b'SCHOOL OF LAWSUPPORTINGthe people and was tremendously thankful to join an academic cohort already in process. SECOND- I quickly learned what it means to be an Aggie, she said. The Aggie Core Values and the Aggie CodeSCHOOL OF LAW CAREER LAWof Honor especially resonated withBY THE NUMBERSher, as practicing law with a high degree of service and integrity was STUDENTS exactly what she wanted to do.Today, she is a lawyer specializing in probate, estate planning and LLC661formation. I help people take care of their families, she said. I lovestudents enrolledbeing a lawyer. I love my clients. I love what I do.Simpson is a believer in the impor- 132tance of estate planning. Everyone BY CHRYSTALshould have a will and a plan for incapacity, she said. With goodhours per semester ofHOUSTON planning, you can often avoid pro- hands-on experience working bate. Probate is the court process to pay debts and transfer assets whenwith real clientssomeone passes away. It is extra time, effort and expense that can often be avoided when people are ichelle Simpson 16 worked ingrieving.60thM banking and capital marketsAs she and John were updating theirnational law school ranking by for 20 years, excelling in her careerestate plan, they discussed what they but dreaming all the while about awanted to do with their assets afterU.S. News & World Reportdifferent one. I had always wantedtheirlifetimes.Wetalkedabout to attend law school, she said, andwhat we believed in and where we in 2013, she left her job to pursuewould like to have an impact, Simp-thatdream.Sheenrolledinlawson said, and decided we wanted to23-pointschool in Atlanta, Georgia, but aftercreate an endowed scholarship for one semester, her husband, John, ansecond-career students at the Texasjump in national ranking from aerospace engineer, discovered hisA&M School of Law. Planned giving2019 to 2020job was moving to Texas. allowed us to accomplish this. Without missing a beat, SimpsonWe hope our gift will inspire and lookedforaprogramshecouldenable second-career law students25%transfer into in the Lone Star State.topursuetheirdreamsbyshow-She met with the dean of Texas Wes- ing them that someone believes in leyan School of Law in Fort Worth,them, she added. Aggies alwaysincrease in applications from which was soon to become a branchsupportotherAggies.Itdoesnt2019 to 2020of Texas A&M University. She wasmatter where you are or who you impressedwiththeprogramandare, you have an immediate bond. 16 | TEXAS A&M FOUNDATION|OFFICE OF GIFT PLANNING'