Law School Sections: §7
“Section 7.”
I don’t know, it just sounds super cool right? Area 51, District 13, Section 7...that's definitely a list of badass, government-secret-esque groups. Gotta be cool.
Unfortunately, this is not a blog about cool. Or aliens, or rebellions (yet). It's a blog about law school, so it will shock no one that Section 7 is a law school thing. More specifically, it's my law school thing!
Section 7 is a group of 80 randomly-assigned 1Ls, including me, who take every class together and do outside activities as a giant group. In military terms, this is my squadron. In basic b*tch terms, this is my squad.
BUT - WHY?
Here's why, according to the Harvard Law website. I even bolded the most important parts for you (a true scholar, no need to thank)
“The 1L Section Initiative, proposed in the HLS 2000 Strategic Plan extends beyond traditional notions of curriculum considering class size, providing students with feedback and appropriate advising, the proper balance between a required and elective curriculum in the first year, and improving the sense of student community, especially in the first year.”
- HLS Website
As I hinted in previous posts, sections are meant to a) keep classes reasonably sized so b) our professors can ensure we're okay mentally/academically while c) making sure we take Torts. Other law schools split their 1Ls into sections too, so apparently it's a successful setup!
For better or worse (read: definitely better) I'm in HLS Section 7. So far we've gotten through Orientation, three weeks of class, study sessions, welcome receptions, one section meeting, and a collective coffee date together - and I'm happy to report, no deaths or lifelong enemies made. Friendships are forming, gunners are gunning, and everyone's doing just fine.
SECTION 7
In just a few weeks, each section already has a unique reputation (at least in my head). For example, one is The Lame Section for collectively leaving an event early. Another is the Sucker Section for being stuck in class until like 5pm every day.
So what, then, is Section 7? Well, put it this way - we were told to "pick a uniform" for 1L Cup, and chose Hawaiian gear. The other sections showed up in black, red, and Harvard-themed clothes. So...we're the fun section. The chill section. Life is beautiful. I am in the party section.
Now, don’t get it wrong: "my people" are super smart, come from super impressive backgrounds, and have super ambitious goals. But they're also twenty-somethings with dreams and fears and opinions just like me, and we've all (to some degree) learned to hide our Type-A-ness in social settings.
Which is a blessing, because we're together for at least four hours every day. To get a better feel for my section, here's a look at what we've got:
4 mil veterans, including me: Air Force, Army, Marine, and Korean Army
One Kathryn, one Catherine, and one Katherine
International students from all over the world: France, Australia, Yemen, Canada, England, and Korea, to name just a few!
Lots of people from Cali - particularly San Diego
Also one from NJ who SWEARS Jersey Shore is real life
Only a few Midwesterners - IL, IN, NE, and WI are sparsely represented
Some SERIOUS dog fanatics. Love that.
Four married? I think?? No kids that I'm aware of.
Athletes of all types (Section 7 has intramural soccer & football teams)
Also, gamers of all types!
A few straight from undergrad, but most people are a few years out
And one guy who just 👏 can't 👏 survive 👏 8 am class without his french press.
THE COVETED 1L CUP
The first big event we did as a section was this past Friday, competing with Sections 1 through 6 for the illustrious 1L Cup. Basically, Harvard Law's equivalent of New Kid Field Day. And we took second!!
Not to brag, but - that was after consuming MANY spiked seltzers and an entire bowl of homemade “punch.”
The day’s events included:
Mummy Wrap: three toilet paper wrappers, one mummy. Classic, but not completely successful. Our wrappers claimed "inebriation" in their defense.
Pretzel Pass: five people held long pretzel sticks in their mouths, and had to pass circular pretzels to each other via the sticks. Section 7 really started cheating hitting our stride and took second on this one.
Egg on a Spoon Relay: run around the cones, don't drop the egg. AN EASY VICTORY FOR SECTION 7!
Bucket Toss: defend your section's bucket while throwing tennis balls at the other sections. This was chaos and everyone got DQ'd.
Water Balloon Toss - Another classic. We went out with a...splash.
Pie Eating Contest - Four people, one pumpkin pie. Our pie eaters were CHAMPS, but apparently other sections had real professionals? I mean, whatever gets you into Harvard Law I guess...
As the kids say, it was lit - especially when our two semi-victories gave us that second place finish! It was particularly satisfying to beat ALL the teams in black, with standardized headbands and serious intentions...section 7 just does not have time for that. We are (mostly) not here to win; we're here to pass our classes, meet some people & have a blast.
So if that doesn’t sound great, a grab your red shirts and join The Try-Hards in Section 6 ✌