Justice Center names 2012–2013 Public Service Scholars

Six students have been selected to serve as Public Service Scholars for the 2012–2013 year with the William Wayne Justice Center for Public Interest Law at the University of Texas School of Law.

The Law School awards scholarships each year to a group of outstanding students with a demonstrated commitment to studying, promoting, and working in public service. Each Public Service Scholar receives a scholarship and works closely with the Justice Center on public service initiatives. “Our Public Service Scholars are a dedicated group of student leaders, and we are pleased to have the opportunity to support them and their impressive work,” said Eden Harrington, director of the Justice Center.

The following students are serving as the 2012–2013 Public Service Scholars:

Abby Anna Batko-Taylor, ’13, a dual-degree student at the School of Social Work and graduate of Columbia University, has worked with the Travis County Mental Health Public Defender, Volunteer Legal Services, American Gateways, and the New Orleans Workers Center for Racial Justice. She has participated in the Transnational Worker Rights Clinic, the Mediation Clinic, and the Immigration Clinic, and has been involved in the Public Interest Law Association and the Human Rights Law Society. Last year she was a Rapoport Human Rights Scholar.

Amy Friedman, ’13, a graduate of the University of Auckland in New Zealand, is administrative editor of the Texas Law Review and active in Youth Court and the Public Interest Law Association. She has worked for Gibson, Dunn & Crutcher and Texas RioGrande Legal Aid, and has participated in the Juvenile Justice Clinic and the Immigration Clinic. She is currently interning with Texas Appleseed.

Coulter Goodman, ’13, who graduated from Harding University, is staff editor of the American Journal of Criminal Law and active in the Human Rights Law Society, the Public Interest Law Association, and the Domestic Violence Survivors Support Network. He has worked for the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of Texas and the Potter County District Attorney’s Office, and has interned with the Travis County District Attorney’s Office.

Mackenzie Meador, ’14, a graduate of the University of Texas, worked last summer with Paso Del Norte Civil Rights Project in El Paso and is participating in the Transnational Worker Rights Clinic. She is a Texas Law Fellowships board member and has volunteered for the Texas Civil Rights Project in Austin.

Sofia Meissner, ’15, the 1L Public Service Scholar, graduated magna cum laude from Washington University and also earned a master’s degree in public health from the University of Michigan. Before law school she interned with community health organizations in Haiti and the Dominican Republic and with Ayuda, Inc., a nonprofit that provides immigration and family law assistance for immigrants in Washington, D.C.

Brian Quillen, ’14, a graduate of the Georgetown University School of Foreign Service, is president of OUTLaw and a member of StreetLaw, the Texas International Law Journal, the Public Interest Law Association, and the Chicano/Hispanic Law Students Association. He has interned with the Texas Legal Services Centers’ Crime Victims Unit since last summer.

Related Link:

William Wayne Justice Center for Public Interest Law

Contact: Eden Harrington, Director of the William Wayne Justice Center for Public Interest Law, UT Law, 512-232-7068, eharrington@law.utexas.edu

Category: Student Life
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