I agree with the great football coach Vince Lombardi when he says that leaders are made through hard work. How else are we going to develop leadership skills without being challenged? As vice chair of the ABA Law Student Division, I am challenged every day. My primary goal is ensuring that law students across the country see the value in ABA membership and take advantage of the many member benefits. Benefits include networking with expert lawyers and judges within the ABA, opportunities to apply for clerkships and internships that provide meaningful legal experiences, and a chance to be a leader within the Law Student Division.

Leadership positions require a certain level of dedication, commitment, and hard work. But the Law Student Division is all about cultivating law students and giving them the tools to become effective attorneys and successful leaders in the legal community.

For Representative to the ABA Board of Governors, the deadline is January 15. For several officer positions (chair, vice chair, secretary-treasure), the nomination deadline is February 1. If you are interested in becoming a circuit governor for 1 of 15 circuits, the nomination deadline is February 1. Do you have a background in journalism or editorial work? If so, the student editor position assists in creating Student Lawyer magazine and that deadline is also February 1.

If you are interested in a particular area of law, I encourage you to apply to become an entity liaison, national student director, or project director. There are more than 70 of these positions available to law students who are hardworking and willing to dedicate their time to serving the Law Student Division. The application deadline for these liaison positions is February 15. For more information about leadership positions, see pages 76–77.

Still don’t know what opportunity is right for you? I encourage all law students to attend one of several meetings and conferences that the ABA and the Law Student Division plan during the spring. This year the ABA Midyear Conference will be February 6–12 in Dallas, Texas. Each Division circuit governor hosts a spring circuit meeting in either February or early March. It is very important to attend the spring circuit meeting in your circuit so you can vote for your new governor and so you can network with law students and lawyers within your region.

Most importantly, the 2013 ABA Annual Meeting will take place in San Francisco, California, August 8–13. If you have not been to an Annual Meeting, then I encourage you to attend at least once as a law student. It is a great way to network with lawyers, judges, and members of the ABA in addition to allowing you to explore your interest in various practice areas by interacting in different section, division, and forum activities.

Let 2013 be the year that you cultivate a meaningful experience in the Law Student Division. Get involved, become a leader, and work hard.