As a sophomore, Mercedes Adams lived in McCarthy Hall as part of the themed living community MESA -- the McCarthy Experience in Service and Action. Now as a senior, she's returned to MESA as a resident advisor.

"It's very exciting for me to return to the community as an RA," says Adams, who has also served as an RA in Rains Hall and Leavey 6 Apartments.  MESA members are focused on serving the community beyond LMU, through both individual service and group projects. Her role is to help build community among residents and assist in the planning of their service activities.

A double major in political science and classic civilizations, Adams serves her community as a volunteer  for her church's children's ministry and as an intern at the Children’s Law Center in East Los Angeles. Her goal is to become a lawyer.

"I have taken a full year of constitutional law classes with Dr. Evan Gerstmann, which has made me increasingly more curious about how we fashion laws and policies from a document created hundreds of years ago,” she explains.  “Also, working at the Children Law Center has provided an insider view into the world of non-profit work, and it thrills me to see how great of a difference we are able to make in these children’s lives."

Involvement in a variety of research projects on campus has undoubtedly helped in preparing for law school. Among her many projects, she has worked closely with Political Science Professor Michael Genovese, researching books and articles necessary for his writing, as well as helping to prepare his manuscripts for publication. "I love being a critical part of his developing books and feel that I am learning valuable skills about my own writing and researching methods," she says.

Adams has earned numerous academic honors, including consistently making the Dean’s List and being named a 2009 Sidley Prelaw Scholar, an award named for a highly competitive national scholars program. She credits her professors for creating a foundation of support that has encouraged her in her academic endeavors, but says there’s something special about the LMU community as a whole.

“There is an energy at LMU that can be felt not only through the professors and staff, but through the students as well,” she says. “My peers continue to impress me and through their accomplishments and experiences I am driven to find my own passions and successes.”