Rae Franz-Gilmore didn’t necessarily intend to tally 573 public service hours in her three years as a Colorado Law student.
But one opportunity led to another, and another, and another—and now, to a career in public service with the Colorado Office of the State Public Defender after she graduates May 8.
“It’s not for the faint of heart, for sure,” Franz-Gilmore said of her decision to advocate for the accused. “But every single person I’ve met has been so encouraging, and the attorneys around me are inspiring me constantly.”
As a child, Franz-Gilmore, now 26, witnessed the legal system firsthand when her mother was incarcerated.
“Growing up, ‘the law’ was something that happened to you, not something you participated in under positive circumstances,” she said. “You didn’t have agency or a sense of hope, even. It was always talked about really negatively.”
So it wasn’t until she started college at CU Boulder, double majoring in classics and political science, that she began to consider a career in the legal field to advocate for underrepresented communities like the ones she grew up in.
After earning her bachelor’s degree in 2022, Franz-Gilmore worked in Boulder for a year before returning to campus as a law student.
“My freshman dorm is right across the street from the law school, so I was familiar with the area,” she said. “I knew I loved Boulder and that our law school is exceptional."
Despite her familiarity with the community, Franz-Gilmore’s law school years offered...
Pakistani actress and model Ayesha Omar has strongly denied a controversial statement falsely attributed to her on social media. In recent days, a statement circulated online claiming that the act...