Public Works

Ciolfi!

By Yared Getachew

News that Angela Ciolfi is the featured orientation speaker on August 16 was met with ebullience unseen all summer at the PSC.  This is as good as it gets: Angela Ciolfi '03 is Director of the JustChildren Program at the Legal Aid Justice Center in Charlottesville, former Powell Fellow (a post-graduate fellowship at the Law School given to one graduate each year), recipient of the Virginia State Bar Oliver White Law Student Pro Bono Award, recent recipient of the American Bar Association's National Child Advocacy Award, and Adjunct Professor of the Child Advocacy Clinic at Virginia Law.  Dean Mahoney has chosen well and this is one orientation speech I won't miss.

Photo insert: Angela Ciolfi (podium) took part in an education reform panel that we co-hosted with the Student Bar Association.

NPR and Partnership on federal employment for entry-level job seekers

By Yared Getachew

National Public Radio's talk program All Things Considered recently featured a report on the July 14 federal government career fair in Washington, D.C. The story discusses a report we've followed since the fall of 2009 when a study conducted by Partnership for Public Service determined that the federal government needs to hire thousands of workers in the next several years (actually, more like half a million of which  270,000 were deemed "mission critical;" 23,596 in the legal field) in part as a result of the large number of baby-boomer federal workers reaching retirement age.  (A previous posting on this survey is available here).

 

NPR story

Over the years our friends at Partnership have helped shed light on the government's complex and often confusing hiring process and given the unfortunate dearth of information from the government regarding projected hiring with various agencies, Partnership's surveys and reports have been invaluable.  I thought the most interesting part of the NPR report was Partnership's new projection - and I hadn't heard this before - that the feds are "looking to fill an estimated 50,000 entry-level positions in the next year" (emphasis mine).  Let's hope Partnership will soon offer a breakdown of areas and professional fields for these entry-level positions. (See Partnership's breakdown for all positions).

DOJ: AG Honors and SLIP application windows open today

3Ls (Class of 2011), LLMs, PMFs, Judicial Law Clerks (see other eligibility): Apply to the Attorney General's Honors Program.

2Ls (Class of 2012): Summer Law Internship Program.

The deadline for both programs is September 7, 2010 (midnight, Eastern Time) (deadline for Central is 11:00pm; Mountain - 10:00pm; Pacific - 9:00pm).  The DOJ will not accept late submissions  

Public interest calendar

By Yared Getachew

In the last several weeks, the Public Service Center has compiled a list of application timelines/deadlines for numerous opportunities in the public sector.  We hope our new public interest calendar will offer a bird's-eye view of the diverse opportunities for which 2Ls and 3Ls may apply over the course of the academic year. 

A first draft of the interactive calendar (interactive because hyperlinks to the websites of the featured opportunities will be embedded) will be in PDF but we will offer a Google Calendar version next week.  Please expect it in your Inbox this week.

Get your Third Year Practice Certificate

By Yared Getachew

A Third Year Practice Certificate allows students to appear in court (and before  administrative tribunals) in the Commonwealth of Virginia and in other jurisdictions.  The certificate allows 3Ls to engage in substantial legal work while in law school (clinics and pro bono) - a must if you're considering entry-level opportunities in the

public interest.

To be eligible, in addition to being a 3L (you must have completed at least four semesters in law school and passed Civil Procedure and Criminal Law), you only need to have completed two electives: Evidence and Professional Responsibility.  I'm available to answer questions about the certificate but to apply, contact the Virginia Law Student Records Office.

FYI - the VA Supreme Court Student Practice Rule is available here.

Indigent Defense in Kathmandu

I confess that Adam Heyman '03, public defender at Brooklyn Legal Aid Society (Criminal Practice), is one of my favorite public speakers.  His presentations at the Law School on the work of indigent defenders are highly informative and inspiring.  He has never turned down an invitation from the Public Service Center and in the last few years, has traveled to Charlottesville to speak, recruit, and conduct mock interviews at the Law School.  He has also helped students and graduates find internship, permanent, and winter pro bono opportunities at the Legal Aid Society.  Our Law School would not be the extraordinary institution it is without its amazing alumni such as Adam. 

But this posting is not a paean to my good friend. In April 2010, Adam took a sabbatical from the Brooklyn Legal Aid Society to work in Nepal with the International Legal Foundation (ILF), a New York-based NGO established in 1997 to ensure that reconstruction efforts of post-conflict justice systems includes indigent defense.  In 2009, ILF helped establish a public defender office to provide representation to indigent defendants before all courts in Kathmandu.  A summary of this project is available on ILF's site here.

Education Pioneers Summer Fellowship: July 29 event in D.C.

by YARED GETACHEW

Education Pioneers aims to address challenges that confront schools in our nation's cities.  Each year, Pioneers recruits summer fellows from business, law, policy, education, and other disciplines to work on complex issues involving urban education (a summary of the program is available on an earlier posting). In past years, Virginia Law students have spent challenging and fulfilling summers in various cities.  (Please write me if you wish to contact them).

Second- and third-year students in the D.C. area interested in learning about education initiatives led by current (2010) fellows may consider attending a gathering on July 29, 2010 at the law firm of Jones Day, LLP. 

Joanne Weiss, Chief of Staff to United States Secretary of Education Arne Duncan, is the keynoter.  The event takes place 6-8PM.  RSVP here by July 22, 2010.

July 4, 1776 - Declaration of Independence

by YARED GETACHEW

On Sunday, July 4, 2010 we celebrate the nation's most important symbol of liberty and the enduring words penned by the founder of our law school.  Here's to liberty and to all the freedoms we enjoy.  Have a happy and safe Fourth.

Please note that the Law School and the Mortimer Caplin Public Service Center will be closed on Monday, July 5 in observance of the holiday.  However, the Law Library will be open.