Fordham Law’s office of professionalism has announced its new cohort of professionalism fellows for the 2021-22 academic year. The fellowship program launched in June 2020. The new group of fellows will build upon the many successes the inaugural set of fellows achieved in the past year, despite operating in a mostly remote environment.
The seven upper-year students—who share an interest in and commitment to promoting professionalism, mentorship, and inclusion within the Law School—will play a key role in Fordham Law’s house system, which aims to enhance the student experience by creating smaller communities of support within the Law School. The house system provides a curated co-curriculum consisting of interactive programs designed to equip students with the tools and information they need as they navigate their first year of law school.
The fellows will work closely with Director of Professionalism Jordana Alter Confino, former Associate Dean for Academic Affairs Linda Sugin (now faculty director of the professionalism office), and faculty house leaders to develop and execute programs that are designed to help students hone the social, emotional, and professional competencies needed to flourish academically and throughout their careers.
“We were blown away by the level of leadership, responsibility, and ownership that the fellows took over their initiatives, and by the extent to which they were able to help us facilitate a robust sense of community within each house—even when some students were completely remote,” said Confino, explaining that the fellows helped organized virtual trivia nights and workshops that focused on growth mindset and critical race theory discussions in the classroom.
“The students formed these incredibly powerful bonds with one another that are even stronger than what we witness sometimes in a normal year,” she added. “There is no question that the fellows’ involvement played a key role in enabling us to facilitate that.”
Six of the fellows will each be assigned to one of Fordham Law’s houses, where they will be responsible for organizing social and community-building initiatives and helping the house leader and liaisons implement substantive house programs. The seventh fellow will serve as the inter-house fellow and will be responsible for overseeing inter-house initiatives, facilitating those collaborations, and working closely with Confino and Sugin on broader wellness professionalism initiatives.
Since Fordham Law students will be returning to the Lincoln Center campus this fall, the office of professionalism cannot wait to get back to work in person. “This year, we will be rolling out a number of new co-curricular and academic offerings within the professionalism curriculum,” Confino said.
“Working with the fellows is a key way to help ensure students’ insights and feedback are being considered every step of the way as we continue to build out the office’s work.”
The 2021-22 Professionalism Fellows
Olivia Cohen ’22
Olivia Cohen ’22
Hometown: Plainview, New York
Education: B.A. in Psychology and Government in Law, Lafayette College ’19
Cohen is active within Fordham Law, participating in moot court, as well as serving as president of the Fashion Law Society and the associate editor of the Fordham Intellectual Property, Media and Entertainment Law Journal.
Cohen firmly believes that mentorship, guidance, and support systems make up some of the most crucial elements found within a traditional law school setting—which is why she wanted to join the professionalism fellowship program. “When those types of systems and networks are lacking, it can be an incredibly vulnerable place for 1Ls,” she said. “I’m someone who has always enjoyed helping people and making new connections to get to know people.”
“I felt the professionalism program brought together every kind of system and community that I really value in a law school,” she continued.
Cohen is eager to help the program grow by bringing new ideas to the table as students adjust back to in-person learning. “Everyone has felt so incredibly isolated over the last year and a half, and I think participation in in-person events will be incredibly strong moving forward,” she explained. “I’m excited to dive right in, get started, and help create a community that wants to be there for each other.”
Zandra Cuevas ’22
Zandra Cuevas ’22
Hometown: Brooklyn, New York
Education: M.S. Ed. in Higher Education, University of Pennsylvania ’16; M.S. Ed. in School Counseling, St. John’s University ’13; B.A. in Political Science and Theology, St. John’s University ’10
Cuevas, a high school guidance counselor and college counselor, is an evening student at Fordham Law. She previously served on Fordham Law’s admissions and financial aid committee as well as the education law collaborative.
Cuevas said she wanted to become a fellow because the house system did not exist when she entered law school. “I missed the support system during my 1L year, especially as a first-generation evening student,” she explained. “Not only do I believe that this program provides that support system, but it gives me the perfect opportunity to tie in my personal and professional interests—helping students succeed in law school and working with law students in an administrative setting.”
The most exciting aspect of the fellowship program, according to Cuevas, will be helping incoming 1Ls adjust to the world of legal academia. “The law school transition is so difficult to begin with,” she said, “so giving the students an opportunity to be engaged and helping them with their transition will be the most gratifying part for me.”
Victoria Field ’23
Victoria Field ’23
Hometown: Wallington, New Jersey
Education: B.A. in Political Science, Rutgers University ’16
This upcoming year, Field will serve as a staff member on the Fordham Journal of Corporate & Financial Law and as secretary of If/When/How: Lawyering for Reproductive Justice.
Field’s career in health care workforce research before law school created her interest in health care policy. As a result of this interest, she had the opportunity to collaborate with a team of Rutgers University profession to co-write an article this April. The article, titled “Does Public Reporting of Staffing Ratios and Nursing Home Compare Ratings Matter?,” was published in the Journal of the American Medical Directors Association.
Field was inspired to join the fellowship program after seeing now-returning fellow Kimya Zahedi in action last year. “I think first-year students are fed this myth that the curve is a barrier to collaboration and that your classmates are your competitors,” Field said. “In reality, it doesn’t mess up the curve when people get together, learn intentionally, and teach one another the material.”
“It strengthens your own understanding, which is what Kimya really drove home for us,” she continued. “That is the kind of community I want to build for students next year.”
Johanna Ortega ’24
Johanna Ortega ’24
Hometown: Brooklyn, New York
Education: M.A. in Forensic Psychology, John Jay College of Criminal Justice ’09; B.A. in in Forensic Psychology, John Jay College of Criminal Justice ’04
Evening student Ortega is working as a research assistant this summer. She will join the Moot Court Board and serve as a staff member on the Fordham Journal of Corporate & Financial Law this upcoming year. Ortega has also been selected as a 1L tutor and is currently working on academic support programming with student affairs. Ortega applied to the fellowship program because she wants to be a beacon for 1Ls—especially for those “who can see that I look more like them than other people they may encounter on this journey.”
“Being part of a community of students who came together to help a classmate in crisis last semester, and to help each other, has been the highlight of my law school experience so far,” Ortega added. “I would like to continue supporting my fellow students and classmates in a similar manner. “
Ortega hopes to direct more programming on how to be successful in a virtual world. “The post-pandemic legal education and profession are going to be vastly different from any legal landscape our predecessors have navigated,” she said. “We get to blaze a trail on shaping the future of this profession and its practitioners.”
Brian Sarfo ’22
Brian Sarfo ’22
Hometown: Bronx, New York
Education: M.S. in Education at the Graduate School of Education at the University of Pennsylvania ’19; B.A. in Urban Studies, Columbia University ’17
Sarfo is returning as a professionalism fellow and currently serves as the northeast director of advocacy and external initiatives for the National Black Law Students Association. He believes there is value in structured fun on a law school campus where a lot of students tend to be really overwhelmed, stressed, and busy.
Sarfo suggested: “If there are designated events with house members, like Trivia Night or going to a sports event, students can be more aware of and participate in these moments that I think, collectively, a lot of students didn’t realize were necessarily there.”
“I am very excited to have the chance to serve as a professionalism fellow again and to work with Jordana Confino and the office of professionalism on serving the incoming Class of 2023 after a year of virtual and remote programming to finally see my peers and faculty in person,” he continued. “We have many amazing ideas in the pipeline and I am excited for the year to come.”
Brandon Small ’23
Brandon Small ’23
Hometown: Brooklyn, New York
Education: B.A. in Political Science and Hispanic Studies, Vassar College ’19
Small served as the 1L section representative for his section this past year. He will continue to be a member of the Black Law Students Association and will chair OUTLaws, where he hopes to shine as a mentor and leader in diversity for the incoming 1Ls.
“I hope to carry on the tradition of the Fordham connection that’s so special,” said Small, noting how students and alumni are willing to help each other out. “The strong alumni network and ties Fordham people have to each other is the reason why I decided to attend Fordham Law.”
With the tight-knit community in mind, Small plans to pay it forward as a professionalism fellow. “As a 1L rep this year, it was very difficult to plan community-building events due to the circumstances of the pandemic,” he said. “Now, I want to pay it forward to the 1Ls coming in because I want them to have a much better experience through more in-person events.”
Kimya Zahedi ’22
Kimya Zahedi ’22
Hometown: Bergen County, New Jersey
Education: M.A. in International Relations and International Economics, Johns Hopkins School of Advanced International Studies ’16; B.A. in International Development Studies, Sarah Lawrence College ’13
Last year, Zahedi was a notes and articles editor of the Fordham International Law Journal, a Crowley Scholar, and the chapter director of the International Refugee Assistance Project at Fordham. She is a returning professionalism fellow and also serves on the Dean’s Advisory Council for Diversity, Equity and Inclusion.
Zahedi entered law school knowing that she wanted to practice international law and human rights law. Since attending Fordham Law, she has focused on public interest law with an emphasis on human rights. She interned at the Federal Defender’s Office during her 1L summer and at the global immigration law firm Fragomen, Del Rey, Bernson, and Loewy LLP over her 2L summer.
Zahedi feels a real responsibility to try to actively combat the toxic culture that’s often associated with the law school environment. She is committed to transforming the law school to more holistically and systemically promote mental health and wellness and hopes that, as a professionalism fellow, she serves as a sounding board for 1Ls—providing them with an outlet to share concerns and issues and guiding them to the offices, tools, and resources that can make their lives easier and reduce stress.
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