Like many first-year law students, Erika Andersen '28 came to Minnesota Law with a general idea of what she wants for her career. Andersen is an Alaskan whose family has long been involved in union activity, so she is leaning toward labor and employment law. But like many 1Ls, she’s not sure.
“I do have a big interest in laborside employment law,” she says. “But I really see my legal career as an avenue through which I can help underserved or underrepresented communities. I’m interested in doing legal aid, maybe housing. I’m also interested in public defense.”
These aspirations make Andersen this year’s ideal recipient of the Walt & Paula Richey Scholarship, which its namesakes created to benefit law students committed to working for underserved populations.
“A peaceful society is founded on the rule of law equitably applied to all people,” says Walt Richey ’63. “Lawyers, such as the one Erika will become, are necessary for realizing that idea.”
Lessons From Life in Alaska
Though union activity runs through her family’s history, she is the first member of the Andersen family to pursue a legal career. Her greatgrandfather founded a fishermen’s union that still exists today in the southern coastal community of Cordova. Her grandfather, a fisherman and teacher, helped negotiate numerous contracts as a member of the Kodiak Borough Education Association on Kodiak Island, where Erika was born. Her mother was also a teacher in Kodiak and was active in the association before the family moved to the mainland, first to Valdez and then to Anchorage, where Erika spent most of her life before college.
Andersen recalls that when she enrolled at Lewis & Clark College in Portland, Oregon, she already knew that she wanted to be a lawyer. As a high school junior, she took the AP U.S. Government and Politics course offered by the College Board. The experience inspired her.
“That’s where it really started for me,” she says. “We had a section on the Supreme Court, and we went over all the really consequential Supreme Court rulings. I think that allowed me to understand how you can use the law to change things.”
Andersen earned a B.A. in political science and then worked for two years as an assistant compliance director and board liaison at the Eyak Corporation, which focuses on economic development for the federally recognized Eyak tribe in Cordova.
Life at Minnesota Law
With her first year at Minnesota Law coming to a close, Andersen reflects on the experience.
“The culture and the energy are very different from when you’re on an undergraduate campus, and it’s been a steep learning curve. The workload is very different, and the ways that you’re asked to think about things are incredibly different. You’re surrounded by really committed, really focused people.”
During her first semester, Andersen found that she loved her Civil Procedure class. And in her second semester, her Legislation and Regulation class piqued her interest because of its focus on the intersection of political processes and federal administrative law. She also joined the Student Employment and Labor Law Association as its 1L representative.
Andersen is not sure what the future holds, but she is certain her career options are wide open.
“I hope to be in a position in a couple of years where I’m using my law degree to help vulnerable people,” she says. “I think that’s always been my calling.”
Andersen says the Richey Scholarship is playing a crucial role in helping her achieve her goals.
“Probably the biggest obstacle that people face when they’re trying to pursue a career in law is the financial burden it imposes. So, having the ability to receive this kind of aid is really meaningful.”
Meanwhile, Walt and Paula ’76 Richey consider the financial assistance a good investment, largely because Andersen “seems precisely like the student we had in mind when the fund was created,” Walt says. More broadly, he adds, the fund is their way of giving back to Minnesota Law. “We have benefited from our training at the Law School and are glad for this opportunity to support its good work.”