<?xml version="1.0" encoding="UTF-8"?><item href="/about/newsroom/student-stories-sofia-dirie.cfm" dsn="blogs"><featured>true</featured><pubDate>10/06/2025</pubDate><title>Extracurriculars fuel passion for law</title><description>Sofia Liban Abdullaahi Dirie decided early on that she wanted to be a lawyer. A heart-wrenching moment would prove to her that she chose the right path. Now a third year law student, she’s taking every opportunity to help others.</description><author>Student Stories</author><image><img src="https://www.ubalt.edu/about/newsroom/assets/images/sofia-dirie-feature.jpg" alt="Sofia Dirie looks on while sitting in the law center."/></image><image-cap/><quote>I just want to stress that, if you work hard and you do a great job, this community really supports you and you can achieve amazing things.</quote><quote-name>Sofia Dirie</quote-name><quote-info>law student</quote-info><tags><tag>Academics</tag><tag>School of Law</tag><tag>Student Stories</tag></tags></item>