Santa Clara University’s School of Law has long been recognized for its institutional commitment to serving the public interest. The schools Center for Social Justice & Public Service is a prime illustration of this commitment. For over 25 years, with the assistance of funding made possible by the Richard P. and Madé S. Berg Social Justice Public Interest Summer Grant, Justice John Paul Stevens Fellowship, LGBT Legal Issues Summer Grant, Supriya Bhat Public Defender Summer Grant, Harry and Jean Gluck Social Justice Law Fellowship and a number of law firm grants, approximately 30 law students each year have secured full-time summer positions doing legal work with non-profit organizations having a social justice mission and government offices working in the public interest.
Most recently, Hoge Fenton, a distinguished multi-service firm, expanded its long-standing support of the program, sponsoring two summer fellowships and requesting to play a more active role in their mentorship of grant recipients. Hoge Fenton attorneys, Laura Riparbelli and Ashlee Cherry, were instrumental in the process and worked closely with Santa Clara Law Clinical Professor and Director for the Center for Social Justice & Public Service, Evangeline Abriel, in selecting Leonardo Kim and Ariana Snyder to be the recipients of the fellowships sponsored by Hoge Fenton. Ariana is spending her summer working for Southern Arizona Legal Aid’s Volunteer Lawyers Program, and Leo is spending his summer at the Contra Costa County Public Defender’s Office.
When asked about the program and Hoge Fenton’s desire to significantly increase their involvement, Managing Shareholder, Dan Ballesteros, said, “Hoge Fenton is and always has been committed to the local legal community. It is our pleasure to contribute to Santa Clara Law’s Summer Fellowship Program and play an active role in the mentorship of future members of our profession. We challenge other firms to make the same commitment.”
Professor Abriel expressed her deep gratitude to the entire Hoge Fenton team that has made these additional summer fellowship opportunities possible, stating, “These students would not be able to realize their dreams of working in a social justice setting without the incredibly generous support of Hoge Fenton and our other partners. We are so grateful for and honored by their collaboration in our social justice mission.”
If you or your firm would like to learn more about ways to support the Center for Social Justice & Public Service’s Summer Fellowship program, please contact Evangeline Abriel, the Center’s Director at eabriel@scu.edu or (408) 554-554-5368, or Ash Farrington, Director of Development at afarrington@scu.edu or (408) 554-5496.
 Ariana Snyder |
 Leo Kim |
