From Us to You: Hello From '24

Hello and Welcome to the PPL Class of 2026!

My name is Chelsea Divers, and I am a current fourth year in the PPL program. It is a privilege to welcome you to the newest PPL cohort. It feels like my cohort was just in your shoes: celebrating acceptance into the major, relieved to finally have a major, and eager to see what was next for us.

I don’t need to tell you that the next two years of your career are going to fly by. You will soon be in our shoes: stressing over your thesis, worrying about post-grad plans, and feeling sad to be leaving this place behind in a few weeks. You will also feel such a deep gratitude for the time you have spent here and for the people you have grown with. Everyone always says that their favorite part of most experiences is the people they met along the way, and though I don’t love being another echo, I must admit that my favorite part of the program has been the people. We have laughed so much together, pushed each other to see the world differently, and celebrated one another along the way. The community you have the opportunity to build over the next two years will be an incredible gift in the end, and it is my hope that you invest in yourselves and one another as much as you can.

On that note, I will close by offering a few pieces of advice. Do with them what you will.

Afterall, PPL is your program now. It is up to you to shape it for yourselves and for the future PPL students who will come after you. What a privilege, what a responsibility.

• Reach out. To professors, peers, the cohort above you. Make connections with those around you. Don’t feel like you need to do everything on your own. People want to help, but they can’t if you don’t ask.

• Reflect often on the legacy you want to leave behind. Not just in PPL, but at UVa. Be both great and good at what you do and make academia better for you having been here.

• Try new things. Read different theorists, explore different subject areas, try out new writing styles. Your passion could be lying right behind something you have never tried before. Open yourself up to all you can.

• Shameless plug for taking over the PPL Student Journal and Instagram account. This is a great way to showcase your creative talents and develop your argumentation skills. Law schools and grad schools in general look kindly on people who publish and people who try to push conversations further.

• Know that what you think right now might not be what you think forever. You will grow immensely throughout the course of the program, and you will be better for it. Your writing will be, too.

• Always leave time to edit. But remember not to allow “perfect” to be the enemy of “good.”

• Be kind to yourself. The world needs more, not less, grace.

I hope that your PPL journey is even better than you can anticipate. Mine certainly has been. The Class of 2024 is so excited to see where you go, who you become, and how you make PPL your own.

Wishing you all the best,

Chelsea Divers