Exemplary Service to the Poor Award

The University of Miami School of Law is pleased to recognize outstanding graduating students for their contributions in the public interest. Corinne Seibert was selected as the 2009 recipient of the Exemplary Service to the Poor Award. Corinne has dedicated herself to advocacy throughout her law school career. Her work at the US Attorney's Office in Hartford, followed by her outstanding commitment to the Children and Youth Law Clinic at UM law earned her 2009's top honors. Her tireless efforts on behalf of youth in the foster care system has garnered her the respect of her peers and her supervisors. Her work has included mentoring other students at the CYLC and direct client services. In addition, Corinne spent a summer in Southern California working with the organizations Invisible Children and has dedicated her time to educating others about child abduction in Uganda. She is a dedicated public interest advocate and the University of Miami School of Law honors her for her commitment and advocacy.

Innovative Service in Public Interest

ThePublic Interest Task Force has awarded two Innovative Service Awards for the 2008-2009 acdemic year. The first recipient is Veena Gursahani. Veena broke new ground creating a program of legal education at Wings of Life, a correctional facility for underage girls who are pregnant or have babies. She performed this innovative work through Miami Street Law Program, under the direction of Karen Throckmorton. The curriculum she developed has addressed issues regarding family law, first amendment, criminal law and life skills training. Her commitment has helped to educated a generation of young women and the University of Miami School of Law recognizes Veena for her Innovative Service in the Public Interest.

The other recipient of the Innovative Service in the Public Interest Award is the Historic Black Church Project through the Community Economic Development and Design Clinic. This project was designed to provide multi-disciplinary resources in education, law and social services to underserved West Grove residents by establishing a congregation-based church partnership through the West grove's sixteen-church Ministerial Alliance. The students provide rights education seminars, capacity building workshops, legal referral services. In addition, students work on preserving the oral history of the church and identifying and fostering a national consortium on church and community collaboration. 3Ls Chrisopher Jallo, Joy Harrison and David Tropin are recognized for their dedication to this exceptional and innovative programming.