Photo courtesy Cameron Modine
The Florida Agricultural and Mechanical University pre-law chapter of Phi Alpha Delta’s (PAD) last membership intake was fall of 2016.
It took them three years to return to the hill because there were no active members on campus. The last of the active members graduated in Spring ’18.
Founded in 1902, PAD is the largest professional law fraternity in the United States and has grown to 650 established chapters and over 300,000 initiated members.
Cameron Modine, a senior criminal justice major and political science minor, serves as the president for FAMU’s pre-law chapter of PAD.
“I wanted to join because I have always had a passion for becoming a lawyer and this organization was the perfect way to connect with like-minded individuals,” Modine said.
Modine said his goal for this chapter aligns with the purpose of the fraternity which is to “form a strong bond uniting students and teachers of the law members of the Bench and Bar in a fraternal fellowship designed to advance the ideals of liberty and equal under law.”
This fall membership intake had 18 new members to join this organization, including senior criminal justice major Alelee Figueroa.
“PAD is the first organization concerned with Law that I was introduced to freshmen year. The mentors that I had in the Fraternity influenced me to know, practice, and educate others on the law,” Figueroa said.
Figuerora has her future all planned out. Knowing her career goals, she is already one step ahead.
“I aspire to join the Judge Advocate General’s Corp in the United States Army after three years of being an active duty army officer. I will apply to the Funded Legal Education Program in hopes to receive full funding to a highly ranked law school.”
The International organization offers discounts for Law School Administration Test (LSAT) prep courses for those that are members of PAD.
“I took my LSAT already but before I took it, I was nervous because of how important it is for my future, I did take a prep course that help me get the score I needed,” said Modine.
“The workshops that we will be provided gives an opportunity for students to see what the prep courses offer to encourage them to spend the money on the courses.”
Princeton J. Studstill, a former member of the organization gives advice to any student that is looking to join this organization.
“Take this organization very serious. The information obtained from the learning process will educate you far more than the average Joe and gives you an advantage in future decision making more politics,” said Studstill.
He explains the core values of this organization and how it helped him in his upcoming career.
“PAD helped me in my career because not only did they train us on interviewing on skills, but it placed me on a higher pedal stool when it comes down to world knowledge. Meeting brothers from this organization helped me network and opened up many opportunities for me,” said Studstill. “I plan to utilize one of the PAD’s core values which is innovation to provide more opportunities for our community in corporate America.”
If you are interested in becoming a member of this organization, be on the lookout for the interest meeting this semester. For more information, follow their Instagram page @famu_pad.