Cross-Clinic & Community Collaborations to Enhance Student Learning & Advance Social Justice

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Session Type: AALS Programs

Session Capacity: N/A

Location: N/A

Room: Salon 2

Floor: Third Floor

The challenges facing society today threaten to unravel the framework of democracy and cause grave harm to underrepresented, marginalized individuals and communities of color. To secure justice during these extraordinary times, the next generation of lawyers will need experience with diverse subject matter, multifaceted skill building, creative advocacy strategies, and, above all, the ability to collaborate and step out of silos. Partnerships across law schools and with nonprofit organizations allow clinics to overcome individual limitations and provide comprehensive services by augmenting resources, pooling knowledge, and taking ownership over acute issues within the larger framework. At the same time, partnerships allow clinicians to teach students the value of, and strategies for, cross-subject and cross-state collaborations. Drawing on their experiences working together, presenters will use case studies and break-out groups to address how clinics at different universities, local, and national non-profits can collaborate to deepen student learning and respond holistically, strategically, and comprehensively to address clients’ multifaceted needs. Law school clinicians and advocates from the Sargent Shriver National Center on Poverty Law will provide examples of how four law school clinics (with diversity of subject matter) complemented the work of the Shriver Center to address lead poisoning in federally assisted housing. One case study will discuss cross-clinic and advocacy group collaboration across housing, health, and environmental issues facing the East Chicago, Indiana, Superfund site. Another will highlight cross-clinic collaboration in the drafting and submission of comments to the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development regarding the Lead Safe Housing for Kids Act. The goal of this session is to train participants in collaborative methods and to learn from advocates in the field how to both comprehensively address community needs and create enriched clinical experiences for students