Jacqueline Faith Tubbs, commonly known as “Jac,” considered becoming a teacher or psychiatrist before settling on a career in law. For her undergraduate degree, Jac attended Harvard and earned a Bachelor of Arts with Honors. At Harvard, she pursued a Joint Concentration in African American Studies and Government, a Secondary in History, and a Language Citation in Spanish. Jac was drawn toward the legal field after conducting research and one-on-one interviews for her senior thesis, When “Freedom” Isn’t Free: Difficulties Among Previously Incarcerated Black Mothers upon Reentry into Society, which was awarded the Kathryn Ann Huggins Prize for being the “most outstanding thesis on a topic relating to African American life, history, or culture” at Harvard.

After “much prayer,” Jac immediately homed in on Vanderbilt for law school because of its stellar academics and Tennessee location—only a few hours away from where she grew up outside of Birmingham, Alabama. Attending Vanderbilt meant Jac could see her family more often than she did as a college student. She’s the middle child of three, with an older sister named Jenita and a younger brother named Jeffery (II). They were raised by their mom Venita and their dad Jeffery until he unexpectedly passed away when Jac was 15 years old.

In her time at Vanderbilt Law, Jac has taken many memorable courses, including three with Professor Daniel J. Sharfstein: Property Law, Federal Indian Law, and American Legal History. She also worked with Professor Sharfstein on a project researching how Tennessee has severely underfunded Tennessee State University, the only public historically Black university in the state. Additionally, she has enjoyed Criminal Law and Criminal Procedure: Adjudication, both taught by Professor Nancy J. King. “I admire Professor King’s expertise and am grateful to be in her last class (Adjudication) before her retirement,” Jac noted.

Jac also loved Constitutional Law I with Professor Matthew Patrick Shaw and looks forward to taking his Race and the Law Seminar in her final semester at Vanderbilt Law. “I’m very thankful for Professor Shaw in particular,” she said.

She recalled a pivotal role he played in convincing her to participate in the journal write-on competition her 1L year. She was persuaded to compete after an impromptu two-hour-long conversation with him in the hallway about the benefits of law reviews and the realities of Black law students. She earned a spot on the Vanderbilt Law Review and eventually became the Editor in Chief—she is now the first Black student to hold that position in the history of the publication. Jac said she wouldn’t have participated in the competition had it not been for Professor Shaw, who made time for her that day, and she credits him for her current status on the Law Review. Jac believes it has been invaluable to have a professor who looks like her dedicate so much kindness, wisdom, and energy to her law school experience.

When applying for a summer job after 1L, Jac targeted Washington, D.C. She initially connected with representatives from Katten Muchin Rosenman at a Vanderbilt Law firm mingle her 1L fall. She subsequently applied to be a 1L summer associate in the D.C. office and received an offer. “It’s a big firm, but it’s a small office.” The relatively small size of Katten’s D.C. office gave Jac excellent exposure to senior partners while she worked on projects involving affordable housing, structured finance, ESG initiatives, and more. She returned to Katten the following year as a 2L summer associate. After two incredible summers, the firm extended Jac a full-time offer, and she’ll be joining Katten as a first-year associate after graduation. While working in D.C. both summers, Jac lived in Virginia with close family friends. “I mean, I would do it all over again,” she recounted. “I thank God for all the opportunities He has given me.”

In the future when she reflects on her three years at Vanderbilt, Jac said, “I’ll just be thankful.” Her time in law school has made her a more “intentionally positive person.” She said she doesn’t try to be positive in an “unrealistic, unrelatable way,” but in a way that purposefully acknowledges there are still things to be grateful for when difficulties arise. Jac says that while law school can be tough, students shouldn’t let it discourage them. She tries to stay focused on being grateful and motivated, and she credits that mindset for many of her law school joys and successes.

“There are complex readings and tough cold calls, but it’s so important to be confident in yourself and not allow other people to influence how you feel,” she said. “Our initial feelings we always have to feel. Like whether we initially feel sad or hurt or embarrassed or whatever. We can’t really control those initial feelings, but I think we do get to control how we respond to them.” Jac said she doesn’t “allow a negative thought to go unchecked.” “My advice would be to just be intentional with how you respond to your feelings. You should be your biggest advocate and encourager as you’re going through.”

Jac concluded: “There couldn’t be anything written about me without saying something about my family and God. I love them, and they’re awesome. I feel very thankful, and I feel very supported by them in particular. My family and God are the reason that I’m like, ‘Wow, it’s a beautiful day to be alive.’”