Dear 1L Student Spotlight: Alex Bellow

💌 Dear 1L – Student Spotlight 

Meet a two-time college dropout who, later in life, refused to let “delayed” mean “denied.”

In the 1990s, {@ALEX BELOW} failed to get a Bachelor’s from the Univ. of New Orleans (UNO), but he worked successfully in business to support his family for the next 20 years. Still, though, he aspired for more. 

In addition to serving as long-time pastor and building his church’s community, Alex is devoted to: 

🔹 social justice;

🔹 serving and helping the underprivileged; and 

🔹 fighting for civil rights.

Thus, when he found himself in a dark place in 2016, Alex leaned on God to help him pivot again:  He would reinvent himself and finish what he’d started at UNO so many years ago. He turned a 2.37 gpa into a 3.95 and graduated with honors.

Next stop: law school. Things did not get easier. 

🔸 Day One was bittersweet, as Alex’s father had just passed away. 

🔸 And then Hurricane Ida hit—closing the city and law school for what seemed like an eternity. 

🔸 News that his wife had a lump that required testing came next. Weeks waiting for the city’s resumption of medical services followed, casting a dark, anxious shadow over 1L Fall.  

Nevertheless, Alex turned his 1L Fall C’s into Springtime B’s. His wife is healthy, and all signs point to a less eventful 2L Fall.

Alex’s passion for proving to himself that he’s “more than what [he] used to think of [him]self,” is an inspiration for all to keep learning by pushing beyond the “comfortable.” 

Alex adds, “Delayed does not mean denied. Go for your dreams. I’m cheering for you!”

Please reach out to Alex if you would like to hear more about his journey, or to receive encouragement—especially with non-traditional career changes.

Fondly,

💌 Amanda

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P.P.S. If you’d like to be considered for a future Dear 1L – Student Spotlight, please let me know below, and I’ll send you details.  

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