Alumni Spotlights
PILI Alumni Spotlight: Lyman Welch, 1993 Graduate Fellow
“PILI let me experience how public interest lawyers make the world a better place and encouraged me to devote my career to public interest law to protect the environment.”
PILI Alumni Spotlight: Liz Tracy, 2014 Intern
“Because of PILI, I was able to make a meaningful impact in the lives of families with children with disabilities, obtain practical experience in education law, and meet accomplished attorneys, judges, and future attorneys.”
PILI Alumni Spotlight: Taylor Whitten, 2014 Fellow
“It felt like I was a part of justice in action and it made me certain that practicing law was not only a privilege, but an honor, a wonderful avocation that could truly affect people’s lives.”
2014 Fellow Alumni Award: Andrew Vail
Andrew co-chairs Jenner & Block’s Pro Bono Committee, and has dedicated more than 5,000 hours to pro bono matters, including work on several high-profile wrongful conviction cases.
2014 PILI Intern Alumni Award: Matthew Jenkins
Matt handles and tries complex, significant and high-profile cases, and he is proud of the work he does on behalf of those clients. He is equally as proud of his cases that don’t make headlines, involving those often without a voice and without access to quality legal representation.
PILI Alumni Spotlight: Kyle Shires, 2014 PILI Fellow
“The PILI Fellowship was an amazing learning experience for me,” he states. “I wanted to help ensure that future Fellows had an experience similar to mine. I couldn’t think of a better way to stay involved than service as the Fellow Representative.”
PILI Alumni Spotlight: Militza Pagán, 2014 Intern
During her PILI Internship at BPI last summer, Militza worked primarily in their Public Housing and Political Reform departments. “I enjoyed the type of work that I did and the opportunities to learn about ways that lawyers can play a role in developing anti-poverty policies,” she said.
PILI Alumni Spotlight: Betsy Shuman-Moore, 1981 PILI Intern
Dedicated to the public interest from the start, Betsy served for seven years as a staff attorney and legal director for the Leadership Council for Metropolitan Open Communities – the same organization where she completed her PILI Internship in 1981, before joining the Chicago Lawyers’ Committee for Civil Rights where she now directs the Bias Violence and Fair Housing Projects.
PILI Alumni Spotlight: Charles P. Golbert, 1990 Fellow
As the Deputy Public Guardian in charge of the adult guardianship division of the Office of the Cook County Public Guardian, Charles Golbert has made public service a focal-point of his career for the past 23 years. Charles credits his PILI Fellowship for introducing him to a career in public interest law. “It’s fair to say that I owe my career to PILI,” he states.
PILI Alumni Spotlight: Mark Grossmann, 1997 Fellow
“There are different ways to measure success. We always think of financial measures, but fulfillment is important too. Doing pro bono work is what helps me feel fulfilled as a lawyer.”