02
Undergraduate Major: Business Marketing
Graduate School: Clark Atlanta University '04
Graduate Major: Master of Business Administration - Marketing
Areas of Interest: Corporate Law and Tax Law
NUSL Activities: Student Government Association, Black Law Students Association
Co-ops: Massachusetts Department of Revenue - Litigation Bureau; U.S. Court of Appeals for the Third Circuit; McElroy, Deutsch, Mulvaney & Carpenter; U.S. Attorney's Office - Southern District of N.Y.
Hobbies: Watching football and boxing, running, traveling, and hanging with family & friends

Name: Alicia Merschen-Perez (3L)
E-mail: amerschen.perez@gmail.com
Degree Programs: JD/MELP
Hometown: San Francisco, California
Undergraduate College: Roger Williams University '09
Undergraduate Major: Political Science
Areas of Interest: Environmental Law, Administrative Law, Public Interest, Tribal Law, Federal Indian Law, Family Law
NUSL Activities: Student Bar Association, Legal Environmental Advocacy Forum
Co-Ops: Environmental Appeals Board, United States Environmental Protection Agency (Washington, DC); Center for Biological Diversity (San Francisco, CA); DNA People's Legal Services (Tuba City, AZ)
Hobbies: Knitting, dance, reading, hiking, watching movies, and hanging out with friends

Name:  Marie McKiernan (2L)
E-mail:  mckiernan.ma@husky.neu.edu
Degree Programs: JD/MPH

Hometown:  Warwick, NY
Undergraduate College:  Cornell University
Undergraduate Major:  Biological Sciences 
Graduate School: Concurrently as dual degree, Tufts University
Graduate School Degree/Area of Study:  Master's in Public Health
Areas of Legal Interest: Health and public health law, intellectual property, specifically relating to consumer healthcare products 
NUSL Activities:  Cooperative Income Sharing Program, Women's Law Caucus, Health Law Society, Federalist Society, Interfaith & Philosophical Law Students Association
Co-ops:  Boston Public Health Commission; First Circuit Court of Appeals (Judge Stahl)
Hobbies:  Cooking, baking, salsa dancing, reading, hiking, and scenic photography.

 Name: Renay Oliver (3L)
E-mail: oliver.r@husky.neu.edu
Hometown: Batavia, New York
Undergraduate College: Marist College
Undergraduate Major: Business Administration/Marketing
Areas of Interest: Employment Law, Public Interest, Reproductive Rights, Domestic Violence Advocacy
NUSL Activities: Student Bar Association - Admissions Committee, Northeastern Law Journal, Women's Law Caucus, Black Law Students Association, Northeastern Employment & Labor Law Association, Interviewer/Advocate for the Domestic Violence Institute/Boston Medical Center Program
Co-Ops: The Honorable Deborah A. Batts, US District Court, Southern District of New York (New York, NY); Rudy, Exelrod, Zieff & Lowe, LLP (San Francisco, CA); Vladeck, Waldman, Elias & Engelhard, PC (New York, NY)
Hobbies: Traveling, reading, watching movies and sports, & hanging out

Name: Aaron Swinderman (3L)
E-mail: swinderman.a@husky.neu.edu
Hometown: Lewisburg, PA
Undergraduate College: Dickinson College
Undergraduate Major: Political Science
Areas of Legal Interest: Employment/Labor law, Government, Ethics
NUSL Activities: Academic Success Program Teaching Assistant; Legal Research & Writing TA; THEMIS Rep.
Co-ops: United States Attorney's Office Economic Crimes Unit; Office of Bar Counsel; Segal, Roitman LLP
Hobbies: Sports, Hanging out, Movies, TV