Law students spend most of their school years in lecture halls, the library, seminar rooms and clinics. Then summer arrives and many students look forward to relaxation and spending time with family and friends. But forty Mississippi College School of Law (MCSOL) students used their 2007 summer break to serve others and enhance their legal educations through a new program, the MCSOL/Federal Work Study public interest program, qualifying students are paid to do public interest and governmental work.

Qualifying students pursue unpaid work in public interest or government agencies, and are then compensated by MCSOL for this volunteer work. The funds are provided by a Federal Work Study grant, which comprise seventy-five percent, and MCSOL alumni contributions, which make up the remaining twenty-five percent.

"We want to ensure our students have an awareness of the importance of public interest legal work," Dean Jim Rosenblatt said. "We want them to understand how important it is to keep the scales of justice balanced and to ensure that attorneys who represent the public are trained and equipped for this service.  We offer several programs that allow our students to be a part of public interest work and to participate first hand in this important arena while in law school."

This program provides valuable first-hand experiences and focuses on public interest and governmental volunteer opportunities, not only in Mississippi, but throughout the United States. "Working in the Virginia Commonwealth's Attorney's office is fun, challenging and a great learning experience," Grey Ligon, second year law student, explains. "I get to go to court four or five days a week to watch trials, and when I'm not in court, I work on briefs, memos and motions for the court. There is really never a dull moment."

Legal training is limited for students that have completed only one year of law school, however this program provides unique educational opportunities. "Working in the legal department of the Mississippi Immigrants Rights Alliance(MIRA) has afforded me the opportunity to be immersed in and better comprehend the current issues surrounding immigration law,"  Jana  Edmondson, a rising second year law student, states. "Additionally, I have been able to utilize my bilingual abilities.  The ethnic spectrum among my clients has provided great insight into the unique immigration struggles faced by various ethnic groups."

This summer, MCSOL students have volunteered on a variety of projects addressing civil rights, civil liberties, immigrant rights, housing initiatives, poverty law, family law, criminal law, mental health advocacy, spousal abuse and general legal aid.

In Mississippi, students have volunteered through the MCSOL/Federal Work Study public interest program at the following agencies: 

American Civil Liberties Union ("ACLU") of Mississippi;  Jackson, MS
Catholic Charities;  Jackson, MS
Hinds County District Attorney's Office;  Jackson, MS
Hinds County Public Defender's Office;  Jackson, MS
Honorable Prentiss Harrell, Circuit Court Judge;  Purvis, MS
Honorable Winston Kidd, Circuit Court Judge;  Jackson, MS
Mission First Legal Aid Office;  Jackson, MS
Mississippi Attorney General's Office;  Jackson, MS
Mississippi Center for Justice;  Jackson, MS
Mississippi Center for Legal Services; Jackson, MS
Mississippi Immigrants Rights Alliance;  Jackson, MS
Mississippi Supreme Court;  Jackson, MS
Mississippi Volunteer Lawyers Project;  Jackson, MS
Mississippi Worker's Center for Human Rights;  Jackson, MS
North Mississippi Rural Legal Services;  Oxford, MS
Rankin County Chancery Court;  Brandon, MS

This summer, students have also worked under the MCSOL/Federal Work Study program nation-wide, in the following areas:

Alabama Attorney General's Office;  Montgomery, AL
Hampton Commonwealth's Attorney;  Hampton, VA
Honorable Mark Fishburn; Metro Criminal Trial Court Judge;  Nashville, TN
Marion/Winston County, Alabama District Attorney's Office;  Hamilton, AL
Memphis Area Legal Services;  Memphis, TN
United States Attorney's Office, Northern District of Alabama; Birmingham, AL
United States Attorney's Office, District of South Carolina;  Greenville, S.C.
United States Department of Justice, Civil Division;  Washington, D.C.
United States Department of Justice, Immigration Court;  Miami, FL