Alex Barney is studying international law this year in a way no other law student will: He is helping train members of the new Liberian army, as part of a U.S. peacekeeping project to rebuild the African country’s ministry of defense.
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| Alex Barney |
“Considering the history of violence in Liberia, the challenge is creating a group of men and women soldiers who will also be civic-minded citizens,” Barney says. “The idea is to mold them into a group that supports the constitution and supports the idea of a true democracy in Liberia.”
In classic USC Law fashion, Barney owes the opportunity to two other members of the Trojan Family — both USC graduates, one of whom taught Barney in 2005. USC Law Adjunct Professor Debbie Shon, who received her B.A. from USC, told Barney and her international trade policy class about the project. Her husband, Andrew Michels ’92, directs peacekeeping operations for DynCorp International, the U.S. State Department contractor in charge of building Liberia’s new defense ministry.
“I approached her immediately and said I was interested in doing that kind of work, if an opportunity ever came up,” Barney recalls.
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| Andy Michels |
“It’s very unusual for a young woman or man in school to be offered an opportunity to go to another country, especially one that is emerging from over a decade and a half of violent conflict, and be able to participate at the most fundamental level in the reconstruction of that society,” Michels says.
This was not the first time Michels looked to the USC network for hires, and he says he hopes to extend more unique opportunities to the law school community.
“It’s hard for these motivated, smart kids to find paying work in any international forum, so I do make a special effort — as does my wife — to ensure that when a suitable offer comes along, we take it back to where we graduated from and provide USC students with opportunities they might not otherwise receive,” Michels said.
Barney will stay abroad through June 2007 and return for his third year at USC Law next fall. After graduation, Barney says he plans to work in international development and hopes this experience will guide his career plans.
“Being here means I have the opportunity to specialize a little more in some of the areas of law I’m interested in,” he says. “I basically have a year to study them.”
-This story appeared in the Fall/Winter 2006 USC Law Magazine.
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