Student Spotlight: Emille Taylor ’28

AnBryce Scholar
Birnbaum Women’s Leadership Fellow
1L Representative, Student Bar Association; First Generation Professionals

How did you decide to pursue law?

Throughout my childhood, I always saw myself as a justice-oriented person, as I’ve always desired to help people and hopefully make their lives easier. I also really love math and numbers, so these competing passions left me with two ideal long-term professional outcomes: statistician or lawyer. Though both math and law are intellectually stimulating, I found that pursuing a legal career would have the highest impact and would by far be more beneficial to all of the communities that I come from, along with the general public. I needed time after undergrad to figure out when I’d make the eventual leap, but I was almost certain that I’d pursue law school with the intent of becoming an attorney!

You're a fellow at the Birnbaum Women’s Leadership Center (BWLC). How did you get involved, and what has that experience been like?

I set out to be a fellow with BWLC before coming to NYU. Women, especially Black women, are underrepresented in law, and I really hoped to be in close community with women throughout law school, so applying to the fellowship was a no-brainer.

My journey with Birnbaum began earlier this semester, and it has been nothing short of a great experience. I’ve sincerely enjoyed the cohort model and being able to learn more about the phenomenal other women in my cohort while being continuously supported by the resources and mentorship the program offers. I highly recommend that incoming 1Ls apply this fall if this is an experience that they hope to get out of law school!

You're also a 1L rep for both the Student Bar Association and First Generation Professionals. Tell us about those experiences.

Getting involved with an organization or club is such a great investment throughout 1L. Through SBA, I’ve really gotten to know my classmates better and learn their stories as a means of building connections and community (shoutout to Section 2). Serving as a 1L rep for FGP’s Mentorship Committee has brought its challenges but has been great as a means of preparing me for what my version of 2L leadership will look like. 2Ls are truly the backbone of student groups, especially the affinity groups, so it’s been powerful to see the work that the FGP board does to share resources and shape community for first-generation law students at NYU.

Which Law School class or experience has had the biggest impact on you?

Teaching constitutional law through the High School Law Institute (HSLI) has definitely been my most impactful experience so far. I worked in public education prior to attending law school because I attended public K-12 schools and I am a huge proponent of free, public educational resources. I wanted to be involved with HSLI because it aligns with both my values and professional background, and the experience exceeded my expectations. I have my moments where I miss working with students and learning more about the topics and current events that impact their day-to-day. Teaching through HSLI allowed me to regain that connection while simultaneously constructing my own perception of constitutional law in the contemporary world.

And the cherry on top was co-teaching alongside another former public school educator—shoutout to Chris! HSLI is truly a fantastic student-run organization to get involved with.

What do you most like to do outside of class? What’s your favorite way to spend a day in New York City?

I like to think of myself as the CEO of spontaneity and side quests. The beauty of living in NYC is that there’s always something new for you to try! Me personally? I love a good pop-up or live studio audience filming. Doing a combination of those two is honestly my ideal day in NYC. My favorites so far have been going to the Cecred pop-up and seeing “My Next Guest Needs No Introduction” with David Letterman.

I also really love to walk, and my daily goal is 10,000 steps, which is much easier to do here in comparison to the other cities I’ve lived in. It’s important for me to walk in areas away from the Law School each day to disconnect from it, but to also unite me with this beautiful and diverse city that I now call home.

Have you read any books or heard any podcasts lately that you'd recommend?

Truthfully, the eighth edition of Processes of Constitutional Decisionmaking has gotten the bulk of my attention lately. Outside of the doctrinal readings, though, I read Sula by Toni Morrison for my 1L reading group. It’s a beautifully-written and thought-provoking historical fiction piece about Black girlhood and kinship in the early 1900s. I 1,000 percent recommend it if anyone has the downtime.