Class of 2010 Public Interest Fellows
Our Public Interest Fellows program provides special support to those third-year students who have a history of public service, provide leadership within the law school, and are committed to beginning their careers as lawyers in the public service. The Fellows Program exists to create a community of support for the cohort of students seeking post-graduate public interest jobs during their third-year or post-clerkship and assist them in that endeavor. Levin Center staff provide ongoing tailored career development support to the Fellows, including trainings, panels, and workshops to prepare students for public interest legal careers; and opportunities for intensive mentorship and guidance from staff, alumni and other leading practitioners.
Fellows each drafted brief bios that were posted on-line during their year of service outlining their interests, activities, and experiences. These highlight our Fellows’ experiences and help 1Ls and incoming students see the breadth of opportunities available to public interest students.
The Public Interest Fellows from the Class of 2010 wrote these brief bios during the spring and summer before their 3L year.
Where Are They Now?
“I am a staff attorney at the ACLU. I have worked on civil rights cases in a variety of areas including immigrants rights, disability rights, wrongful conviction, and Indian law. My current docket is split between voting rights cases and racial and economic justice litigation directed at halting the criminalization of poverty.”
– Orion Danjuma, JD ’10, Staff Attorney, ACLU
“I am a civil rights impact litigator. I have worked on cutting-edge civil rights cases in a variety of areas including immigrants’ rights, workers’ rights, disability rights, and voting rights, for both private public interest firms and non-profits. In this work, I enjoy mentoring and training interns and new lawyers to become the best possible advocates. I’m so grateful for my time at SLS as a Public Interest Fellow participating in excellent programming through the Levin Center and in the clinics, which played a key role in shaping the lawyer I am today.”
– Katrina Eiland, JD ’10
“I am a staff attorney at the National Immigration Law Center (NILC), where I work to defend and advance the rights of low-income immigrants and their family members through impact litigation, administrative advocacy, and community education. My practice includes litigation on due process, equal protection, and civil rights, and I often bring challenges against federal and state anti-immigrant legislation and administrative actions. I also help state and local advocates ensure that immigrants and their families can obtain access to health care and economic support services.”
– Alvaro Huerta, JD ’10, Staff Attorney, National Immigration Law Center
“I am a law professor at Vanderbilt, so I try to equip and inspire the next generation of public interest lawyers. I research and teach on criminal law and procedure, legal history, and constitutional law. I am also affiliated with the Barrett Social Justice Program at Vanderbilt, which sponsors guest speakers, conferences, workshops, and activities to educate students about social justice issues and help them connect with public interest job opportunities.”
– Sara Mayeux, JD ’10, Assistant Professor of Law and History, Vanderbilt University
Maggie McKinley (Fond du Lac Band of Lake Superior Ojibwe) teaches in the areas of constitutional law, federal Indian law, and legislation. Her research combines empirical, theoretical, and historical methods to examine the structural representation and empowerment of minorities. Her current project focuses on legislation, petitioning, lobbying, and Federal Indian law. She is a collaborator with the North American Petition Project in the Harvard Department of Government and she also ran an eleven-month mixed-method field study of federal lobbyists in Washington, D.C. Prior to joining the faculty at Penn, McKinley practiced union-side labor law at Bredhoff & Kaiser. She also clerked for the Honorable Susan P. Graber for the United States Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit and the Honorable Chief Judge James Ware of the Northern District of California. McKinley earned a J.D. from Stanford Law School and a B.A. in linguistic anthropology from UCLA. Prior to entering law school, McKinley worked for a number of years as a social science researcher on large-scale interdisciplinary projects.
– Maggie McKinley, JD ’10, Assistant Professor Law, University of Pennsylvania Law School
“I am a partner at Altshuler Berzon LLP in San Francisco. My practice consists primarily of representing local and international labor unions in federal and state court litigation, administrative proceedings, arbitrations, and advice matters. I’m proud to support the labor movement, and to help ensure that workers have a voice in their workplace.”
– Zoe Palitz, JD ’10, Partner, Altshuler Berzon LLP
“I am an attorney at Miller Shakman & Beem LLP, a boutique litigation firm in Chicago. After six years in the public sector (as a law clerk and an attorney for the City of Chicago), I moved to the private sector and a law firm with a strong commitment to public service. In addition to pro bono, my practice includes constitutional law, commercial law, professional liability, and family law matters.”
– Mary Eileen Cunniff Wells, JD ’10, Associate, Miller Shakman & Beem LLP