Six Alumni Receive UCLA School of Law Public Service Fellowships Six ucla School of laW aluMni who have demonstrated a longstanding commitment to public service have received UCLA School of Law’s inaugural Public Service Fellowships. The year-long fellowships will fund their work with a variety of nonprofit organizations and government agencies, both domestically and abroad. “UCLA School of Law is pleased to launch the Public Service Fellowship Program to assist our graduates in using their legal degrees to promote the public good,” Dean Rachel F. Moran said. “An emphasis on serving the public has always been part of UCLA School of Law’s identity. With the addition of this fellowship program, we can help our students and alumni gain invaluable legal experience while furthering their commitment to service.” The public service fellowships are an addition to the law school’s existing research and teaching fellowship opportunities in business law and policy, critical race studies, environmental law, law and philosophy, and sexual orientation and gender identity law. The inaugural public service fellowships were awarded to Clare Appleby ’12, Donté Blue ’12, Linda Gallegos ’12, Manal Hanna ’12, Farnoosh Hashemian ’12 and Xiao Zhang ’12. Appleby is working for the Children’s Law Center of Los Angeles, the organization where she was a fellow. During her fellowship, she conducted research on dependency law, worked with children and attended court hearings. She began building her experience in the area of children’s rights during law school with positions at the Alliance for Children’s Rights and the Adoptions Project at Public Counsel. She is committed to pursuing a career as a minors’ attorney and advocating for children in the foster care system. Blue is working at the Lawyers’ Committee for Civil Rights of the Bay Area in San Francisco. He was a member of the law school’s Critical Race Studies Program, received a joint degree in law and Afro-American studies and worked in various public defender offices and the prisoner reentry clinic during law school. Blue is committed to effecting change in California’s criminal justice system, which he is pursuing through his current work on prison realignment policies and reentry issues. Gallegos is working at the San Bernardino County District Attorney’s Office, where she is writing and arguing motions and assisting with trial preparation. She spent her law school summers and externships volunteering with both the Los Angeles and San Bernardino District Attorney’s offices, and she is committed to working for the government as a criminal prosecutor. Hanna, who began a position in the CalTrans Legal Department
Clare Appleby
Donté Blue
Linda Gallegos
“An emphasis on serving the public has always been part of UCLA School of Law’s
identity. With the addition of this fellowship
program, we can help our students and alumni gain invaluable legal experience while
furthering their commitment to service.”
in July, also worked at the San Bernardino County District Attorney’s Office. During her fellowship, she researched, drafted and argued court motions, managed cases and assisted on trials. She volunteered in the San Bernardino County District Attorney’s Office during law school, and served as the president of UCLA School of Law’s Student Bar Association and 2L class. She holds an undergraduate degree in criminology, and her long-term goal is to work as a deputy district attorney. Hashemian, who was a member of the law school’s David J. Epstein Program in Public Interest Law and Policy, is working at the International Commission of Jurists (ICJ) in Bangkok, Thailand. Her work involves conducting legal research and writing on the erosion of human rights protections, mapping and analyzing access to justice for victims of gender crimes and contributing to the ICJ’s advocacy efforts. She has more than seven years of experience in investigation, reporting and advocacy in the field of human rights, and is dedicated to pursuing a career promoting human rights in transitional societies. Zhang, who began a position with the Environmental Protection Agency in September, worked with the Natural Resources Defense Council. During her fellowship, she conducted research for litigation on a wide variety of environmental issues and assisted attorneys with their cases. During law school, she participated in the Frank G. Wells Environmental Law Clinic and Environmental Regulatory Clinic, was senior editor of the Journal of Environmental Law and Policy and participated in the national Environmental Moot Court Competition. She is committed to working as an environmental lawyer in California for a nonprofit or government organization.
Manal Hanna
Farnoosh Hashemian
Xiao Zhang
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