June 1, 2015 — The University of Texas School of Law has selected two alumni and three graduating students to receive law school funded postgraduate fellowships.
Kali Cohn ’14 will receive the G. Rollie White Trust Fellowship in Public Interest Law, funded by generous support from the G. Rollie White Trust, to work with the American Civil Liberties Union of Texas in Dallas. Her project will focus on the impact of non-traffic class C misdemeanors on disabled secondary school students. At Texas Law Cohn was editor-in-chief of the Texas Journal of Civil Liberties & Civil Rights and president of the student chapter of the American Constitution Society. She participated in the Civil Rights Clinic and worked for the ACLU of Texas and the ACLU of Northern California. She is currently a law clerk to a federal district court judge.
Whitney Drake ’14 will receive the Julius Glickman Fellowship in Public Interest Law, funded by generous support from Julius Glickman ’66, to work for the Advocates for Human Rights in Minneapolis. Her project will focus on representing low-income children and adults from Central America in deportation proceedings. At Texas Law Drake was a member of the Order of the Coif and executive editor of the Texas Journal of International Law, participated in the Immigration Clinic and the Actual Innocence Clinic, and worked for American Gateways in Austin and the Inter-American Court of Human Rights in Costa Rica. She currently clerks for Judge Priscilla Owen of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit.
The remaining fellows, all members of the class of 2015, will receive Justice Center Fellowships in Public Interest Law:
Jessica Johnson will work at SafePlace, a domestic violence shelter in Austin, providing legal services to residents and engaging in outreach to the African American community. At Texas Law Johnson participated in the Criminal Defense Clinic, the Children’s Rights Clinic, and the Domestic Violence Clinic, and clerked for the Texas Civil Rights Project, the Travis County Mental Health Public Defender, Disability Rights Texas and the Texas Advocacy Project.
Sofia Meissner will work for Human Rights First in Houston representing detained, indigent asylum seekers. At Texas Law Meissner participated in the Immigration Clinic and the Civil Rights Clinic, founded the student chapter of the Austin Lawyers Guild, and worked for the Texas Civil Rights Project and the Health Law Program at Texas Legal Services Center.
Colleen Mulholland will work in the Equal Justice Center’s San Antonio office helping undocumented immigrant parents and youth apply for deferred action status and navigate employment law challenges. At Texas Law Mulholland participated in the Immigration Clinic, Human Rights Clinic, and Children’s Rights Clinic, served as a Society mentor and Pro Bono Scholar with the Mithoff Pro Bono Program, interned with the Travis County District Attorney’s Office, and worked with Lawyers Without Borders in New Haven and the Center for Gender and Refugee Studies in San Francisco.