Law School Pro Bono Programs - Awards and Recognition
Student Recognition Ceremony
American University: Washington College of Law
The Peter M. Cicchino Public Service Awards Dinner. This annual event is held in honor of beloved former WCL Professor Peter M. Cicchino, who passed away in 2000. Professor Cicchino was a brilliant scholar and teacher, and a brave and creative public interest lawyer, who among many other accomplishments founded the Lesbian and Gay Youth Project at the Urban Justice Center in New York City.
The Cicchino Awards Dinner is the academy awards of student public interest and pro bono work. Students are recognized at a sumptuous dinner before their peers, faculty and staff for a variety of awards and accomplishments, including: completion of the Pro Bono Honors Pledge Program, the WCL Community Service Award, external pro bono and public service awards, post-graduate public interest fellowships, and the Cicchino Awards themselves.
Student awardees receive certificates of achievement signed by the Dean. Cicchino awardees receive an engraved plaque and cash award.
Appalachian School of Law: Appalachian School of Law
The Community Service Award for the Appalachian School of Law is awarded annually to a law student who accomplishes more than 50 hours of service in an academic year, demonstrates a desire to accomplish the goals of an assigned and/or alternate project, performs duties with an energetic, positive, and heartfelt attitude, and provides feedback about ways to improve services. The award is named "The Little Red Wagon" award. The name derives from a donation to the Law school of a handmade red wagon by an elderly, poverty-stricken gentleman. The gentleman heard about the Law School's community service program and asked that we distribute the wagon to a "deserving child" because he "heard we gave a lot back to the community." The gentleman exemplified the attributes that a volunteer needs: one who gives form the heart.
Each spring ASL holds an awards banquet. Awards have been presented to students who have especially distinguished themselves in the community service program.
Upon graduation, a notation is made on the student's transcript as to whether or not the student has completed the community service requirement.
Arizona State University: Arizona State University Sandra Day O'Connor College of Law
Students who graduate with 50 hours or more of pro bono service will graduate with pro bono distinction and will be recognized at graduation.
These are the three levels of recognition:
- Pro Bono Distinction is given to students who report between 50 and 99 hours of pro bono service.
- Pro Bono High Distinction is given to students who report between 100 and 149 hours of pro bono service.
- Pro Bono Highest Distinction is given to students who report 150 or more hours of pro bono service.
In addition, a few of the groups have their own awards event.
There is an annual Pro Bono Reception that recognizes the graduating students who gained one of the Pro Bono Distinctions, volunteers with the various groups, highest achievers in the first and second year students, peer awards for best group and best leaders, outstanding advisors, and Matheson Service Awards - the highest graduation honor for service to the school. Awards are hand-made trophies made by the students of a nearby homeless school - and presented by the student who made the award to each winner.
Barry University: School of Law
Pro Bono Award to graduate who overachieves and goes beyond the minimum hours required.
Baylor University: Baylor University Law School
Boston College: Boston College School of Law
Boston University: Boston University School of Law
At graduation, faculty present a Faculty Award to a graduating student or students who promote the ideals of community service.
Beginning 2006, students will be recognized in a separate awards reception for pro bono and public interest work. Faculty and alumni/ae also will be recognized.
Brigham Young University: J. Reuben Clark Law School
The law school gives Distinguished Service Awards to recognize outstanding public interest, community and pro bono service by students and faculty.
The Utah Bar Foundation also gives one or more Public Interest Awards on an annual basis to deserving law students.
The law school's student-run Public Interest Law Foundation gives three annual awards (one to a 1L, one to a 2L, one to a 3L) for public interest involvement.
The law school gives a Public Service Award to each student that completes 100 hours of pro bono work during law school.
Brooklyn Law School: Brooklyn Law School
California Western: California Western School of Law
The Pro Bono Program recognizes students who complete 50 hours (exclusive of training) of supervised pro bono legal service over two consecutive trimesters. Students may participate after they have completed their first year of school. Each spring students completing the requisite number of hours are inducted into the Pro Bono Honors Society at a celebration dinner at which the Dean, distinguished members of the bench and bar, faculty, and other public interest organization representatives are present. In addition, the law school officially recognizes these students with a notation on their academic transcripts, along with Pro Bono Honors Society Award Certificates from the Dean.
Campbell University: Norman Adrian Wiggins School of Law
The Dean of the Law School annually nominates a student(s) to the State Bar to receive a Pro Bono Award.
Capital University Law School: Capital University Law School
Recognition is given by a transcript designation of Pro Bono Honoree, a certificate of completion, and acknowledgement during the Honors Convocation.
Case Western Reserve University: Case Western Reserve University Law School
Catholic University of America: Columbus School of Law
The student organization, Students for Public Interest Law, solicit donations from faculty, staff, alumni, businesses, and other organizations that are sold at the Annual SPIL Auction through both silent- and live-auction venues. The proceeds from these auctions, less expenses, is matched by the law school (up to $25,000), providing resources for summer stipends.
The Dulin-Haynes Fellowship - This is a scholarship awarded to one or more third year students in the Law and Public Policy Program who have done exceptional public service during law school and have also demonstrated academic excellence. This award is given at the annual LPP banquet.
The law school gives awards every year to many students for exceptional public service and service to the law school community. These include the First Lap Award, the Extra Mile award, and the Marathon award, among others.
The alumni association gives an award each year to one day and one evening student for exceptional academic performance and for exceptional public service.
Student Recognition for pro bono work is also provided in the student transcript.
Chapman University: Chapman University School of Law
Chapman holds a reception and banquet in the week before the graduation ceremony. Graduating students and their families, faculty and adminstration attend, and awards for various accomplishments such as valedictorian and law review membership are distributed. The Commitment to Service awards for pro bono work are announced at this event, and certificates are presented to students.
Charleston School of Law: Charleston School of Law
Students who have completed 100 or more hours of pro bono service receive special recognition at graduation.
City University of New York: City University of New York Law at Queens College
There is a student recognition graduation ceremony. There is also mass recognition of the total number of pro bono hours engaged by CUNY Law students in the past year.
Cleveland State University: Cleveland-Marshall College of Law
Students who volunteer at least 40 hours of public service during the school year receive certificates at the annual Academic Honors Ceremony. One student is named Pro Bono Student of the Year and, in addition to receiving a certificate, also receives a cash award of $50.
The Dean's Community Service Awards are given each spring to selected students for their commitment to community service. These awards involve a financial award of ˝ tuition stipends or smaller $1000 stipends.
College of William and Mary: Marshall-Wythe School of Law
A reception recognizes students who complete their service as part of the Virginia Bar Association's Pro Bono/Community Service Program.
An awards ceremony during graduation weekend recognizes members of the graduating class for their accomplishments. Public service is among the criteria considered for the Ewell Award and Dean's Certificates.
Recognition at graduation for public service includes the George Wythe Prize and the Thurgood Marshall Award.
Columbia University: Columbia University School of Law
The annual Public Interest Honors Dinner is a community event held in April in which the Law School honors all students who have done 75 or more hours of pro bono, spent 2 summers working in the public interest, and whose first post graduate job will be in the public interest. Honored students receive ribbons and certificates. The dinner brings together students, alumni, faculty, public interest employers and administrators, and has a keynote speaker who is a distinguished public interest practitioner. There are also six individual public interest honors awards which are bestowed on students and faculty at the dinner.
Students honored at the annual dinner wear a blue ribbon on their gowns at graduation. (Columbia's color is blue.) All student pro bono hours, mandatory and voluntary, are reported on their transcripts.
Faculty members who perform significant pro bono service also wear blue ribbons on their gowns at graduation.
Pro bono service is considered favorably by the committees that award public interest postgraduate fellowships and enhanced LRAP packages.
There are no specific awards or recognition for community service. However, the student leaders often are nominated for "citizenship" honors such as graduation co-chairs, marshals at graduation etc.
Cornell Law School Exemplary Public Service Awards and Celebration, held at the Cornell Club in New York City:
Freeman Award for Civil-Human Rights - Awarded annually to the law student or students who have made the greatest contributions during his or her law school career to civil-human rights.
Stanley E. Gould Prize for Public Interest Law - Awarded annually to a third year student or students who have shown outstanding dedication to serving public interest law and public interest groups.
Seymour Herzog Memorial Prize - Awarded annually to a student or students who demonstrate excellence in the law and commitment to public interest law, combined with a love of sports.
Creighton University: School of Law
Annual award presented at graduation to the student who was outstanding in the field of public interest.
DePaul University: College of Law
There is a recognition dinner for students participating in pro bono or community service events at the end of each semester.
There are four Senior Service Awards that are voted on by the faculty and announced at graduation.
Drake University: Drake University School of Law
Supreme Court Day Celebration - The Ferguson Prize Gold($1000) and Silver ($500) are presented to the students who best exemplify the commitment of Drake Law School and the legal profession to public service, and who has rendered outstanding, primarily legal assistance; to eligible individuals or groups in the Law School Clinic; or to the other public service projects integrated with the Law School.
The William and Ellen Cooney Hoye Award ($500) is presented to the graduating student who in the opinion of the faculty demonstrates the greatest promise as an advocate.
Drake encourages public service and will award a certificate to any student who completes 35 hours of public service during his/her law school career. The students' names are included in the graduation program as having received the certificate.
Drake encourages public service and will award a certificate to any student who completes 35 hours of public service during his/her law school career.
Drexel University: College of Law
Students who exceed the 50 hour requirement will be listed in the honors section of the graduation material. Students will receive a certificate based on the total number of the hours completed: Service Honors (51-100 hours), Outstanding Service Honors (101-150 hours), and Exceptional Service Honors (150+ hours). Additionally, students will be recognized at a public service awards ceremony.
Duke University: Duke University School of Law
The Dean and the Office of Public Interest and Pro Bono hold a year-end Public Interest Recognition Banquet at which students receive awards for pro bono contributions and for public interest leadership. The awards differ slightly each year based on what activity has taken place. Typical are: an award to all graduating students who took and met the Pro Bono Pledge; an award to all third-year students who participated in pro bono in each of their three years of law school; awards for outstanding leadership in public interest and pro bono; the Exceptional Pro Bono Service Award for over 100 hours in that year; the Substantial Pro Bono Service Award for between 50 and 100 hours that year; and the Significant Pro Bono Service Award for between 25 and 50 hours that year.
A special awards ceremony is held just before the graduation ceremony for the Faculty Awards. Three of the awards relate to public interest. The awards and descriptions follow:
Pro Bono Service Award: This award is presented to the graduating student who has most distinguished himself or herself by employing the education gained at DLS to provide free legal services, thereby carrying forward one of the finest traditions of the legal profession. In evaluating candidates, the selection committee may consider clinical course work and summer activities.
Public Service Award: This award is presented to the graduating student who has most distinguished himself or herself in activities involving service to the broader community outside the Law School, demonstrating that a life in the law can be a life of public service. This award is based upon public interest activities other than pro bono legal services. In evaluating candidates, the selection committee may consider course work in public law and summer activities.
Law School Community Award: This award is presented to the graduating student who has most distinguished himself or herself in serving and strengthening the law school community, contributing to the tradition of collegiality that is a hallmark of Duke Law School.
Students are honored for their pro bono accomplishments by publicity given to them in school publications and through panel presentations.
"Blue Print awards" that include an announcement and a cash prize
Emory University: Emory University School of Law
Pro bono: Annual recognition ceremony and medals at graduation for students meeting the pro bono hour requirement.
Public Service: The Dean’s Public Service Awards recognize at graduation up to ten students who have distinguished themselves through activities undertaken on behalf of the public interest either at the law school or in the wider community.
The Public Interest Advisory Group selects a third year student each year as the recipient of an award recognizing outstanding public service.
Faulkner University: Thomas Goode Jones School of Law
Students who perform 35 hours of pro bono service during the year are given a certificate of service at the end of the year and a notation is placed on their transcripts. In addition, a student who has performed 50 hours of service during law school will be recognized in the graduation program. Finally, an outstanding student will be recognized with the Public Interest Award at graduation.
Students who complete at least 50 hours of service during the academic year are eligible to be nominated for the Alabama State Bar's Public Service Award.
Florida A&M University: College of Law
Florida Coastal School of Law: Florida Coastal School of Law
The Jerome Kermit Coble, Jr. Award for Distinguished Public Service recognizes a student at each twice-a-year graduation ceremonies who has demonstrated a significant commitment to public service. It is anticipated that students participating in the pro bono program will be recognized during a reception, be distinguished at graduation, and receive a certificate.
The Barbara McCalla Memorial Award recognizes a faculty member who has demonstrated compassion, commitment to both the community and FCSL, and a strong interest in the support of justice for the less fortunate.
Florida International University: University College of Law
It is done through a cocktail event where a student, selected by the Community Service Committee, is awarded "Community Service Award" for his/her outstanding service to the community.
Florida State University: Florida State University College of Law
Students who perform forty or more hours of public service receive a certificate at graduation recognizing distinguished pro bono accomplishment.
Fordham University: Fordham University School of Law
At the annual Public Interest Resource Center Annual Awards Dinner, Fordham gives two pro bono awards, in addition to the awards recognizing the public service of alumni and friends of Fordham and the certificates to graduating students who have completed Fordham's public interest scholars program. The pro bono awards are:
The Archibald R. Murray Public Service Award: This award is given to students in the graduating class of the Law School who have devoted 50 or more hours to pro bono and/or community service work during their years as Fordham law students. Those graduates completing 250 - 499 hours will receive the cum laude Murray Award, those completing 500 - 999 hours will receive the magna cum laude Murray award and students completing 1000 + hours will receive the summa cum laude Murray award. The text of the award reads, "in grateful acknowledgment of your response to the call of public need as exemplified by Archibald R. Murray, Class of 1960, whose career embodies the highest standards of public service." 137 members of the Class of 2001 are recipients of this award.
Student Leadership Award: This award is presented annually to students in the graduating class who have served on the Boards of Directors of their respective organizations in the Public Interest Resource Center during their second, third, or fourth year in Law School. The text of the award reads, "in recognition of your outstanding commitment and efforts on behalf of the Fordham Law School Community through your dedication and service to (your student public interest organization)." 26 members of the Class of 2001 are recipients of this award.
Franklin Pierce Law Center: Franklin Pierce Law Center
George Mason University: School of Law
George Washington University: George Washington University Law School
The Law School hosts a Pro Bono Breakfast and Reception for law students and their families during graduation weekend. At the ceremony, the Dean presents the students with awards and highlights the significant contributions students made to their communities.
Students who perform 60 or more hours of pro bono legal work and turn in the required forms are listed in the commencement program Honors and Awards section.
Georgetown University: Georgetown University Law Center
The Office of Public Interest and Community Service hosts an annual reception to recognize the public interest and pro bono accomplishments of students and student groups. At the reception, certificates and plaques are given out to students who have performed exemplary public interest or pro bono service; nominations for the awards are made by students, staff, and faculty.
Students who complete the Pro Bono Pledge receive a certificate signed by the Dean and special recognition at graduation.
Golden Gate University: School of Law
Annual Public Interest Graduation Reception celebrates accomplishments of 3L's, alumni, current students, student leaders and faculty and staff who have been active in the public interest community on campus. PILF grants and other summer funding awards are announced, faculty and alumni give speeches. Those receiving the Public Interest Specialization Certificate are honored with gifts.
Award for Outstanding Public Interest Student is given out to student who has excelled in public interest coursework, community service and legal work outside the classroom.
Notable student achievements in pro bono and public interest work (on and off-campus) are publicized on law school bulletin boards, on-line, in the weekly newsletter, in the alumni magazine, and frequently emailed to the entire school.
Gonzaga University: Gonzaga University School of Law
Gonzaga Public Interest Law Project annual auction
Heidelberg - Gonzaga Commitment to Public Service Award
Students receive certificates for pro bono participation in clinic.
Hamline University: Hamline University School of Law
A reception is held annually by MJF to recognize students who have completed 50 hours of pro bono service. Each year it is held at one of the four law school members of MJF, and all students who have completed the 50 hours from the 4 schools are presented with a certificate
Each student who has completed 50 hours of pro bono service is recognized in the graduation program.
Harvard University: Harvard Law School
Kaufman Dinner - For all 3Ls, LLMs and SJDs planning to go into public service upon graduation or after a clerkship. Features a cocktail hour and sit down champagne dinner at the Harvard Faculty Club. The Law School Dean and Assistant Dean for Public Service and an alumnus in public service all speak. Is attended by faculty, clinical instructors and public service administrators who toast the students.
Gary Bellow Awards - Organized by a student group and selected by students through school-wide nominations and voting. An award is given to one otherwise unsung alum (i.e. not someone famous who has already won awards) and one student for their contributions to social justice. Features faculty and student speakers. Dean Kagan usually participates.
The day before graduation, at "Class Day" which also features a keynote speaker, students are presented with awards for community service, and the student with the most pro bono hours is given the Andrew L. Kaufman Pro Bono Service Award. These awards are presented by the Law School Dean. Students who do over 1000 hours of pro bono service are recognized in the graduation program.
Graduating students who receive the Kaufman, Fine, Skirnick or Heyman Fellowships, in recognition of their potential for outstanding career in public service based on their existing accomplishments, are also listed in the graduation program.
Hofstra University: Hofstra University School of Law
The Graduates Celebration and Awards Ceremony takes place a few hours before Commencement. This program consists of an elected student speaker and a faculty speaker chosen by the graduating class. Numerous course and achievement awards are presented at this ceremony. A light dinner is served immediately following this celebration. Family and friends are welcome to attend.
- Pro Bono Leadership Award - Awarded to a graduating student who has excelled in serving one or more of the Law School's student-run pro bono organizations in a leadership capacity.
- Pro Bono Service Award of Excellence - Awarded to a graduating student who has excelled in dedication to and time spent performing pro bono service through the Law School's student-run organizations and/or outside activities.
- Public Service Certificates - Awarded to graduating students who have achieved certain levels of recognition. The levels of service recognized are Bronze Level (50 hours), Silver Level (125 hours) and Gold Level (200 hours). Hofstra's Public Service Certificate Program recognizes students for volunteering, under the supervision of an attorney and without pay or credit, with (1) nonprofit organizations that provide legal representation to individuals or groups who are under-served; under-represented or of limited means; (2) government agencies; or (3) attorneys providing legal services free of charge or at significantly reduced cost. In addition, volunteer hours with Hofstra Law School student groups that advocate on behalf of clients, such as the Courtroom Advocates Program (DVCAP) and the Unemployment Action Center (UAC), and for groups that provide legal education, such as Street Law the Elmont Mock Trial Enrichment program, count towards the Certificate.
Howard University: Howard University School of Law
At the annual Law School Academic Awards Ceremony, the Equal Justice Program awards Certificates of Service to students for their tireless community outreach, civil/human rights, and pro bono/public service work with EJP initiatives. These certificates are awarded to all students who participated in one of the programs or projects of the EJP (excluding the Externship Program). In addition, one Equal Justice Program Award is presented to an outstanding student in the Equal Justice Program.
The Law School's Warren Rosmarian Award recognizes excellence in teaching and service.
Illinois Institute of Technology: Chicago-Kent College of Law
Chicago-Kent College of Law through the Public Interest Resource Center (PIRC) hosts an annual reception. The "Chicago-Kent Certificate of Service" is awarded to students who complete at least 50 hours of volunteer service during their time at Chicago-Kent. The "Dean’s Distinguished Public Service Award" is given to students who complete at least 250 hours of volunteer service. These students' names will be engraved on name plates and mounted on a plaque. The plaque will be displayed in the building.
Chicago-Kent acknowledges all students who receive the Chicago-Kent Certificate of Service (50 hours of volunteer service), as well as students who receive the Dean’s Distinguished Public Service Award (250 hours of volunteer service), in the bulletin at graduation. For students who receive the Dean's Distinguished Public Service Award, they also have their name engraved on a plaque placed at the school.
Indiana University: Indiana University School of Law, Indianapolis
Each spring, graduating students who have contributed 50 or more pro bono hours are invited to a Pro Bono Program Recognition Reception where each person receives a certificate and students who contributed 200+ hours are given awards. Family, friends, legal community agencies, faculty, and the judiciary are all invited to attend. The John Paul Berlon Award, named after a 2000 graduate, is given to a graduating student who has contributed a significant amount of time.
There are three levels of recognition for the Pro Bono Program: Bronze (50-99 hours), Silver (100-199) and Gold (200+). In 2003, the gold level recognition level was changed to the Norman Lefstein Award of Excellence in commemoration of the Pro Bono Program's 10 year anniversary.
At the beginning of the graduation program, the dean requests that all graduating students who have contributed 50 or more hours to the Pro Bono Program stand and receive applause. Also, students who have contributed 50 or more hours are listed in the graduation program by levels of contribution. Bronze level (50-99 hours) Silver (100-199) and Gold (200+ hours)
Indiana University: Indiana University School of Law, Bloomington
Leonard D. Fromm Public Interest Award – Professor Amy G. Applegate received the award for pro bono work on children's causes in the community and throughout the state.
Inter American University of Puerto Rico: Inter American University of Puerto Rico School of Law
John Marshall: Law School – Atlanta
Lewis & Clark College: School of Law
As part of the Pro Bono Honors Program, a certificate is given to each student who completes at least 30 hours of volunteer, not-for-credit and not-for-compensation work between May and April. The awards are given during a recognition lunch and ceremony at the end of each school year. The school also has a Community Service Honors Program. To qualify to receive the Community Service Honors Award, a student must perform 30 hours or more community service work. The qualifying students are recognized with a framed certificate at an awards presentation in April.
The Law School's graduation program lists all graduates who have received the award during one or more of their years in law school. Since 2001, pro bono honor awards are also noted on all recipients' transcripts.
Students are also recognized by the Oregon State Bar and the Oregon Supreme Court through personalized congratulatory letters. An article on award recipients is published each year in the Oregon State Bar's Bulletin, and an article and photo is printed in the Law School's alumni publication.
Liberty University: School of Law
At the 3L Awards Banquet held in the spring, Liberty University School of Law recognizes the pro bono and community service efforts of third-year law students with the Street Law Leadership Award and the Pro Bono Distinguished Service Award. Also at the banquet, students who report 50 hours or more of pro bono or community service since enrolling as a Liberty law student are recognized with Pro Bono/Community Service Certificates. They are recognized again at graduation. In 2007, the law school noted four levels of distinction for pro bono/community service: 50-99 hours; 100-199 hours; 200-299 hours; and 300 or more hours. Additionally, the Virginia Bar Association honors students who perform at least 35 hours of pro bono or community service during the academic year with Certificates of Appreciation, and the Center for Career & Professional Development hosts a luncheon in the spring for all students who participate in Street Law during the academic year. Students are presented with Certificates of Appreciation at the luncheon.
Louisiana State University: Paul M. Hebert Law Center
Loyola Law School: Loyola Law School, Los Angeles
Students are presented with a certificate of appreciation/completion documenting the total pro bono/public service hours performed.
The Dean of the Law School distributes service awards at graduation to students who have demonstrated strong commitments to community service programs.
Awards given at annual luncheon or reception
Loyola University Chicago: Loyola University Chicago School of Law
At the graduation ceremony, students are recognized for their service in both leadership and community service, and pro-bono service. Their names are listed in the program under these categories, and they are asked to stand to be recognized by their fellow classmates and invited guests.
Loyola hosts an annual Public Interest Convocation. All first-year students are required to attend the convocation, which each year recognizes one lawyer who has devoted his or her career to full-time public interest work, and another lawyer who has devoted a substantial portion of his or her career to pro bono service.
Loyola University New Orleans: Loyola University New Orleans School of Law
The Gillis Long Poverty Law Center annually recognizes students, faculty, and alumni who have demonstrated a commitment to working for social justice for the poor. These Public Service Awards are presented at the Spring Distinguished Speaker Lecture.
Marquette University: Marquette University Law School
Marquette's Pro Bono Society was formed for the purpose of recognizing the pro bono legal services provided by Marquette University Law School students and faculty. Students who complete a minimum of thirty-five hours of pro bono services will receive an honor cord and will be acknowledged at the Law School graduation ceremony.
Each student seeking membership into the Pro Bono Society must adhere to the following requirements and guidelines:
- Pro bono service must be legal in nature.
- Pro bono service is only eligible for consideration if it is supervised by a licensed attorney.
- Work for which students receive compensation or academic credit is not eligible for consideration towards the service hour requirements.
- Time spent traveling to and from a volunteer site should not be calculated as service hours.
- A maximum of 6 hours of direct training may be credited toward service hours.
- A completed and signed time sheet must be turned into the Career Planning Center no later than the last day of class of every semester in which the student performed pro bono services.
Mercer University: School of Law
Michigan State University: College of Law
Mississippi College: Mississippi College School of Law
New England School of Law: New England School of Law
The school’s Public Service Transcript Notation program provides recognition for appropriate public service legal work. For more information about the program, please visit http://www.nesl.edu/clsr/projects/PSP/TranscriptNotation.cfm
The Dean Timothy J. Cronin, Jr., Award recognizes one graduating student who has shown the greatest promise of outstanding contributions to public service.
New York Law School: New York Law School
While no award is designated specifically for pro bono service, there are several for public interest and would include pro bono service:
- The Alexander D. Forger Award for Distinguished Service to the Profession (given to a student for demonstrated commitment to the public interest)
- The Lung-chu Chen Award for Excellence in the field of Human Rights
- The Justice Rose E. Bird Award for Motivation in Pursuing Public Interest Law
- The New York State Bar Association Student Award (given to a student for demonstrated commitment to the public interest)
Finally, all students who have earned a public service certificate are recognized in the graduation program & receive a notation on their transcript.
New York University: New York University School of Law
The Eric Dean Bender Prize – Awarded annually "for a third-year student who has demonstrated a working commitment to a public service-oriented cause or project outside of and separate from Law School commitments."
The Hy Frankel Award in Law and Social Welfare – Awarded annually “for demonstrated commitment to practice in a public interest setting.”
The Black, Latino, Asian-Pacific American Law Alumni Association (BLAPA) Public Service Graduation Prize – Awarded annually “to a member of APALSA, BALSA, LALSA, MELSA, MULSA, or SALSA, for dedication to Public Service and commitment to a career in Public Interest Law.”
North Carolina Central: North Carolina Central School of Law
All students who have participated in pro bono activities during the previous academic year are recognized at a Pro Bono Student appreciation event held during Law Week, a week of special events and competitions held each year in April. Third-year students who have performed 75 or more hours of pro bono while in law school receive a certificate of recognition from the North Carolina Bar Association and are honored at the Law Week awards banquet.
Pro Bono students’ names are printed in the Law School’s newsletter, The Weekly, and on the school’s announcement board, and they are treated to cookies and badges identifying them as “Pro Bono Superstars.”
Northeastern University: Northeastern University School of Law
The Northeastern Law Magazine profiles faculty and administrators who engage in pro bono and public interest service. A link to the magazine on-line is: http://www.slaw.neu.edu/magazine
In addition, faculty profiles emphasize public interest and pro bono work. See: http://www.slaw.neu.edu/faculty/faculty.htm
The Public Interest Law Scholars (PILS) are invited to an annual dinner hosted by one of the scholarship's major donors. This dinner brings current PILS scholars and PILS alumni/ae together to celebrate accomplishments, discuss the scholarship progam, and welcome new recipients.
The Outstanding Graduate Student Awards annually recognizes the accomplishments of individual graduate students in the Northeastern community. Awards are given for research, practice-oriented education,and community service at an annual awards presentation program and reception in April.
One Northeastern University School of Law student per year, along with those from the five other area law schools in the area, are recognized at the Northeast branch of the American Corporate Counsel Association's (ACCA) dinner for displaying exemplary ethical conduct in an internship, through a clinic or in some other class situation.
Northern Illinois University: Northern Illinois University College of Law
The following graduation awards recognize service to the public interest: The Clover Family Award (highest number of volunteer hours), The Marla Dickerson Award (strongest commitment to public interest law), the Edward F. Diedrich Award (commitment to protecting civil rights of underprivileged), and the Thurgood Marshall Award (commitment to equal justice).
In the Pro Bono Service Opportunities Program, students who successfully complete a cumulative 60 hours of approved pro bono service will receive a notation on their transcript.
Northwestern University: Northwestern University School of Law
Students who fulfill our public service hourly goal are awarded certificates of outstanding commitment to public service. In addition, they recieve special recognition at graduation. Their names are highlighted in the graduation bulletin, and they receive distinctive honor cords to wear at the graduation ceremony.
Students who fulfill our public service hourly goal are also listed as "Public Service Stars" on the public service website.
Notre Dame: Notre Dame Law School
The Peter Lardy Memorial Scholarship is given to the student for his or her contribution to the community.
Nova Southeastern University: Shepard Broad Law Center
Pro Bono students are awarded gold lanyards for their graduation gowns and certificates of achievement. A Pro Bono Honor Reception includes the recognized students, their families, employers, faculty and staff.
Pro bono and fellowship accomplishments are listed separately in the graduation program and mentioned during Dean's graduation remarks. Pro bono students are awarded gold cord/lanyard to wear at graduation.
Ohio Northern: Claude W. Pettit College of Law
Students who complete 50 hours of pro bono work receive a special certificate and a notation on their transcript.
Ohio State University: Ohio State University Moritz College of Law
At various levels of donated hours, Public Service Fellows are recognized at the College's Hooding and Honors Convocation ceremonies. Also honored are Pro Bono Publico honorees, Equal Justice Works and Skadden Fellows.
Oklahoma City University: Oklahoma City University School of Law
OCU recognizes students receiving the Dean’s Summer Pro Bono and Public Interest Law Fellowships at an annual awards ceremony in the spring. The Public Interest Law Group recognizes a faculty member for pro bono service at the same awards ceremony.
Pepperdine University: Odell McConnell Law Center
Students are awarded a Dean's Award when they participate in volunteer pro bono or community service.
Regent University: School of Law
Students who complete 35 hours of pro bono service will be recognized at commissioning, honored at a Public Interest Awards reception, and receive a Certificate of Completion signed by the Dean of the Law School.
Roger Williams University: Ralph R. Papitto School of Law
Students who complete 60 hours of uncompensated law-related public service activity, that is not for academic credit, receive a certificate at our annual "Feinstein Institute Reception" held to thank our Public Interest Externship Supervisors and our Public Service Supervisors. A Public Service Award is also granted to one student who has been exemplary in serving the community.
All students who have been recognized for 60 or more hours of public service and the winner of the public service award are listed in the commencement program.
Rutgers: The State University of New Jersey School of Law, Camden
Pro Bono Awards are presented at graduation to students who have done three semesters of pro bono work, or 35 hours of pro bono work, at least a portion of which was done in their third year.
Rutgers: The State University of New Jersey, Center for Law and Justice (Newark)
Students who provide 35 hours of pro bono service receive a notation on their law school transcripts and a certificate upon graduation.
The University recognizes faculty members' pro bono service through the Distinguished Service Professor program.
Saint Louis University: Saint Louis University School of Law
Each spring the Law School holds two awards ceremonies.
The Clarence Darrow Award Ceremony recognizes students and a member of the legal profession for their contributions to public service in the legal profession and through participation in community services projects.
On the day of graduation, graduating students are honored for their work in the legal clinic, and a third-year student is honored for his or her interest in civil rights and work with indigent clients.
Saint Mary’s University of San Antonio: Saint Mary’s University of San Antonio School of Law
Pro Bono Award recognizes a graduating law student for his/her commitment to justice through pro bono work.
Law students can earn a pro bono certificate if they performed 50 hours of pro bono work consistent with the Texas Bar's definition of pro bono or successfully complete a clinical law course.
Saint Thomas University: Saint Thomas University School of Law (FL)
Pro Bono and Community Service Awards are given at graduation.
Faculty who have done outstanding pro bono service are recognized by the Dean.
Samford University: Cumberland School of Law
Students satisfactorily completing 50 hours of pro bono law-related public interest service in a professional manner while a student at Cumberland School of Law are awarded a certificate recognizing their contribution by Dean John Carroll. Hours worked at qualified public interest organizations designated by the Cumberland PILO organization qualify. Other pro bono law-related public service may count if approved in advance by the PILO coordinator and the faculty advisor. To count toward the 50 hour public service requirement, the student may not receive credit or compensation for the service.
Santa Clara University: Santa Clara University School of Law
A reception honoring public interest and social justice scholars (those who have earned the Public Interest and Social Justice Certificate) is held each May. Pro Bono Plaque is given.
Seattle University: Seattle University School of Law
The Access to Justice Institute hosts a special reception to recognize students who have contributed to the pro bono work done through the Institute. The AtJI awards students who contribute 50 hours or more of pro bono work with a special certificate. In addition, graduating student leaders and those who have contributed 100 hours or more of service throughout the year, are awarded a trophy upon in recognition of their word. The Institute also awards faculty and staff members and local attorneys, judges and community advocates who have made significant contributions to the Institute.
The Seattle Journal for Social Justice hosts a special rece
ption for students who work with and contribute to the journal. The Accesst to Justice Institute's Award of Distinction for Public Service - Professor Boerner was honored for his ongoing tenacity and vision for the Access to Justice Institute since its inception. He has served as a constant support, providing guidance, mentorship and encouragement for the Institute.
The Access to Justice Institute's Award of Distinction for Public Service - Professor Thomas Fischer - As a visiting professor of Conflict in Law, Prof. Fischer played a crucial role in the development of the Hague Project’s bench guide chapter. He supervised, advised and edited the chapter while serving on the Project’s judicial bench guide committee.
Seton Hall University: Seton Hall University School of Law
We honor public interest students and celebrate public interest service in our graduation ceremony program. The Law School recognizes and provides awards to selected graduates who contribute the greatest to the public interest. Contributions include student leadership in community service and pro bono work. The Center for Social Justice honors clinical students who excel in the provision of public interest legal services with awards. Also, students who complete at least one semester of pro bono work are individually named in the graduation booklet.
Each student who completes the 35 hour requirement of the Center for Social Justice's Pro Bono program is given a plaque.
South Texas College: South Texas College of Law
Students donating 50 or more hours of service in the Pro Bono Honors Program qualify for special recognition. The special recognition takes two forms: a notation on the student's transcript, and a certificate presented during the awards ceremony at the May and December graduation luncheons.
Southern Illinois University: Southern Illinois University School of Law
The Annual Awards Ceremony is attended by students, faculty, staff, donors, alumni and friends of the School of Law. Public Service award recipients are recognized at this ceremony.
Southern Methodist University: Dedman School of Law
Students performing in excess of 100 hours of public service are recognized at graduation.
Southwestern University: Southwestern University School of Law
The Student Bar Association annually presents an award to a student or student organization that has done the most to promote community service activities. Further, students' public interest accomplishments are celebrated as part of our annual Public Interest Law Week in November.
Catherine Carpenter – Irwin R. Buchalter Professor of Law
J. Kelly Strader – Irving D. and Florence Rosenberg Professor of Law
Alan Calnan – Paul E. Treusch Professorship
Students who undertake 50 hours or more of pro bono service during their three years at the law school will be recognized for their contributions at a reception in their honor, the annual Public Interest Awards ceremony and graduation.
Stetson University: Stetson University College of Law
In honor of William F. Blews, JD, 1966, the College of Law has established this award to recognize those students who perform at least twice the number of pro bono service hours required for graduation. Awards are presented to students at graduation.
Students who complete forty hours or more of pro bono service wear a special ribbon during the commencement ceremony.
Suffolk University Law School: Suffolk University Law School
Throughout the year, student achievements are published on the law school's website and announced to the law school community via Campus Cruiser and the student newspaper, Dicta.
There is also an annual endowed scholarship dinner celebrating the students receiving the endowed scholarships and the donors and a Deans' Champagne Reception preceding graduation in which there is a graduation award to a student providing exemplary leadership and service in public interest/pro bono activities.
Faculty public interest and pro bono activities are recognized in numerous ways, including: in the Alumni Magazine; on the law faculty/admin list serves; on the law school's website; in the student newspaper, Dicta; and on the law school's internal computer system with daily announcements and updates for the law school community.
Syracuse University: College of Law
Temple University: James E. Beasley School of Law
There is an annual fall event where members of the Rubin Public Interest Law Society are recognized as well as recipients of summer SPIN grants.
There is a special awards ceremony which takes place before graduation. Two awards are given specifically for public interest:
The Henry Kent Anderson Human Services Award – Awarded to a student whose challenging career has deomstrated, through exemplary word and deed, a concern for the victims of society's inequities.
The Beth Cross Award – Awarded to graduates who are planning a career in public interest law and and who have demonstrated Ms. Cross' commitment and dedication to providing legal assistance to underserved populations.
The Lynne M. Abraham Award – Awarded to the graduating student with outstanding grades in Criminal Law and Professional Responsibility who plans to work in a public service position.
The Gideon Award – This award is given to a graduating student who will be working for the Defender Association of Philadelphia and who exhibits overall academic achievement.
In addition, during graduation ceremony, members of the Rubin Public Interest Law Honor Society are asked to stand and their names are also included in the graduation program.
Texas Southern University: Thurgood Marshall School of Law
Texas Tech University School of Law: Texas Tech University School of Law
- TTU recognized the Civil Litigation Clinic law professor when awarded the Pro Bono Lawyer of the Year Award presented by the Lubbock County Bar Association and Legal Aid of North West Texas. An article was included in the Clinic Newsletter and on the law school website and the Faculty member was also recognized during the year end honors and awards program.
- Every year Legal Aid of North West Texas recognizes students for their participation and assistance at the pro bono legal clinics held throughout the community. Students are recognized at an annual recognition event co-sponsored by Legal Aid of North West Texas Private Attorney Involvement Program and the Lubbock County Bar Association.
Texas Wesleyan University: Texas Wesleyan University School of Law
The Dean announces the name of the student who has completed in excess of 100 pro bono hours. The student's name is engraved on a plaque in the law school.
It is the desire of the school of law to provide recognition for extraordinary pro bono service. Appropriate forms of recognition are under consideration. Currently, the law school's MacLean & Boulware Scholarship serves to recognize students for pro bono and community service. The purpose of the scholarship is to acknowledge a graduating student who has demonstrated a commitment to the law school and the community through service and involvement and shows promise as a practicing attorney.
Thomas Jefferson School of Law: Thomas Jefferson School of Law
An annual hosted dinner at one of the students' favorite local restaurants is held at the end of the year to celebrate the students' pro bono service. Supervising attorneys from the public agencies and nonprofit organizations are invited and eagerly attend, and certificates recognizing each student's hourly contributions are presented.
Students who contribute at least 50 hours of pro bono service wear honor cords at graduation and are recognized in the graduation program.
Thomas M. Cooley Law School: Thomas M. Cooley Law School
Touro College: Jacob D. Fuchsberg Law Center
Upon completion of 40 hours of pro bono work, it is noted on the students' record that the Public Interest Law Perspective has been completed.
In addition, students public service work is recognized at a breakfast held the morning of graduation.
Pro bono and public interest work is also recognized with other Law School student awards.
Tulane University: Tulane University School of Law
Tulane Law School holds a ceremony and reception each year during which graduates are recognized for their unique contributions to pro bono and to community service. The Brian P. McSherry Community Service Award is given to the graduating student who has demonstrated the greatest dedication to the Law School's pro bono program. The General Maurice Hirsch Award is presented to the graduating student who has contributed most distinctively and constructively to university or community needs.
There is an annual recognition lunch in the spring term of the academic year. Students who have excelled in their individual pro bono contributions or in the leadership of organizations responsible for pro bono work are recognized at this event.
University at Buffalo Law School, SUNY: School of Law
Haywood Burns/Shanara Gilbert Award – A national award presented yearly by the Northeast People of Color Legal Scholarship Conference to a law professor who has displayed exemplary activist work as a teacher, scholar, and awyer. A national award presented yearly by the Northeast People of Color Legal Scholarship Conference to a law professor who has displayed exemplary activist work as a teacher, scholar, and lawyer.
Faculty can designate a Faculty Award to recognize a student who has excelled outside the classroom setting, which may include pro bono service.
The Linda S. Reynolds ('83) Award is awarded by the Legal Aid Bureau to a graduating senior who, in the judgment of the faculty, has demonstrated an exceptional commitment to equal justice for the poor.
The Dale S. Margulis Award is presented to the member of the graduating class who has contributed most to the Law School and the community.
The Distinguished Service Professorship is conferred upon faculty having achieved a distinguished reputation for service not only to the campus and the University, but also to the community, the State of New York or even the nation, by sustained effort in the application of intellectual skills drawing from the candidate’s scholarly and research interests to issues of public concern. It is bestowed on faculty in any of the disciplines or fields of study.
University of Akron: C. Blake McDowell Law Center
The pro bono coordinator tracks the total number of student pro bono hours through a standardized reporting form given to all students. The students with the highest number of pro bono hours each year as determined by this compilation are recognized in the annual Honors and Awards booklet and given a monetary award funded by faculty and administrator donations.
The Aileen McMurray Trusler Professorship which is awarded to a tenured full professor in recognition for her/his public service and pro bono work. The current holder is actively involved in death penalty work.
University of Alabama: University of Alabama School of Law
Students volunteering at least 50 hours in a Legal Services office during their law school experience and attend a Bridge the Gap CLE receive the Volunteer Lawyers Program Student Award from the Alabama Bar. These awardees are recognized during graduation ceremonies, honored at the swearing-in ceremonies for new members of the Alabama Bar, and receive recognition in The Alabama Lawyer.
The Dean's Community Service Award was created in 1999 "to encourage law students to become involved in public interest activities in their communities, and to continue their involvement throughout their lives." To earn this Award, law students must perform at least 30 hours of non-legal community service while in law school. Students receiving the Dean's Service Award wear a special cord at graduation.
Students who qualify for both the VLP Award and the Dean's Community Service Award are eligible for induction into the Order of the Samaritan. These students are recognized at graduation with a red and white braid & are recognized as they proceed across the stage.
University of Arizona: James E. Rogers College of Law
Working with the law school, the Volunteer Lawyers Program hosts a recognition luncheon for students volunteers in the VLP Advocacy Programs. Faculty, program administrators, judges and commissioners also attend.
The recipient of the 3L Andrew Silverman Community Service Award is recognized at our annual 3L Luncheon. In addition, one outstanding student volunteer from among the many who participate in our VLP Advocate Program, at the Volunteer Lawyers Program's Annual Awards Luncheon.
1L and 2L Andrew Silverman Community Service Awards are presented at a reception each spring. One student organization is also recognized each year for outstanding participation in community service activities.
University of California at Davis: University of California at Davis School of Law
For graduates who successfully complete the Public Interest Law Program, a special graduation ceremony is held to honor them. At the ceremony, students receive a certificate acknowledging them as a Public Interest Law Scholar.
Each year the Law Student Association bestows the Martin Luther King Jr. Service Award upon a graduating student who exemplifies Dr. King's vision and commitment to public service. In the nomination and selection of this prestigious award, special emphasis is placed on service performed without either credit or monetary compensation. Those represented offer a combination of competent legal representation and a commitment to the underrepresented and disenfranchised.
University of California, Berkeley: University of California, Berkeley, School of Law (Boalt Hall)
Students who complete at least 50 hours of law-related volunteer work before they graduate, receive recognition in the graduation program and a certificate acknowledging their public service. Individual students also receive special recognition for exceptional service.
University of California-Hastings: University of California-Hastings
Students who complete 50 hours of law-related pro bono work prior to graduation and courses within a designated list are eligible for special recognition as Public Interest Scholars.
University of California-Los Angeles: University of California-Los Angeles
Students who meet the “Give 35” goal receive an award at the annual Public Interest Awards Ceremony. They also receive a Public Counsel Mug.
Faculty who have performed pro bono work over the year are recognized at the Annual Public Interest Awards Ceremony. A brief description of the work performed is included in the written program.
University of Chicago: University of Chicago Law School
The Public Interest Law Society annually presents awards to students who have made significant contributions in public interest law and to the community.
At graduation the Mandel Legal Aid Clinic presents an award for graduates who have contributed the most to the Law School's clinical education program.
University of Cincinnati: University of Cincinnati College of Law
Student pro bono service is recognized through our transcript recognition program, which is voluntary. Students who provide 15 hours of law-related service in a given semester receive notations on their transcripts. Students are also recognized at the graduation ceremony as well as in the graduation program.
Recognition dinner each fall recognizes those students who received summer public interest fellowships the proceeding summer.
Annual Senior Dinner presents an award for Public Interest Service and Leadership.
University of Colorado: School of Law
Clifford Calhoun Public Service Award - Awarded annually by vote of the faculty to the person who contributes to the public service of the Law School in the spirit and tradition of the contributions that Professor Emeritus Clifford Calhoun made in his twenty-nine year Law School career.
The Law School hosts an annual awards ceremony where members of the student body are recognized for their commitment to public service, their clinical achievements, and their commitment to clients.
The Legal Aid and Defender Clinic gives awards to select students for outstanding service and commitment to clients. These awards are acknowledged in the graduation program.
Recently, an awards ceremony was established to recognize those students who participated in the Lend-a-Law Student Program and who did pro bono and public interest service throughout the academic year. As of 2005-2006, data on student pro bono service and hours is collected.
University of Connecticut: University of Connecticut School of Law
Students receive recognition certificates for outstanding service based on number of hours worked in pro bono projects. The Law School also recognizes student commitment to public service through individual awards at graduation including the Honorable M. Joseph Blumfeld Prize, the National Association of Women Lawyers Award, the Joseph F. Noonan Memorial Award, and the Women Law Students Association Award.
University of Dayton: University of Dayton School of Law
All students who devote a significant amount of time to pro bono service during their law school careers will be recognized formally at graduation, will wear a special cord at the ceremony, and receive a special notation on their transcripts designating their service.
University of Denver: Sturm College of Law
Students who participate in pro bono and community service projects are eligible for several different Student Leadership Awards, including a number of awards offered by the Social Justice Action Group (S-JAG). The Social Justice Action Group gives out annual awards for outstanding contributions in advocacy and pro bono work and for outstanding organizational contributions.
The Dean sends out email acknowledgments to the students and faculty when both students and faculty are involved in significant pro bono accomplishments.
Students have also been nominated for, and won, outside awards such as the Martindale-Hubbell Exemplary Public Service Award.
University of Florida: Fredric G. Levin College of Law
We have an Annual Recognition event where students receive certificates for their service, student groups are recognized for their contributions and the the pro bono student of the year is named.
Pro bono students are listed in the Commencement Program
University of Hawaii: William S. Richardson School of Law
Volunteer Legal Services Hawaii sponsors a Pro Bono Award for Students.
University of Houston: University of Houston Law Center
All summer public interest fellows are recognized at the student Public Interest Law Organization Annual Reception. Beginning in 2007, all graduating students who have reported recognition levels of service will also be celebrated at this event.
Also announced is the Crowther Award for a student pursuing a public interest career in an amount up to $2500.00.
University of Idaho: College of Law
University of Illinois: University of Illinois College of Law
The College of Law offers an optional pro bono notation on its transcripts for students who perform 60 hours of pro bono service during their three years of law school. The notation will appear on the official and unofficial transcripts of qualified students. It will also appear on the report card for the semester in which the Pro Bono Notation is earned and in the graduation program. In addition, students receive a letter acknowledging their service.
The Rickert Award for Excellence in Public Service, one of several awards established in memory of Joseph W. Rickert, a distinguished local lawyer, recognizes annually the achievements of third year students who have demonstrated an outstanding degree of commitment to work in the public interest. Up to four awards may be made each year. Rickert Award winners are honored at a dinner, identified in the graduation program, and given monetary and commemorative recognition of their achievement.
University of Iowa: University of Iowa College of Law
The Boyd Service Award; Pro Bono Society membership
University of Kansas: School of Law
The Walter Hiersteiner Outstanding Service Award is given to the 3L student at the Hooding Ceremony, whose service to his or her fellow students in the school of law or the university community demonstrates the greatest promise for contribution to the legal profession and to society. The Outstanding Leadership Award is also awarded to a 3L student at the Hooding Ceremony to the graduate who has most distinguished himself or herself through leadership in the School of Law. The Samuel Mellinger Scholarship, Leadership, and Service Award is given to the 3L student at the Hooding Ceremony who has most distinguished himself or herself in the combined areas of scholarship, leadership and service.
University of Kentucky: College of Law
The College has recently established the Robert E. Harding, Jr. Professorship to support a faculty member whose work advocates the rights of, and justice for, the poor, the oppressed, and the marginalized.
University of La Verne: College of Law
Students who are able to perform 30 or more hours of pro bono publico work will be recognized during graduation.
University of Louisville: Louis D. Brandeis School of Law
The Samuel L. Greenebaum Award is given to the law student achieving the highest number of pro bono hours.
The John S. Greenebaum Awards are monetary awards of $1000 given to at least five law students selected on the basis of their personal dedication, the impact their efforts had on others, the uniqueness of their efforts, and how such efforts furthered the goals of the Samuel L. Greenebaum Public Service Program.
University of Maine: University of Maine School of Law
Third year students who have met the 80-hour pro bono legal public service standard are honored at a special pro bono/public service luncheon held during graduation week in the spring. Honorees are presented with a certificate.
The names of those students who have met the 80-hour pro bono legal public service standard are listed in a special section of the commencement program.
Maine State Bar Association Pro Bono Student Award - Awarded to a student whose law-related service to the community, without compensation or academic credit, exemplifies the legal profession's tradition of pro bono service. The recipient is selected by the Dean and Faculty after consultation with the President of the Maine State Bar Association.
University of Maryland: University of Maryland School of Law
We publicly acknowledge at graduation and pre-graduation ceremony several students from each graduating class selected to receive the Public Service Award. The Public Service Award is given to several graduating law students from the University of Maryland School of Law who, during their law school careers, have engaged in service and legal work that significantly advances the public interest. Also, the following Awards noted at graduation celebrate the public service accomplishments and commitment to public service of graduating law students: The Hoffberger Clinical Law Prize; The Community Scholar Prize; The Anne Barlow Gallagher Prize; Ward Kershaw Fund Award; The William P. Cunningham Awards; and the Rose Zetzer Fellows.
Leadership in Public Service Awards: Awards given to leaders in public service and to Student Organizations at the University of Maryland School of Law to celebrate how law students are making a significant difference in their communities through community education, outreach and public service initiatives. Additionally, we select and sponsor law students to attend local and national conferences celebrating pro bono service, including the Robert Cover Public Interest Retreat and Maryland Partners for Justice Conference hosted by Pro Bono Resource Center of Maryland.
University of Memphis: Cecil C. Humphreys School of Law
Irving Bogatin Award for Outstanding Student Achievement in Public Interest Law (awarded annually).
University of Miami: University of Miami School of Law
Students, Faculty, Alumni and staff gather for the HOPE Annual Recognition Reception, held in the Spring each year. Awards presented at the HOPE Annual Recognition Reception are: Innovative Service Award, Exemplary Service to the Poor Award, Hope Challenge Recipients, and the Outstanding 1L, 2L, and 3L awards.
The University of Miami School of Law awards two distinct and prestigious awards to graduating law students. They are as follows:
Exemplary Service to the Poor: This award is given to a graduating 3L student who has performed exemplary service benefiting poor persons. The work must have been accomplished through an existing student or community organization. Qualifying work includes law-related as well as non law-related work and may be either directly beneficial to poor persons or to a charitable, religious or educational organization whose overall mission and activities predominately address the needs of poor persons. The term poor is not limited to those who meet federal poverty standards but also includes "working poor." A qualifying student may have received academic credit or financial compensation for the work.
Innovative Service in the Public Interest: This award is given to a graduating 3L student or to a student organization whose board membership consists significantly of graduating 3L students. Qualifying work includes the meaningful expansion of an existing program, or the creation of a new program. The award seeks to recognize innovation in addressing public interest concerns and may include: (1) work for persons of limited means, (2) work that expands the work of a charitable, religious, civic, community, governmental or educational organization and addresses the needs of persons of limited means; (3) work that is designed to secure or protect civil rights, civil liberties or public rights, (4) work that expands the work of charitable, religious, civic, community, governmental and educational organization; (5) work that is designed to improve the law, the legal system or the legal profession. A qualifying student may have received academic credit or financial compensation for the work.
Students providing 25 hours of pro bono service are recognized on the transcript. Service is noted in 25 hour increments and posted each semester as a new level is achieved.
University of Michigan: University of Michigan Law School
The Law School is currently examining whether to institute a pro bono award.
University of Minnesota: University of Minnesota Law School
The law school recognizes students who have performed 50 hours of law-related public service with a transcript notation, "Recognition for Law Related Service," and a note in the graduation program.
University of Mississippi: School of Law
University of Missouri: Kansas City School of Law
University of Montana: University of Montana School of Law
There is a faculty award for community service.
University of Nebraska: University of Nebraska College of Law
There are no specific awards for community service, however, service may be considered in determining the "Outstanding Law Student" Award given in the spring.
University of Nevada, Las Vegas: William S. Boyd School of Law
We hold a reception recognizing all students who participated in the Community Service Program. Outstanding students are awarded scholarships for their service.
Awards: Barbara Buckley Community Service Award and the Clark County Outstanding Student Pro Bono Award.
University of New Mexico: University of New Mexico School of Law
University of North Carolina: University of North Carolina School of Law
Each April the Director of the Pro Bono Program and the President of the Carolina Public Interest Law Organization collaborate, with the support of Student Affairs and Career Services, to host a Public Service Recognition Ceremony to honor students who have done pro bono work, the recipients of grants to work in the public interest over the summer, and faculty committed to pro bono and public interest. The ceremony is attended by students, faculty, staff, and employers.
Each year, the North Carolina Bar Association recognizes one graduating law school student for his or her pro bono work at a reception held at the North Carolina Bar Center. The Bar Association also recognizes one student pro bono project each year based on student involvement, audience reached and legal need met.
Students who complete one hundred or more hours of pro bono service are individually recognized at graduation.
Each year, one faculty member is recognized at our annual Public Interest & Pro Bono Recognition ceremony for their pro bono work and commitment to the public interest community at Carolina Law.
Professor Boger was recognized for his work with the UNC Center for Civil Rights.
University of Oklahoma: College of Law
A reception is held with a light dinner and beverages. Awards certificates are given out, and there are speeches by the SATJ faculty supervisor, the student coordinators, and agency/organization representatives who have benefitted from the program.
Students completing a certain number of pro bono hours are recognized by being listed in the graduation program and by getting to wear special cords with their robes.
University of Oregon: University of Oregon School of Law
The Pro Bono Executive Board hosts an annual recognition ceremony, honoring all who perform pro bono, and awarding special certificates to those who perform over 100, 200, 300, and 400 hours of pro bono. Where appropriate, the Board will honor a student whose work has made an observable impact. The ceremony includes food, wine, and motivational speakers.
Students earning a pro bono certificate (40+ hours of legal pro bono) receive mention in the graduation bulletin.
The Pro Bono Executive Board publishes an annual Newsletter highlighting the accomplishments of student pro bono performers.
University of Pennsylvania: University of Pennsylvania Law School
Students who exceed the pro bono requirement, who work for two summers in the public sector, or who serve as student clinical leaders receive a certificate at an annual recognition event at the end of the academic year.
University of Pittsburgh: School of Law
Each year the law school holds a Public Interest Recognition Reception for students participating in public interest and pro bono programs. A third year student is also awarded the Distinguished Public Interest Student award.
University of Puerto Rico: School of Law
In the Anual Awards Ceremony, a certificate is given to each of the students who participated in the Enlace Program
University of Saint Thomas: School of Law (MN)
Each Spring, the UST School of Law has a Mission Awards Ceremony in which it recognizes students, staff and faculty who have exemplified the law school’s mission and vision. One category of awards focuses on Community and Service. In addition, one member of the first-year class, the second-year class and the third-year class is recognized with a Living the Mission Award which encompasses a commitment to the Public Service aspect of the Mission of UST. In addition, as part of graduation, the commencement program recognizes all graduates who have logged more than 150 service hours (three times our graduation requirement).
Public Service Hours are also noted in the commencement program.
University of San Diego: University of San Diego School of Law
Student Pro Bono Legal Advocates holds a dinner and reception recognizing PBLA's membership and board. At the dinner, various awards are presented including awards for the student who has volunteered the most hours and for the outstanding student from each legal clinic.
Several public interest awards are presented at the law school's awards ceremony including an award by the Center for Public Interest Law for the most outstanding public interest advocate and by the Childrens' Advocacy Institute for the most outstanding child advocate. An Alec Cory Pro Bono Service award is also given. Students who have volunteered over 50 hours of pro bono service are identified by wearing honor cords at graduation.
University of San Francisco: University of San Francisco School of Law
Certificates are presented at the End of Year Public Interest Law Program Celebration.
Faculty pro bono activities are recognized by the Dean through announcements to the law school community.
University of South Carolina: University of South Carolina School of Law
An annual picnic awarding academic and service awards to students and faculty. 10 Outstanding Student Pro Bono Awards are presented and 1 Pro Bono Volunteer of the Year. In addition many of the awards have a pro bono factor in their criteria.
Individual letters of recognition sent to parents or significant persons upon graduation; external and internal law school and University publications; personal notes of thanks sent during the year upon completion of signifant events or activity.
University of South Dakota: University of South Dakota School of Law
University of Southern California: University of Southern California Gould School of Law
The PILF Spring Awards Luncheon honors summer grant and clinical fellowship recipients, outstanding alumni and students in public interest, post-graduate fellowship recipients, and students who fulfilled more than 20 hours of public interest service.
Annual Law School Awards ceremony honors recipients of Shattuck Awards, Mason Brown Award and the Miller-Johnson Equal Justice Award -- all of which place an emphasis on service to the community.
University of Tennessee: University of Tennessee College of Law
On the evening before graduation, there is a class-wide reception for students, their families, faculty and staff. At that reception, the Dean individually honors all students who have given over 50 hours of pro bono service.
Several student public interest awards given at the annual honors banquet.
University of Texas at Austin: University of Texas at Austin School of Law
Texas Law Fellowships, a student organization, presents annual Excellence in Public Interest Awards to students, faculty and attorneys at a reception each spring.
The William Wayne Justice Center for Public Interest Law joins with the University of Texas Co-Op to present annual public service awards (typically $5,000) to graduating students at a banquet in the spring.
University of the District of Columbia: David A. Clarke School of Law
The top 6 clinical program students are honored annually and awarded $1,000 at a Kennedy Center program sponsored by Jack Olender, a local attorney and philanthropist.
The School of Law's web site and quarterly newsletter, the ADVOCATE, celebrate and acknowledge individual student pro bono accomplishment. The ADVOCATE is mailed to approximately 6,000 members of the community. See http://www.law.udc.edu
University of Tulsa: College of Law
University of Utah: University of Utah College of Law
The Pro Bono Initiative was awarded the “2006 Distinguished Service Award” by the Utah State Bar.
Graduating students completing 50 or more volunteer service hours are recognized in the graduation program and receive their pro bono certificate.
Students who have excelled in clinical externship work are nominated for the Lewis Clinical Award and these nominations announced at graduation. Following graduation 1-4 nominees are selected to receive the Award and receive a letter and small monetary prize.
All student volunteers are recognized each semester by listing their name in the bi-annual newsletter. Front page recognition is also given to those who earn their certificate during that semester. Additionally, the Pro Bono Initiative hosts an annual kick-off event to highlight student achievement and the importance of program participation. Recognition of all of pro bono and Lewis Award achievements are noted in the Res Gestae alumni magazine.
University of Virginia: University of Virginia School of Law
Pro Bono Award Ceremony during graduation weekend. The event includes presentation of certificates and the Pro Bono Award. Students who complete at least 75 hours of pro bono work during their three years at the Law School are recognized in the commencement brochure.
Graduation Awards:
Herbert L. Kramer/Herbert Bangel Community Service Award
Mortimer Caplin Public Service Award
Robert F. Kennedy Award for Public Service
Pro Bono Award
University of Washington: University of Washington School of Law
Recognition given during Public Interest Law Association dinner and auction in February.
Hall of fame honors inductees/graduates.
Law School Student Bar Association Gala Awards
Charles Z. Smith Public Interest Students
Student Organization of the Year
University of Wisconsin: Law School
Valparaiso University: Valparaiso University School of Law
Students who complete 40 or more hours of pro bono activity receive a notation or pro bono commendation on their law school transcripts.
Vanderbilt University: Vanderbilt University Law School
A reception is held to recognize those students and faculty who contribute to Public Service and Pro Bono at the Law School. Career Services sponsors the Public Interest Service Awards that are given to students. The Legal Clinic and Legal Aid Society announce and award the Public Interest Stipend Fund Recipients.
The Junius Allison Legal Aid Award and the Carl Rutkowski Clinic Award are announced at graduation.
Vermont Law School: Vermont Law School
The Student Bar Association recognizes a student each year for his or her contributions to pro bono/public service at the school.
At the annual Awards Ceremony, Vermont Law School recognizes numerous students for their accomplishments, including the recipient of the National Association of Women Lawyers Award, which is given to a graduate who has contibuted to the advancement of women in society and promotes issues and concerns of women in the legal profession.
The Kempner Award is named after former Vermont Law School Dean Maximilian W. Kempner. Max Kempner holds the profession and its members to the highest standards of competence, integrity, respect, fair mindedness, and public service. The award is given each year to the graduating student who throughout his or her law school career best exemplifies these attributes.
Luncheon and video scroll of all "scholarship", which includes pro bono and/or public interest service.
Vermont Law School recognizes and celebrates students who receive external awards for their public interest efforts, including Schweitzer Fellows and Vermont Campus Compact Award recipients.
Villanova University: Villanova University School of Law
The Villanova Law Alumni Association annually gives the Law Alumni Award for Pro Bono Service to the third year student who has contributed the most meaningful service to those in need. In deciding who should be the recipient of the award, the committee considers non-law related community service as well as pro bono service. The Alumni Association also gives the Donald W. Dowd Alumni Association Award for Public Service, which recognizes outstanding service by alumni to society. The award is presented to an alumnus or alumna who has dedicated time and energy to the public welfare.
Each year Dean Mark A. Sargent and the Villanova Law Alumni Association Leadership host a brunch, designed to welcome members of the graduating class into the Association and to celebrate the tradition of service by Villanova Law students and graduates. The program includes presentations of the Law Alumni Award for Pro Bono Service and Dorothy Day Service Awards to third year students.
Service is recognized in a weekly publication distributed to the law school community and mailed to an extensive audience including donors, board members and members of alumni boards.
The Law School recognizes faculty pro bono service and publicizes it to the Law School community in the weekly Law School.
Wake Forest University: Wake Forest University School of Law
One third-year student is recognized at graduation each spring with the North Carolina State Bar Pro Bono Service Award. This award honors a graduating student who has worked to provide opportunities for pro bono service among students while they are in law school.
Washington and Lee University: School of Law
Washington University: School of Law
Washington University School of Law grants special recognition to students who make significant public service contributions. Every spring the School of Law holds the Public Service Law Celebration for students and supervisors who volunteered during the year, student organization leaders, Public Interest Summer Stipend recipients, and others who have made significant contributions to public service programs. At the Celebration, the Public Service Law Student of the Year and the Public Service Employer of the Year awards are presented.
The Public Service Student of the Month award is designed to highlight dedicated students. The chosen student's picture and a description of what the student is doing are featured on the Public Service Project's bulletin board in the Student Commons.
Commitment to public service is recognized on transcripts with the following labels:
- Public Service Project Participant, with honors: 15-25 hours in one year.
- Public Service Project Participant, with high honors: 25-45 hours in one year.
- Public Service Project Participant, with highest honors: 45 or more hours in one year.
Wayne State University: Wayne State University Law School
Several faculty members have recently received awards or recognition for their pro bono work, including Associate Dean David A. Moran and Distinguished Professor Robert Sedler, both for their work with the ACLU of Michigan, and Professor John Mogk, for his work with Habitat for Humanity. Professor Janet Findlater was recognized in 2007 by the State Bar of Michigan for her pro bono work on behalf of foster children.
West Virginia University: West Virginia University College of Law
Annual event at which students performing exemplary public interest work are recognized.
Students meeting 25 hour public service challenge are recognized at graduation hooding ceremony.
Western New England College: School of Law
End-of-year awards ceremony, where public interest activities are recognized and the public interest summer stipends are announced and awarded.
Western State University: Western State University College of Law
- Certificate of Public Service – 40+ hours of public service
- Certificate of Distinguished Public Service – 100+ hours of public service
- Certificate of Exemplary Public Service – 200+ hours of public service
- Wallace Davis Public Service Award
- Robert Green Public Service Award
Whittier Law School: Whittier Law School
Annual PILF luncheon on the lawn, funded by the Law School, to recognize pro-bono involvement, fundraising, and grand recipients.
Dean's merit citations given to students who have exemplary service to both the law school and local communities.
PILF members are recognized in the graduation ceremony program. Dean's Merit award recipients are also recognized in the program.
Widener University: Widener University School of Law
In the spring, there is a student awards ceremony on each law school campus that serves to recognize students for service and academic achievement. At this ceremony, students who have earned pro bono distinction receive certificates. In addition, students who have won summer public interest fellowships are recognized. Several awards/scholarships for a demonstrated commitment to public interest are also given. In Harrisburg, a Dean of Students Pro Bono Award is given. Students, their families, faculty, and donors are all invited to this event. A reception follows the ceremony.
At graduation, students who have earned pro bono distinction are noted in the graduation program and wear an honorary red cord.
Willamette University: Willamette University College of Law
Willamette gives an annual Pro Bono Student of the Year award to the graduating student who has contributed the most pro bono work during law school. All students who participate in the Pro Bono Honors Program are honored at our Spring Reception. Those completing the minimum number of hours required earn certificates.
William Mitchell College of Law: William Mitchell College of Law
William Mitchell graduates who have completed 50 hours of public service work, either through volunteer placements or through public interest client representation clinics, receive a transcript notation and recognition at our graduation ceremony. An asterisk is placed by the student's name in the program, which indicates public service. During the program, the President asks these students to stand for public acknowledgement.
The law schools, bar association, and MJF host a reception at the Judicial Center each year for all students who have completed 50 hours of volunteer service. Faculty and student pro bono service activities are recognized in our internal and external publications.
Yale University: Yale Law School
The work of the student groups is reported in the annual publication, YLS in the Public Service, and celebrated at the Annual Public Service Reception. Both the book and reception serve to document and celebrate the service the law school community accomplished this year. An important part of both is to honor one student organization and one clinic that have performed especially noteworthy public service. This selection is based on student nominations and votes, which the Student Representatives administered on behalf of the Career Development Office.
Yeshiva University: Benjamin N. Cardozo School of Law
The 1L and 2L public service scholars hold an annual reception, presenting awards to graduating Public Service Scholars who have an exceptional record of community service during their law school career.
Examples of awards include the following:
- Alumni Association Scholarship for Public Interest
- Steven Eric Tanenbaum Award for Outstanding Public Interest Student
- Jonathon Weiss Award for Public Interest Advocacy
- Stanley H. Beckerman Award for Outstanding Public Interest Achievement
- Archie A. Gorfinkel Award for Public Interest Service
