California Western School of Law
Samantha Cherot $2500
A graduate of Santa Clara University, Samantha became interested in advocating in housing and employment discrimination matters through volunteer work at the Fair Housing Council of San Diego. Samantha spent this summer at a workers compensation firm and will be interning at the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission this coming spring, where she hopes to work after law school. She has also worked as an advocate for abused children as a Court Appointed Special Advocate.

Jacob G. Grillot $2500

Jacob is a graduate of Loyola University Chicago. Before attending law school, Jacob worked at The Employment Project, where he provided services to the homeless. Jacob has worked at the Lawyers' Committee for Civil Rights, Legal Aid Society of San Diego, and the California Innocence Project. He plans to pursue a public interest law career focused on protecting individual rights and addressing discrimination.

Golden Gate University School of Law
Micol A. Benet $5000
After graduating from the University of California, Santa Cruz, Micol researched policy issues at the National Human Genome Research Institute. Micol is interested in legal issues regarding homelessness and at-risk youth. She worked this summer on the California Appellate Project and has volunteered for many years at the San Francisco Public Defender's Office, where she hopes to work after law school.

Lynn Damiano $5000

Lynn graduated from the University of California, Berkeley, where she volunteered for a number of organizations, including the Berkeley Chapter of Amnesty International. After college, Lynn traveled extensively. Lynn has worked at the Northern California Innocence Project, at the Habeas Corpus Resource Center, and as an extern for a federal district court judge. Lynn intends to pursue a career in social and criminal justice.

Catherine A. Tullner $2500

A graduate of the University of Virginia, Catherine left a career in oncology research after working as a domestic violence crisis intervention counselor and entered law school committed to effecting social change as an advocate. She has interned at Bay Area Legal Aid, Tenderloin Housing Clinic, and the Lawyer's Committee for Civil Rights, and she has also volunteered at a free medical clinic in the Haight-Ashbury and an orphanage in Vietnam. Catherine plans to provide family law services to low-income clients.

Matthew Wood $2500

A graduate of the University of Minnesota, Matthew holds a B.A., M.A., and Ph.D. in American Studies with an emphasis on politics, sexuality, and the law. Matthew has spent the last ten years advancing the rights of the lesbian, gay, and transgender community. He is a member of the San Francisco Human Rights Commission's LGBT Advisory Committee and was recently appointed to the State Bar's Committee on Sexual Orientation and Gender Identity Discrimination. Matthew plans a career representing transgender people in employment discrimination cases.

Loyola Law School
Serita Renee Holness $2500
A graduate of Georgetown University, Serita was a real estate agent prior to attending law school. Serita has interned with Public Counsel, Loyola's Center for Conflict Resolution, the Civil Division of the U.S. Department of Justice, and Bet Tzedek Legal Services. She is a leader of the Black Law Students Association and the ACLU Campus Club. Serita intends to continue to pursue public interest opportunities upon graduating from law school.

Danny Yoo $5000

Danny is a graduate of the University of California, Berkeley. Danny graduated from college intending to pursue a career in chemistry, but after working on an AmeriCorps project in Philadelphia, he decided to work in social justice. While at law school, he has interned at the Housing Rights Center, the ACLU of Southern California, and the Asian Pacific American Legal Center. Upon graduation, Danny hopes to work for a public interest organization that addresses issues of race and poverty.

New College of California School of Law
Sarah Elliot $5000
A graduate of California Polytechnic State University, San Luis Obispo, Sarah has developed an extensive record of public and community service. While in college, she volunteered for California Rural Legal Assistance, and she spent her spring break this year in New Orleans, educating Hurricane Katrina victims about their legal rights. Sarah plans to use her law degree as an advocate in the area of housing rights or queer family law.

Anissa Nadia Galata $5000

Prior to graduating from the University of Nevada, Reno, Anissa worked for the Girls Scouts Outreach Program, helping underprivileged girls overcome violence, continue their education, and develop leadership skills. She created an alliance of programs supporting the homeless, and, as a teenager, she helped produce a community service program for young people at the local television station. Anissa aspires to use her law degree to advocate for children and families by shaping policies related to child welfare and social issues.

Christopher Martz * $7500 — 2006 Jim Pfeiffer Scholar*

Christopher is a graduate of Bard College. For seven years prior to attending law school, he worked at various community organizations developing and implementing programs for low-income, homeless, and adjudicated youth. During law school, he has interned at Legal Services for Children and volunteered as a teacher in the Street Law program. Christopher intends to provide direct legal services for youth upon graduating from law school.

Pepperdine University School of Law
Eric R. Garcia $5000
Eric is a graduate of California Polytechnic State University, San Luis Obispo. Trained as a mechanical engineer, Eric has co-founded two companies and worked on efforts to increase diversity in the workplace. He mentors high school students and has participated on two trips for the Flying Doctors of Mercy, providing interpretation and assistance to volunteer medical clinics in rural Mexico. Eric hopes to use his legal education to work with minority groups that do not have access to legal services.

Stanford Law School
Shireen A. Barday $5000
After graduating from Barnard College at Columbia University, Shireen worked in local government for the New York City Council and the 2002 New York City Districting Committee. She is active in a number of campus groups, including serving as a Lt. Governor for the 14th Circuit of the ABA Student Division and as a managing editor of the Stanford Law & Policy Review. Her work in New York City’s districting inspired her to attend law school to ensure the fair representation of minorities in redistricting and voting rights issues.

Salena G. Copeland $5000

Salena graduated from the University of Texas, after which she volunteered with AmeriCorps in low-income areas, served as a tutor in a homeless shelter, and worked as a preschool teacher. Her commitment to serving the disenfranchised has continued in law school, where she has worked at a community law clinic and at Prisoner Legal Services. Salena spent her spring break this year in New Orleans representing criminal defendants. She hopes to become a public defender after law school.

Kavita K. Narayan $5000

Kavita is a graduate of the University of Iowa, where she tutored low-income and disabled students and volunteered at the Women's Resource and Action Center. Kavita volunteers at a domestic violence service center and spent last summer at the Legal Aid Society of San Mateo working on public benefits and language access issues. She is interested in providing direct legal service to Asian American immigrants.

Alexis Rickher $5000

Alexis is a graduate of the University of California, Santa Barbara. After college, Alexis worked on several voter registration campaigns as a supervisor for Get Out the Vote. She also worked as a legislative assistant on Capitol Hill for Congressman Ben Chandler of Kentucky, where she witnessed the power of money in politics. That experience has motivated Alexis to help those who are underrepresented in the political process fight for their rights through the legal system.

Craig Holt Segall $7500

After graduating from the University of Chicago, Craig worked as a field ecologist at the Rocky Mountain Biological Lab. He entered law school with the desire to address environmental issues through the legal and legislative processes. In law school, he has participated in the Stanford Environmental Law Clinic, interned at Environmental Defense, the Natural Resources Defense Council, and Earthjustice, and volunteered with the Mississippi Center for Justice to assist with post-Katrina environmental justice, cleanup, and wetlands restoration efforts.

UC Berkeley - Boalt Hall School of Law
Lisa Cisneros $5000
After graduating from Brown University, Lisa worked as a program associate for a policy think tank devoted to closing the achievement gap of low-income students and students of color and as a housing organizer in Rhode Island. During law school, Lisa has clerked at the National Center for Lesbian Rights and helped a low-income immigrant domestic violence victim obtain asylum. Lisa would like to work on civil rights issues at an organization supporting LGBT rights.

Jennifer Gomez $5000

A graduate of Mount Holyoke College, Jennifer has a long-standing interest in international human rights. She has worked on the Innocence Project, advocated to unionize Dominican sweatshop workers, and worked at the California Asylum Representation Clinic. She spent this summer at the Costa Rican office of the Center for Justice and International Law. Jennifer wants to work as a human rights activist to protect the rights of immigrants and refugees.

Arthur Liou $5000
After graduating from Yale University, Arthur was a union and community organizer. The son of immigrants, Arthur embarked on a legal career to advocate on behalf of immigrants and low-income communities. During law school, he has interned at the Asian Law Caucus and the East Bay Community Law Center. He spent last summer at the Brennan Center for Justice at NYU School of Law.

Janel Thamkul $2500

A graduate of UCLA and the Fashion Institute, Janel has worked as a fashion designer and volunteered at a number of community organizations serving women, children, and the Asian American community. She worked for the Center for the Pacific Asian Family, where she provided counseling and advocacy for mothers and children at an emergency domestic violence shelter. Janel plans to work with international human rights organizations, focusing on issues of human trafficking in Southeast Asia.

Kristin Ann Traicoff $7500

Kristin graduated from Tulane University and then worked as a domestic violence counselor. She was inspired to attend law school after serving as a victim advocate for the Atlanta Community Court. Kristin has been actively involved in fundraising for Boalt Hall's Public Interest Fellow Program for minorities. She would like to represent death row inmates in their post-conviction and habeas corpus petitions after graduating from law school.

UC Hastings College of the Law
Alexandria A. Fearn $5000
Alexandria graduated from UCLA. Being a delegate at the California Youth Leadership Forum instilled in her a commitment to advocate on behalf of those with disabilities. Alexandria is the Senior Symposium Editor of the Hastings Law Journal, has clerked at the Oakland City Attorney's Office, and spent last summer at the U.S. Attorney's Office in San Francisco. After law school, Alexandria is interested in practicing criminal law.

Jens Iverson $5000

Jens is a graduate of Yale University. Prior to law school, Jens worked for organizations dedicated to creating international courts and helping communities recover from atrocities, including the Cambodian Genocide Program and the Coalition for the International Criminal Court. During law school, he has traveled to Haiti as part of a law school exchange program, co-founded a human rights clinic, and interned with a federal district court judge. After law school, Jens plans to continue working in the field of international human rights.

Jennifer Luczkowiak $5000

Jennifer graduated from Northwestern University, where she worked at the Institute for Policy Research as a research aide on welfare studies. She was selected as a Bergstrom Child Law Fellow in recognition of her long-standing commitment to child welfare. Jennifer has volunteered and fundraised for a number of organizations benefiting children and is committed to advocating on behalf of low-income children after graduating from law school.

Matthew Seth Melamed $5000

After graduating from Weslayan University, Matthew worked for four years with incarcerated youth. Matthew went to law school to change the juvenile justice system. He has tutored students at San Mateo County Juvenile Hall and conducted writing workshops for incarcerated youth for The Beat Within. Matthew spent last summer working in the Prison Law Office in San Quentin and the Juvenile Division of the San Francisco Public Defender's Office.

UCLA School of Law
Sara Jackson $7500
After graduating from the Macalester College, Sara worked for a nonprofit focused on HIV/AIDS education in southern Africa and volunteered as a Court Appointed Special Advocate for abused children in Seattle's dependency court system. While in law school, she has served on the Public Interest Law Fund board and participated in a Hurricane Katrina Advocacy Clinic. Sara is in a joint degree program pursuing a master's in public policy and intends to work in civil rights.

Kelly Knapp $5000

A graduate of Tulane University, Kelly came to law school after spending three years helping mentally ill inmates obtain the services and support they need while transitioning from jail to the community. This experience inspired her to go to law school in order to make systematic changes to the criminal justice system. Kelly has tutored at a women's prison, volunteered at the Innocence Project in New Orleans, and clerked at the Los Angeles County Public Defender's Office. Kelly intends to work in criminal defense for the indigent after law school.

Peter McEntee $5000

Peter is a graduate of the University of California, San Diego. After college, Peter worked as a legislative aide to two members of the California State Legislature. In law school, he has volunteered for El Centro Legal, at workers' rights organizations, and as a summer clerk for the Western Center for Law and Poverty. He spent this summer at a union-side labor firm and intends to use his law degree to advocate for workers' rights.

Priscilla Ocen $7500

Priscilla is a graduate of San Diego State University, where she served as the first African American female student body president. Priscilla worked for the Committee on Jobs, Economic Development and the Economy in the California Assembly through the Unruh California Assembly Fellowship Program. In law school, she has interned at the Southern Poverty Law Center, and she spent last summer working at the NAACP's Legal Defense and Educational Fund. After law school, she intends to work in civil rights.

University of San Diego School of Law
Kirsten Widner $5000
Kirsten graduated from the University of San Francisco. She left a career in business to advocate for the underrepresented. Kirsten has volunteered at Legal Aid's Emancipation Clinic and at San Diego Volunteer Lawyers' Education Law Project for disabled foster youth, worked in the dependency section of the San Diego Public Defender's Office, and been active in her law school's Public Interest Law Foundation. Kirsten plans to work in child advocacy after law school.

University of San Francisco School of Law
Fernanda C. Bustamante $2500
Fernanda graduated from the University of California, Berkeley. She has worked on policy and research issues for the American Association of University Professors. Fernanda has volunteered at the East Bay Sanctuary Covenant assisting immigrants on asylum matters, and she plans to participate in Street Law this year. The daughter of immigrants, Fernanda intends to advocate for the disenfranchised after graduating from law school.

Alma David $5000

A graduate of Amherst College, Alma is a long-time advocate for the Free Tibet movement. After college, she worked for the United Nations Development Programme, taught at an underperforming inner-city high school, and then joined the staff of Students for Free Tibet as a grassroots coordinator. Alma's experiences as a grassroots organizer led her to attend law school in order to become a more effective advocate for human rights. She is active in her law school's Public Interest Law Foundation and is an editor for USF's Journal of Law and Social Challenges.

Allison Stone $5000

After graduating from the University of Rochester, Allison worked at a low-income reproductive rights clinic, Project Open Hand, and the Legal Aid Society—Employment Law Center. She has also volunteered at Bay Area Legal Aid and the East Bay Community Law Center and interned at California Rural Legal Assistance, the National Center for Lesbian Rights, and the Alameda County Public Defender's Office. Allison intends to pursue a public interest law career, focusing on social justice issues.

Eric Wiesner $2500

Eric graduated from the University of Michigan, after which he worked to unionize factory workers with the Montgomery County Living Wage Coalition. In law school, he has served as the first-year representative of his law school's Labor and Employment Law Student Association, worked for the AFL-CIO and the San Francisco Day Labor Program, and served on the Board of Directors of Jews United for Justice. He was the Peggy Browning Summer Fellow at UNITE HERE Local 2. Eric plans to advocate for workers' rights after law school.

University of Southern California, Gould School of Law
Gregory Legare Pleasants $5000
Gregory is a graduate of Washington and Lee University. He spent several years working with community-based organizations in Nicaragua, Mexico, and the Dominican Republic. He also volunteered on an AmeriCorps service project focused on migrant immigration from Mexico. As a law student, he is active in multiple campus public service organizations and has clerked at Public Counsel. Gregory is also pursuing a master's degree in social work and, after completing his studies, would like to work in immigration law.

Whittier Law School
Graham Bentley $5000
A graduate of Florida International University, Graham was inspired to work in public service while helping poor Thai and Laotian families as an Air Force interpreter for POW/MIA investigation and recovery units. He has volunteered with Help, Understanding, and Group Support (HUGS), providing support services to low-income, non-English-speaking families with chronically or terminally ill children. Graham spent this summer interning at the Legal Aid Foundation of Los Angeles and intends to work as a public defender after law school.

Janie Catherine Paulson $5000

Janie graduated from St. Mary's University, after which she spent a year as an AmeriCorps volunteer teaching at an inner-city alternative high school. Janie has volunteered with the Public Law Center, the Family Protection Unit of the Orange County District Attorney's Office, and the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission. She spent last summer working on employment discrimination cases and after law school would like to protect the rights of low-income women and children as a civil rights attorney.

Holly M. Stafford $5000

Holly graduated from Western Washington University's Fairhaven College. She is active in Whittier's Public Interest Law Foundation and Lesbian, Gay, and Bisexual Students' Association and spent this summer at Lambda Legal. Holly participates in Moot Court, is an editor on the Whittier Law Review, and has interned with the Orange County Public Defender's Office. Holly would eventually like to start a nonprofit that focuses on the welfare and legal needs of gay and lesbian seniors.

Stanley Wu $5000

Stanley graduated from the University of California, Berkeley. Deeply interested in juvenile justice issues, Stanley has worked at the Children's Law Center on child abuse investigations, volunteered at a local children's shelter, and recently interned in the Juvenile Division of the Los Angeles Superior Court. Stanley intends to pursue a career representing abused and neglected children and aspires to become a judge in juvenile court.