Cherina Clark, Hyde Park resident, 1st year Suffolk University Law
School student and active volunteer for Boston's NAACP has been offered
a position in the 2014 National NAACP's Law Fellows Program. The
NAACP Law Fellows Program, funded through the Kellogg's Corporate
Citizenship Fund, is designed to give students who have completed at
least one year of law school the opportunity to work for the summer at
NAACP Headquarters in Baltimore, Maryland. Congratulations to
Cherina Clark and to the Boston NAACP.
Over
the past two years, Cherina Clark volunteered for the Boston NAACP and
developed a passion for civil rights law through her work on
discrimination complaints and voter engagement activities. She
has now been offered a position in the 2014 National NAACP's Law
Fellows Program.
"I am excited and anxious to have the opportunity to work on some of
the most critical legal issues of our time, including protecting our
right to vote," said Cherina. "My work with the Boston NAACP has
exposed me to the urgency for new and aspiring lawyers, like me, to
lend our training and talents to the unfinished business of the civil
rights movement."
Ms. Clark who lives in Hyde Park and is a first year law student at
Suffolk University Law School. She is a graduate (magna cum
laude) of Hampton University and active in the Black Law Students
Association (BLSA) and Zeta Phi Beta Sorority, Inc.
In the
summer of 2013, Cherina served as a legal intern in the U.S. House
Judiciary Committee Minority Staff in Washington D. C., and currently
serves as a production specialist at Eaton Vance Investment Management
in Boston, where she supports attorneys and paralegals in a variety of
legal tasks.
NAACP Offers Opportunities
Throughout its 105 year history, the NAACP has offered attorneys the
opportunity to make significant, historic contributions to the field of
civil rights law. Past NAACP attorneys include,
- Charles Hamilton Houston
- Thurgood Marshal
- Constance Baker-Motely
- Robert Carter
- Nathaniel Jones
In
this tradition, the NAACP seeks to inspire attorneys to enter the field
of civil rights law and to provide broad exposure to various strategies
utilized by grass roots civil rights organizations.
NAACP Law Fellows Program
The NAACP Law Fellows Program, funded through the Kellogg's Corporate
Citizenship Fund, is designed to give students who have completed at
least one year of law school the opportunity to work for the summer at
NAACP Headquarters in Baltimore, Maryland. This year, the NAACP Law
Fellow Program celebrates its 12th Anniversary. Over the summer, these
future attorneys will be charged with performing the following duties:
- Work
with civil rights attorneys on relevant issues concerning economic
justice, education, housing, voting rights and environmental justice;
- Perform case investigation and assist with emerging litigation and administrative complaints;
- Attend the NAACP National Convention and Continuing Legal Education Seminar in Las Vegas, Nevada;
- Examine and evaluate citizen complaints of civil rights violations; and
- Interact with civil rights leaders and attorneys.
Fellows are awarded a stipend of $6,000 to offset living and travel
expenses while participating in the program, and are responsible for
securing their own housing. "Ms. Clark is about to gain one of the most
enriching legal experiences of her young career," said Michael A.
Curry, President of the Boston NAACP. "And the National NAACP's Legal
Department has gained a hardworking, socially conscious, focused and
promising young woman."
"The
Law Fellow Program continues to provide law students with first-hand
exposure to every aspect of civil rights advocacy and many facets of
the legal profession," says NAACP General Counsel Kim M. Keenan.
"Through working with the Legal Department and networking with lawyers
in many different legal arenas, our summer experience is an excellent
opportunity for law students to see the multiple roles lawyers play in
shaping American society."
About the NAACP
Founded in 1909, the NAACP is the nation's oldest and largest civil
rights organization. Its members throughout the United States and the
world are the premier advocates for civil rights in their communities,
conducting voter mobilization and monitoring equal opportunity in the
public and private sectors. The Boston Branch was the first chartered
branch, established in 1911.
For additional information, contact:
Evelyn Norman, Boston NAACP
617-427-9494
evelyn@bostonnaacp.org
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