The Phillipian introduced Iyer to the world of journalism, fueling her journey into The Harvard Review.
On January 30, the “Harvard Law Review” published a press release announcing that Apsara Iyer ’12, a second year student at Harvard Law School, as the 137th President of the “Harvard Law Review,” one of the oldest independent student legal publications.
Iyer described the new work she had as the President, which ranged from attending board meetings, managing editors, and innovating new initiatives. As President of the “Law Review,” Iyer will be working both editorially, looking at the review itself, and organizationally within the Review, by reporting to the Board of Trustees.
“I’m still learning about all the different responsibilities that come with it. As President of the ‘Law Review,’ I lead our editorial process, our editorial efforts, and our management-oriented initiatives. We have three staff members that assist in a lot of news and we also report to a Board of Trustees. Part of my duties include meeting with the Board of Trustees at our meetings, also supervising and creating a community for the nearly 90 editors that are on the ‘Law Review,’” said Iyer.
Iyer noted how being elected was a pleasant surprise to her and her sister, who had made jokes about her applying beforehand. Although unexpected, she appreciated the opportunity and the support that she received along the way.
“The way the ‘Law Review’ typically works is that you apply to join at the end of your first year of law school. Then generally, if you’re applying at that point, you will serve on the ‘Law Review’ for two years, I had been an editor for the past semester. I would say that [being elected President] wasn’t something that I expected at all, even my younger sister, she always gives me a lot of grief, but she sort of told me not to run at all. Then when I got elected, she said, ‘Well, I’m glad that you didn’t listen to my advice’,” said Iyer.
During her time at Andover, Iyer served as a News Director for The Phillipian where she explored the field of journalism and learned how to collaborate within a large organization to achieve a common goal.
“I would say that The Phillipian is where I first fell in love with working with student writers, being in a newsroom, which was filled with really excited and passionate people who are all working together on this common project. So, I feel like this has come to bear in the ‘Law Review’ as well. You have incredibly talented writers and scholars who are coming together and you’re working on these really big projects together,” said Iyer.
Pricilla E. Coronado, the outgoing President of the “Harvard Law Review,” spoke fondly on the character and work of Iyer. According to Coronado, the “Law Review” is lucky for the leadership brought by Iyer.
“Apsara has changed the lives of many editors for the better, and I know she will continue to do so. From the start, she has impressed her fellow editors with her remarkable intelligence, thoughtfulness, warmth, and fierce advocacy.” wrote Coronado in a press release published by the “Law Review.”
Looking to the future, Iyer aims to foster community well-being and creative collaboration within the review. As for now, however, Iyer is focusing on adjusting to the new role of President and hopes to keep up the high-quality publication of the “Harvard Law Review.”
“I am really learning all the different parts that go into just keeping things running on time, so right now, I’m just trying to keep up with everything. Something that I loved about the ‘Law Review,’ and something that I hope to be able to contribute to over the next year, is our community. Just making sure that we are creating a space that’s inclusive and allows all the talented editors that we have to feel like they have a home within campus,” said Iyer.
