Zack Klinger: The Adopt-a-School Program is an educational program run in five of the firm's offices around the country, where high-achieving high school juniors from low-income communities come to the firm once a month for enrichment opportunities.

Paul Hamburger: We want to be participants in our local community. The Adopt-a-School Program not only gives us the opportunity to be part of the program in the community, but it also allows us to engage one-on-one with students, and really have that opportunity to give back to them a lot of the mentoring, of which we were the beneficiaries when we were in their shoes.

Kevin Froner: The real gift, I think, of this program, which Proskauer's providing, is closing the gap on career readiness. So students being exposed to marketing workshops, in addition to interviewing skills, writing resumes--all of the soft skills that we know are so important, and rarely do we expose our students to these specific particular skills in a targeted way.

Emily Rose: I want to be a lawyer when I grow up, so when I heard about this program it really piqued my interest. So when we got there the first day, we were talking to a bunch of people that worked there. And I talked to two lawyers, and I got to kind of get an idea of what they do and what kind of projects they work on, and how they really got to where they are right now. So that helped me a lot.

Sakin Saro: So what I enjoy about Proskauer is that it takes place in a mature setting. So me and like, a bunch of my peers were all in one room, along with the adults and the people guiding it. So we always enunciate and be articulate in what we want to say, and make sure like, everyone understands what you're getting across, like, the point you're trying to get across. But it's not always just communicating, because you also have to learn and experience listening as well, because you're talking, and--it's like, a conversation.

Ambar Guzman: When I go to Proskauer, I try not to wear sweats, and you know, I try to come to school dressed in slacks. Because I want to be taken seriously, and I want to copy how they're dressed at Proskauer. Because I'm seeing lawyers pass by me, and they're dressed in suits, and they're dressed professionally. So then I want to copy, like, how they're being dressed and how they're presenting themselves, so I can get taken seriously, and I can be respected.

Kevin Froner: Connecting with Proskauer has allowed us to empower them to go so far beyond what we can provide. Giving kids the opportunity to really think about their future careers and make it a reality. And I think of one student in particular, who is currently at Fordham studying pre-law, who was so inspired by the Proskauer program that she began to create her own vision for herself without any restriction.

Mohema Hussain: I like the take away of, you know, wanting to dress professional, wanting to always be on time, wanting to speak properly, sit up properly, and you know, just be in a formal setting. The Adopt-a-School Program really helped me prepare to be in a formal setting, but also made me comfortable enough to want to be in a formal setting.

Colleen Hart: All of our workshops that we offer them, offer them an exposure that they wouldn't normally have, and opportunities to improve their skills that they wouldn't otherwise have.

Nayirie Mehdikhani: Whatever tidbit of information we can give, you never know how that could impact a student in their future decision-making.

Paul Hamburger: You have in front of you the opportunity to invest in people, and that investment can pay off in ways that are countless.