Vanessa (she/they) is a Chicago transplant, born in Wisconsin and hailing from Minneapolis/St. Paul where she earned her BA in English and Gender, Women, & Sexuality studies at the U of M. They joined Beam Legal Team in early 2018 after completing an MFA in Poetry at Columbia College Chicago. They are grateful to have found a team so full of intelligence, empathy, and understanding. Though this is their first law firm experience, Vanessa previously worked at Partnership Resources, a day program for adults with developmental disabilities; a wonderful non-profit, it heightened her sensitivity and drive to extend a hand to others whenever possible. Free time consists of: cat memes, admiring flowers, playing piano, and, of course, writing poetry.