Public Interest Scholarship

Since 1991, the Foundation has awarded nearly $2.9 million through its scholarship programs. Investing in the next generation of public interest lawyers, the flagship Public Interest Scholarship has benefited more than 550 outstanding law students. The Scholarship helps pay the costs of obtaining a law school education, including tuition, fees, books, and related education expenses. Awards of up to $7,500 recognize law students who demonstrate superior academic achievement, a sustained and extensive commitment to public service, often while overcoming serious personal hardships and obstacles, an intent to pursue a career in public interest law, and financial need.
The top awards of $7,500 may be made in the name of a Public Interest Scholarship Fund donor.

Public Interest Scholarship Fund

The Foundation recognizes top scholars with named scholarships in honor of donors who make generous, multi-year commitments to the Public Interest Scholarship Fund.

Public Interest Scholarship Applications

Application Information

• Criteria, Instructions, and Conditions
• Application Checklist

Application Deadline
The 2012 Application Deadline has passed. Please check back in early 2013.

For additional information, please contact Natalia Merluzzi at (415) 856-0780 or scholarships@calbarfoundation.org

Past Scholarship Winners

Click here to see our Public Interest Scholarship Honor Roll.

2012 Public Interest
Scholarship Recipients

GOLDEN GATE UNIVERSITY SCHOOL OF LAW

Jessica M. Brown
Daniel S. Goodman Scholar
Jessica fervently believes that everyone deserves the best legal representation possible. She is particularly interested in working to advance fair trial rights, as well as promote justice for crime victims. Her internships with judges in the Supreme Court of California and the International Criminal Tribunal for Rwanda, at The Hague, showed her that justice requires a tremendous amount of resources, including good attorneys. She intends to pursue a career in criminal justice, so she can ensure our legal system attains fair and just results for all. 

Kathleen Flynn
Katie has had many incredible opportunities in life, including working directly for Arianna Huffington at Huffington Post. She attended journalism school at Columbia on a full academic scholarship. She has written about architecture, business, politics, and science. But Katie always returns to the topic she first reported on in high school – homelessness. While still a teenager herself, she wrote a feature on homeless youth. Shetold their stories about hardship, isolation and abuse. Now, she is an advocate for homeless individuals, and after law school, she intends to join a nonprofit focused on housing and homeless policy. 

Kristi Schulenberg
In college, Kristi joined an organization that led to a friendship that changed her life. Her junior year, Kristi became a member of an anti-death penalty organization, and it was through that experience that she met Dan. For seventeen years, the two exchanged letters and calls, and Kristi even made visits to the prison. Last year, she spent time with him the week before his execution and witnessed his passing. Losing her friend inspired Kristi to go to law school, so she could do more for individuals who need quality representation but lack the resources to pay for it. Upon graduation, Kristi plans to pursue a career in immigration or criminal defense. 

LOYOLA LAW SCHOOL 

Deborah Bergman
At 23 years old, Deborah’s worldview shifted. She moved from upstate New York to the trenches of Arizona’s immigration detention centers, where she worked with the most vulnerable population housed there. She advocated on behalf of two individuals with mental illness who had been languishing at the facility for years because they could not represent themselves in court. Deborah became an Accredited Representative and fought against their deportation. After she won, she knew she wanted to be a public interest attorney. Deborah enjoyed working on impact litigation at the ACLU of Southern California and will pursue a public interest fellowship focusing on the due process rights of detained immigrants. Deborah also received a 2011 California Bar Foundation Public Interest Scholarship.  

Dafna Gozani
Dafna’s appearance before a juvenile magistrate judge, made the difference between her being a high-school dropout and a magna cum laude graduate of the University of Colorado. Confronting the very real possibility of being swept into the juvenile justice system motivated Dafna to not only change the trajectory of her life but also help others to do the same. While in college, Dafna started a program for at-risk youth, and after graduation, she taught for two years. In law school, her focus has shifted from youth, but she remains oriented to public service. Dafna will pursue a career in civil and international human rights law.  

Aram Grigorian 
Aram literally took a wrong turn and ended up in the heart of Skid Row, and that experience brought back memories of his home country of Armenia after communism fell and the country was in chaos. Once he realized how close he lived to extreme poverty, Aram decided to volunteer. He went to work at Inner City Law Center where he has helped numerous clients, including his first client, Maureen. Aram worked day and night to get Maureen disentangled from a bureaucratic mess that had left her homeless. As a public interest attorney, he will continue to serve Los Angeles’ most vulnerable communities.
  

Claudia Menjivar
Latham & Watkins Scholar
In fourth grade, Claudia learned firsthand what the words “bankruptcy” and “foreclosure” meant when her parents lost their house. Their family’s hope for the American Dream was shattered. Looking back, Claudia appreciates the adversity she endured, because it made her resilient and empathetic. As a legal intern, she can relate to her clients. She understands how their legal plight can affect their entire existence, resulting in bad credit, homelessness, or loss of legal status. It is for this reason that she intends to pursue a career in public interest, helping individuals with issues related to housing, civil rights and education. 

SANTA CLARA UNIVERSITY SCHOOL OF LAW 

Karla Fabiola De La Torre
Before the D.R.E.A.M. Act was conceptualized, Karla was empowering undocumented youth, like herself, to become full participants in society. As an undergraduate, she organized workshops for high school students to explain how to overcome financial and social barriers specific to undocumented youth. She then went on to teach for two years and still volunteers there today. Her personal experience allows her to empathize with her clients, which makes her a better advocate. She spent her summer interning at Bay Area Legal Aid, and would like to work in immigration, juvenile justice, or with domestic abuse survivors. 

STANFORD LAW SCHOOL  

Briane Cornish
When Briane’s mother left her husband, she moved her family across the country and into shelters, motels, and eventually public housing. Briane took the transitions in stride and stayed focused on her schoolwork. She became the first in her extended family to attend college, and she thrived at Tufts University. While in college, she volunteered at the District Attorney’s Office in New York, and after graduation, she worked for the Public Defender’s Office in Harlem, where she implemented a conflict resolution project for youth. She remains interested in criminal law, and would like to work on impact litigation for the Prison Law Office. 

Omar Shakir
Omar has dedicated himself and his career to a singular cause – advancing the civil rights of Arabs in the United States and abroad. Before earning his master’s degree in Arab Studies from Georgetown University, Omar was on a Fulbright Scholarship in Syria researching economic reform strategies and interning at the Syrian Report. This past year, he has conducted fact-finding missions to Pakistan and Turkey to assess human rights abuses as part of his International Human Rights clinic. Omar plans to work at a human rights or civil liberties organization upon graduation.  

Camden Vilkin
Camden’s commitment to public service started in high school, when she founded the Charitable Teens Foundation, an organization that gave grants to high school principals to ensure they had cash on hand to give to low-income students. While an undergraduate at Harvard College, she continued to advocate on behalf of youth and expanded her scope to address issues of mass incarceration. As a Harvard Kennedy School Research Fellow, she researched the issue of mass incarceration, gave presentations and even assisted with publications. She will use her expertise to tackle criminal justice reform and assist disenfranchised individuals.

UNIVERSITY OF CALIFORNIA, BERKELEY, SCHOOL OF LAW 

Sonja Francine Marie Diaz
In addition to her scholastic education, Sonja’s parents taught her social responsibility. Sonja attended her first labor march in a red Radio Flyer wagon, waving signs opposing discriminatory ballot measures. Ever since then, she has been an advocate for social change. She has worked for two statewide public policy organizations, addressing a range of issues from healthcare to voting registration. In law school, she worked at the White House Domestic Policy Council where she advised on a portfolio of matters, including civil rights, criminal justice, food safety, housing, and education. Sonja plans to advance civil rights as either a nonprofit or government attorney. Sonja was also a 2010 California Bar Foundation Diversity Scholarship recipient.  

Arusha Gordon
Arusha’s parents instilled in her the importance of public service, but it wasn’t until she interned at the ACLU that she knew exactly which cause she wanted to support and how. Working with victims of human trafficking gave her an appreciation for the power of litigation to make social change. As an intern, she interviewed a woman who had been trafficked by a diplomat. The ACLU pursued the case even though the diplomat claimed immunity from prosecution. As the case pressed on, 2012 Public Interest Scholarship Arusha knew that she wanted to devote her career to representing marginalized women. She plans to work at a women’s rights organization.  

Marissa Gabrielle Ram
Munger, Tolles & Olson LLP Scholar
Working with young, female survivors of sex trafficking in India sparked Marissa’s interest in refugee rights. Since then, she has worked with the Australian government to improve policies and conditions for individuals held in immigrant detention centers. Most recently, she has brought her talents to Northern California, where she co-founded an anti-trafficking student group and gives know-your-rights presentations at local immigrant detention centers. She will devote her career to advocating for vulnerable immigrant populations through a combination of impact litigation, public policy and direct services.  

Megan Sallomi
Working with an attorney to organize a tenant strike, Megan realized attorneys are best positioned to help those most in need. The tenants with whom Megan worked were living with mice in their apartments and drug dealers in their hallways. The slumlord who owned the building was unresponsive to the tenants’ health and safety concerns, until the tenants were represented by counsel. That experience combined with her work as a legislative director for a New York City councilmember, put Megan on the path to law school. Upon graduation, Megan hopes to work as a public defender.  

UNIVERSITY OF CALIFORNIA, HASTINGS COLLEGE OF THE LAW 

Vivian Chen
In college, Vivian discovered her passion for working with youth. Her experience tutoring children demonstrated to her how important it is for children to have stable support systems. Although she enjoyed working directly with students, Vivian was curious about the systemic problems that impact children’s growth and development. She then went to work for a legal services agency that served California’s most underserved youth. After working with attorneys who served foster youth, Vivian knew she wanted to be a children’s advocate. In law school, she has interned for organizations that work to improve the child welfare and juvenile justice systems. Vivian plans to become a dependency attorney and an advocate for children. 

UNIVERSITY OF CALIFORNIA, IRVINE, SCHOOL OF LAW 

Jennifer Chin
Seyfarth Shaw Scholar
Jennifer went to law school to learn leadership skills, so she can one day lead a nonprofit organization. At school, there are few organizations she doesn’t participate in or lead. She is a member of the law review, a co-chair of the Asian Pacific American Law Students Association, a steering committee chair for the Environmental Law Society, and an organizer of “Social Justice Thursdays”. She chose to pursue a career in the public interest because she finds it rewarding as well as exciting. Upon graduation, she hopes to work with survivors of relationship violence and sexual assault in San Diego.  

UNIVERSITY OF CALIFORNIA, LOS ANGELES, SCHOOL OF LAW 

Nathaniel Christian Wenstrup
Milstein Adelman Scholar
Even before law school, Nathaniel was an advocate for inmates and formerly incarcerated individuals. As a legal assistant, he helped monitor class action lawsuits regarding prison conditions, presented recommendations to governmental agencies, and built coalitions to advocate for formerly incarcerated individuals transitioning back into the community. One night while helping an attorney draft a closing argument, Nathaniel realized he no longer wanted to be behind the scenes but out in front, in the courtroom. While in law school, he has externed at the public defender’s office and the federal public defender. He plans to be a criminal defense attorney. 

UNIVERSITY OF SAN DIEGO SCHOOL OF LAW 

Lisa Heng Charukul
Jim Pfeiffer Scholar
During her second year of law school, Lisa founded Advocates for Children and Education (“ACE”). The club supports youth in a variety of ways. The Empowerment Clinics offer know your- rights workshops to students. The book club organizes a reading group with youth in detention facilities. And the clinic fills a gap in the juvenile justice system. It assists public defenders with education-based support for detained youth. Law students work alongside public defenders to ensure youth defendants’ criminal justice as well as educational needs are met. When Lisa graduates, she will work in the area of child advocacy. 

UNIVERSITY OF SAN FRANCISCO SCHOOL OF LAW 

Wendy Suzanne Betts
Wendy has dedicated her career to promoting the rule of law in developing countries. She has worked on projects in nations recovering from violent conflict, war crimes and other mass human rights violations. While in law school, she has helped represent victims in the trials of former Khmer Rouge leaders in Cambodia, and over the summer, she advocated for redress for victims of war crimes in Sri Lanka. Wendy will continue to practice human rights law to address the individual legal needs of victims of human rights abuses. 
 

Caitlin Graham
Board of Directors Scholar
Catilin proved she was committed to public services when she moved to Arkansas to join the Capital Habeas Team at the Arkansas Public Defenders office. The team was the last line of defense for the 39 men living on Arkansas’ death row. She worked on almost every aspect of those cases, from legal research and writing to preparing expert witness testimony to prepping attorneys for appellate arguments. Caitlin plans to work as a capital public defender and as an advocate to end the death penalty.