Spring 2026 Winner of the Children of Injured Workers Scholarship

Elizabeth L. Flanagan

We are honored to name Elizabeth as the newest winner of our $1,000 scholarship award. After passing the bar, Elizabeth hopes to pursue a career as a District Attorney or as an employment lawyer. We wish Elizabeth the best of luck as she continues her legal education.

Read Their Essay Here:

Currently, I am a third-year evening law student at the Thomas R. Kline School of Law. While in law school, I have continued working full-time at Duquesne University, School of Nursing. I plan to sit for the bar in July 2027. This scholarship would be incredibly helpful in offsetting the cost of attendance, purchasing books for the spring semester, or paying the semesterly fees required by the university. As an employee, I am not eligible for any type of scholarship at the school or university level, so this scholarship would certainly make an impact!

After completing law school, my plan is to go down one of two paths: work towards becoming a District Attorney or become an Employment Law Attorney. In the broadest of terms, I hope to make an impact for those I represent, either by working with defense attorneys constructing plea bargains or through representation for the injured worker or union member. The thought of working in employment law is something I have thought about for several years and holds a special place in my heart.

When I was three years old, my dad was working as a lineman for what was then Bell Atlantic, later Verizon. He fell from a telephone pole while at work and broke his back – he was working alone and had to get himself back to his bucket truck to radio for help. After being taken to the emergency room and seen by his physician, he was told that he would never work again and may never walk again. After being told this, he responded that he HAD to return to work because he had two small children at home. After months and months of physical therapy, he finally returned as a lineman. My dad continued to work until 2020 – nearly thirty years after his accident. This job included climbing telephone poles, driving for extended periods, fixing wires in freezing temperatures and lake effect snow, and crawling under houses to reach an issue with a phone line. As an adult, I can only imagine the pain that he experienced during these jobs and after he got home at night; but he was the first call during a snowstorm for overtime and the first one to take a call out on Saturday mornings. He put his physical health on hold to make sure that my brother and I never missed a school dance, a ski trip, or the newest clothes and shoes that we HAD TO HAVE. There was not a moment growing up that either of us went without and I attribute most of that to my dad – a man who could have stopped working before we were even old enough to start kindergarten but instead pushed himself to get back to it.

Now as a retiree, he continues to support the union, and attends the retiree meetings as he can, and follows any news related to employment law and union representation. But the toll on his back has not gone unnoticed over the last several decades and he has started to pay the price for all those years he continued working. After his accident, his Orthopedic Doctor advised him that there was no surgery to correct what had been damaged or to prevent the possible nerve damage in the future. The nerve damage he experiences has progressed into his hips, legs, and feet. Most mornings, he is not able to feel his feet and legs when he wakes up. Throughout the day, he rarely regains feeling in his feet and if he does it is shooting pain whenever he walks because of the progression in nerve damage. He has finally agreed to use a cane when he walks any type of distance and agreed to use a wheelchair on his most recent airport visits. My dad is only 59 years old and shouldn’t have such mobility issues, but because of this workplace injury decades ago, that is the reality. His demeanor has remained positive, and he is truly one of the easiest going and happiest people that I know, but I wish that he was able to enjoy these years in retirement without the constant pain, medication, and doctor’s visits.

My parents have both been very supportive when it comes to higher education – encouraging me to continue my education at the graduate level for two master's degrees and in the process of applying to law school. My dad, specifically, has encouraged me to pursue a career that wouldn’t be contingent on my physical health, but something in the professional realm where I could “keep my hands clean.” Because of his sacrifices, I was provided an example of a strong work ethic and perseverance. I credit both of my parents with my desire to constantly want to do better and be better for those around me and to speak up for those that can’t. The injury my dad experienced years ago, has shown me that nothing is truly out of reach and that with enough hard work and dedication, success is sure to follow.