Ellen Earl, who graduated from Texas State in 2020 with her B.A. of Political Science and a 3.98 cumulative GPA, was recently appointed to Texas A&M (TAMU) Law Review in her sophomore year of law school. Earl’s application was described as “one of the best submissions” by the review board.
Earl plans to write on social media regulation, a topic she believes to be especially important today due to social media’s impact on the democratic process. She will argue that their status as natural monopolies and public utilities makes public utility and common carrier law applicable to them.
Earl referred to her time at Texas State as “crucial” to her success. She singled out Dr. Brittain’s class on Legal Research and Theory, which she feels gave her the methodological tools to write effectively on legal topics. She also spoke especially highly of Dr. Varacalli, with whom she took several classes: “he expects a lot of you without being intimidating” and “created an encouraging classroom environment where you really felt like he wanted to hear your opinions.” Dr. Varacalli’s “Socratic method” and “encouraging attitude,” she said, allowed her to feel confident speaking up and made her a more confident and effective writer. He also encouraged students to write papers that could double as writing samples for law school.
When asked if there was anything she would like to share with pre-law students, Earl took the opportunity to recommend TAMU’s Law Program, noting that they have a top-flight faculty and that the school is “climbing in the rankings… and will climb even more next year. They’re doing a lot to make it good. It’s a great school.”
