Third year law student Jihane Elizee and Nicole Fundora, a first year, were honored during the Miami-Dade Chapter of the Florida Association for Women Lawyers’ (Miami-Dade FAWL) 32nd Annual Judicial Reception which was held on December 4, 2014 at the Mandarin Oriental. The students were recognized for their community contributions in the areas of health, safety, human rights and human welfare and each received $1,000 in scholarship dollars. The scholarships were donated by local law firms, lawyers and retired Judges.
Elizee was personally selected by retired circuit court judges Ellen Leesfield and Victoria Platzer and was awarded the inaugural Ellen Leesfield and Victoria Platzer Scholarship. Elizee currently works 40 hours a week as a Judicial Assistant to Judge Tanya Brinkley. She is on FIU Law’s Negotiations Team and recently received the Best Advocate Award and Second Place Overall at the Nelson Mandela Competition. She is passionate about mobilizing people and resources for the Women’s Breast Health Outreach Program. Elizee also volunteers as a judge and coach for Miami-Dade’s Teen Court – an alternative sanctioning program for first-time misdemeanor youthful offenders who agree to allow their peers determine their sentencing. She is interested in maritime and admiralty law and hopes to seek employment with the Federal Department of Transportation after graduation.
Nicole Fundora received the Lucinda Hofmann Scholarship. She works full-time as a foreclosure paralegal at Broad and Cassel. She was a valedictorian of her class at Miami Senior High School, and holds a bachelor’s degree in Computer Engineering from the University of Miami, where she was a member of the Golden Key Society and participated in the Honors Program. Nicole is also a single mother of two children – ages 14 and 11 years old.
Alumna Courtney Engelke ’11, who also serves as a Board of Director and Scholarship Committee co-chair with Miami-Dade FAWL, shared this about the honorees.
“I was thrilled to see two FIU law students receive scholarships,” she said. “Ms. Elizee and Ms. Fundora are both well deserving of these scholarships. They are both evening students who work full time in the legal industry during the day, and still have time to make contributions to their community and excel academically.”
For the last 30 years, Miami-Dade FAWL has awarded scholarships to law students who have made contributions in their communities.
Pictured below is Jihane Elizee. Nicole Fundora was unable to attend the event.
Photo credit: Harvey Bilt
