Public Interest
- View the 2007-2008 Public Interest Events and Deadlines Calendar
- Access the Miller Center Pro Bono Project Closing Form
- PSU-DSL Katrina Relief Efforts
- College Cost Reduction and Access Act of 2007 Resources
Overview of Public Interest at Penn State Dickinson
The Pennsylvania State University is repeatedly recognized for preparing its students to benefit the nation. The September 2006 edition of the Washington Monthly college rankings placed the University third in its assessment of institutions as "engines of social mobility . . . and as forces to inculcate and encourage an ethic of service." The Penn State Dickinson School of Law has a distinguished history of educating its students about the professional responsibility of every attorney to provide legal assistance to the under-represented, regardless of the nature of his or her practice.
Studies consistently have documented the lack of access to justice for persons of limited means in the United States, a problem the Law School strives to address. From orientation through commencement, public interest occupies a mainstream position in the life of the Law School.
The Law School's curriculum affords its students training in the substance and skills necessary to advocate the civil, political and economic rights of individuals on a national and international scale. Students provide actual representation to indigent clients in legal clinics operated by the Law School and field placements with legal services, public defender, and non-profit public interest offices. Students are also paired with attorneys providing legal services to the under-represented through the Miller Center for Public Interest Advocacy's voluntary pro bono program. By their own pro bono work and academic scholarship, the Law School's faculty likewise evidence the institution's commitment to equal justice for all.
Outside the classroom, the Law School continually educates its students about public interest opportunities and funds student attendance at conferences, retreats and career fairs. The Law School's student organizations play an integral part in its public service mission. Students have established formal chapters of international and national civil rights organizations as well as independent societies to address targeted public interest issues. Through summer fellowships, Interest on Lawyers Trust Account grants, and the Loan Repayment Assistance Program, the Law School turns the promise of public interest work into an affordable reality for its students and graduates.
Contact the Public Interest and Clinical Teaching Fellow at kmc32@psu.edu.
