It’s 3,132 miles from Margarita Island, Venezuela to Fargo, ND. That’s how far Daniela Kossowski traveled to attend Minnesota State University Moorhead. And now she has graduated from the university and hopes to take the LSAT soon in her efforts of entering law school. In the meantime, she is a nearly full-time employee of the law firm O’Keeffe O’Brien Lyson Attorneys.
Daniela – a self-proclaimed “over achiever”- was extremely busy in her years at MSUM. She graduated (May, 2017) with a double major – Political Science and Criminal Justice and a minor in Spanish. She was involved in Student Senate and 10 campus organizations, was a sorority member and work, have ed 20+ hours a week. And yes, she had a little time to eat and sleep, but that’s about it. Her hard work earned her a 3.95 GPA.
She has wanted to become an attorney for a long time and she’s getting closer to accomplishing that goal. How did she end up working for the Fargo law firm? “I used to live in downtown Fargo and a friend and I would walk by their big glass building on our way to a close-by restaurant quite often,” said Daniela. “I’d say – ‘I’d like to work at that law firm someday’”.
One thing led to another and here she is working every day at the firm. She began May 22nd. She has a variety of responsibilities and does everything from answering the phone to assisting attorneys with special projects, attending court cases, to filing and “whatever I’m asked to do…it’s all a great learning experience,” she adds. “This is a great experience for me. I really enjoy the people here. They are so open and willing to give me opportunities to learn,” says the Venezuelan native.
Her future goals? Assuming she passes the LSAT, she will attend law school and hopes to focus her practice areas on Immigration law and Criminal Defense. Besides becoming a hardworking attorney, Daniela says she wants to be a role model for other young women and someday she’d like to establish a scholarship at MSUM in her name for students with similar aspirations.
