This past summer, Alabama Law students Katie Hill, Meghan McLeroy, Kelsey Marie Perine, and Maya Stevenson were selected as fellows in The Justice John Paul Stevens Public Interest Fellowship Program. This program provides financial support to law students who choose to spend their summers in unpaid legal public interest internships.
Alabama Law students Katie Hill, Meghan McLeroy, Kelsey Marie Perine, and Maya Stevenson pose with Glory McLaughlin (Assistant Dean for Public Interest Law) and Gary Sullivan (Chair of the Public Interest Committee).
This was the first year Alabama Law was selected to participate in the Stevens Fellowship Program. The program began in 1997 in honor of the United States Supreme Court Associate Justice John Paul Stevens, who believed that a successful justice system depends on lawyers who are dedicated to public interest work. Over time, the foundation has grown to include 38 law schools across the country—Alabama Law being among the eight additional law schools invited to join the 2022 class. Selections were chosen based on financial need and commitment to public interest law. This year, four Alabama Law students were awarded Stevens Fellowships, which included a monetary award of $6,000 per student in support of their public interest work this summer.
Participants had the option to work anywhere in the country for their internship, but each of the Alabama Law Stevens Fellows decided to complete their internships in the South. Maya Stevenson worked with the Capital Appeals Project, a nonprofit law office in New Orleans, which helps to provide justice for those on death row. Kelsey Marie Perine served as a Summer Law Clerk with The Law Office of the Shelby County Public Defender in Tennessee. Katie Hill and Meghan McLeroy both completed their internship locally in Birmingham. Katie worked with the Jefferson County Public Defender’s Office and Meghan worked with the Alabama Appleseed Center for Law and Justice, helping to fight systemic racism in laws and policies.
