West Virginia Fund for Law in the Public Interest announces its 2014 summer Public Interest Advocates Fellows
The West Virginia Fund for Law in the Public Interest (WVFLIPI) is proud to announce its 2014 class of Public Interest Advocates Fellows. The following students have been awarded 10 week paid fellowships for the summer of 2014:
- Patrick Holbrook, Legal Aid of West Virginia, Morgantown, W.V.
- Martin McKeen, Legal Aid of West Virginia, Clarksburg, WV.
- Stephanie Welsh, Legal Aid of West Virginia, Wheeling, WV.
- Alex Meade, Legal Aid of West Virginia, Logan, WV.
- Bethany Burdette, Legal Aid of West Virginia Beckley, WV.
- Lia Deane, Legal Aid of West Virginia Charleston, WV.
- Brown Holston and Laura Lee Partington, Senior Legal Aid, Morgantown, WV.
- Phil Wachowiak, Child Law Services, Princeton, WV. P
- Shane Snyder, West Virginia Advocates, Charleston, WV.
- Allison Santer, Mountain State Justice, Charleston, WV.
- Jordan Smith, Mountain State Justice, Clarksburg, WV.
- Jenny Thoma, Appalachian Citizens Law Center, Whitesburg, KY.
- Aaron Moss, WV Public Defender, Harrison County, Clarksburg, WV.
- Taylor Graham, Federal Public Defender, U.S. District Court for the Northern District of West Virginia, Clarksburg, WV.
WVFLIPI is a non-profit organization that works to fund fellowships for WVU College of Law students to spend the summer working in public interest organizations throughout West Virginia. Founded in 1987, the fund seeks to help students gain a deeper understanding of the grave importance of public interest work. These students provide legal services to help West Virginians, including the elderly, the poor, children, and victims of domestic violence. The Fund is aided greatly by the fund-raising efforts of the Public Interest Advocates (PIA) at the West Virginia College of Law. PIA works closely with the Fund for the Public Interest to select candidates and supports the fund by raising funds throughout the year, including hosting online book sales and the annual Spring Auction.
The Fund awards PIA fellowships annually to West Virginia College of Law students through a competitive selection process. Since its inception, over 320 students have received fellowships at public interest organizations. These include Legal Aid of West Virginia, Senior Legal Aid of West Virginia, Mountain State Justice, the Public Defender’s Office, The Appalachian Center on the Economy and the Environment, West Virginia Advocates, West Virginia Highlands Conservancy, and ChildLaw Services, Inc. The Sprouse Public Defender Fellowship is particularly competitive and students apply in the Fall to be awarded this opportunity. The selected candidate then chooses the county in which he or she will work with the public defender.
For more information, contact the Director of the Center for Law and Public Service/Executive Director of the WV Fund for Law in the Public Interest:
Jennifer Powell, M.S.W., J.D.
Jennifer.powell@mail.wvu.edu