Amanda Coop and Tori Herman: The Saga of Transferred Intent

Amanda Allen Coop & Victoria “Tori” Herman

These two students made the hard decision to transfer law schools to find an environment that meets both their accreditation and educational needs, and that school was Appalachian School of Law.

After choosing ASL, Amanda and Tori took advantage of every opportunity the school had to offer. Amanda is currently a member of the Criminal Law Moot Court Team, Jug Band, Phi Delta Phi, and Editor-in-Chief of the Appalachian Journal of Law. Tori is currently a member of Energy and Mineral Law Society, Environmental Law Society, Student Representative for the Natural Resources Committee, Career Services Committee, and Phi Delta Phi, as well as Editor-in-Chief of the Appalachian Natural Resources Law Journal. Additionally, both women are student-workers at the library circulation desk.

       Amanda Allen Coop

Amanda was born in Nashville, Tennessee and never thought that she would move to another state. Amanda has known since she was eight years old that she wanted to be a lawyer (her family and friends said they knew well before she did that she would shine in any profession that allowed her to argue) and is thrilled to have the opportunity to fulfill her dream. A few years after graduating from Western Kentucky University in Bowling Green Kentucky, Amanda and the love of her life Robert Coop married and they relocated to Knoxville, Tennessee so Robert could pursue his PhD in Computer Engineering. Amanda applied and decided to attend Lincoln Memorial University’s Duncan School of Law.

When it became apparent that her husband’s job would force their family to relocate to states outside of Tennessee, Amanda decided to transfer to a school with ABA accreditation. After careful evaluation and voluminous research, Amanda decided to transfer to ASL. When asked why she chose ASL over all other schools she replied:

“When I moved to Bowling Green I said ‘this is the smallest town I hope I ever live in.’ However, after I visited ASL and talked about the opportunities and options available to me if I transferred, I was sold. The faculty and staff actually cared about my plans and goals. They told me their successes were linked to my success and they wanted to do everything within their power to prepare me and provide the tools I needed for a successful and fulfilling career. So far, they have kept that promise. As for the size of the town, I would say it really grows on you. There is a sense of community and togetherness you find here that I never knew existed.”

Amanda is currently the Editor-in-Chief of Volume 13 of the Appalachian Journal of Law. When asked about that experience she remarked:

“I was honored to be named Editor-in-Chief of the Journal. This experience has really lead me to believe you can do anything you set your mind to in the right environment. I do not think any other school would have allowed a transfer student to try out for law review much less hold such a leadership role. However at ASL, everyone gets the opportunity to shine; hard work, dedication and perseverance will get you far in life and my experience at ASL exemplifies that.”

Tori Herman

Tori was born in Sevierville, Tennessee and lived there most of her life. She had told her family since she was very young that she was going to become a lawyer, but like many people, Tori wanted to try different things before settling down. After high school Tori began taking flight lessons with the hopes of becoming a professional pilot. With this new goal in mind, she finished her Associates degree at Walters State Community College and moved to Murfreesboro, Tennessee to pursue a Bachelor’s degree in aerospace at Middle Tennessee State University. Once she arrived at MTSU, however, Tori decided that while she loved to fly it was not what she wanted for a career, so she finished a degree in history instead. After graduation, she took the LSAT and then went to work at home for a local bank where she stayed for the next few years.

Three years later Tori decided it was time to take the next step and applied to the Duncan School of Law in Knoxville to begin her law school career. Immediately Tori knew that she had made the right decision. While other students talked about the stress and long hours Tori relished learning the law and enjoyed attending her classes. When it became clear, however, that the Duncan School of Law would not gain the accreditation needed from the ABA for Tori to be able to graduate and practice in any state she wanted, Tori began looking at transfer options. After speaking with several schools, Tori decided that Appalachian School of Law was the best fit for her.

“ASL is close to home and my family, and when I visited the first few times the people were simply amazing. Everyone was so nice. It was like walking into a family, and that feeling was very important to me. As a transfer student, it was daunting being the new kid in a group that had already had a year to get to know each other, but from day one, every person I met made me welcome. I have never seen a community where people were so genuinely glad to bring in new people. Before I had been here a month I was part of several groups and was being asked to participate in all kinds of new events. It has been the best school experience of my life, and I am so glad I made the choice to join ASL.”