Barbara recently graduated from Vanderbilt University Law School and spent her summer serving as a PILI Fellow at the National Immigrant Justice Center (NIJC) while studying for the bar. “I had a terrific experience working at NIJC,” says Barbara. “From the first day of my Fellowship, I was given a great amount of responsibility and had access to clients so I could immediately apply my skills to the organization’s cases.” Her work included conducting new and returning client intake, preparing U Visa applications, drafting letters requesting prosecutorial discretion to the Department of Homeland Security, preparing applications for employment authorization and drafting affidavits for applications for immigration relief. She also conducted research on drug cartels in Mexico and helped prepare a client for an asylum interview. Barbara has maintained a longtime interest in immigration law. Before starting law school, she worked as a law clerk at the Legal Aid Foundation of Los Angeles processing citizenship and U Visa applications, and while in law school she led the National Latina/o Law Student Association, which supported the Development, Relief and Education for Alien Minors (DREAM) Act as its Policy Initiative. For Barbara, a rewarding part of her work at NIJC was the opportunity to learn from other immigrant rights advocates. “The attorneys and staff at NIJC provided guidance and expertise which enabled me to provide the best possible advice to the individuals who came to their office for assistance,” says Barbara. “They are extremely helpful and deeply passionate about their work, which inspires me to continue serving immigrant communities in the future.”
Prior to her PILI Fellowship, Barbara worked as a summer intern at the U.S. Department of State’s Office of Global Women’s Issues, where she drafted a report to Congress on Department programs addressing sexual and gender-based violence, assisted the Office with public outreach and identified language addressing women in House and Senate appropriations bills. She also worked as a summer associate at Sidley Austin LLP, during which time she assisted with a pro bono asylum case and volunteered at Cabrini Green Legal Aid as an intake interviewer. Barbara has recently started as a new associate in Sidley’s Labor, Employment and Immigration Group, and she was selected from among many applicants to be the 2011 Fellow Representative on PILI’s Board of Directors. “I want to play an active role in encouraging more law firms to establish a relationship with PILI,” she says. Barbara hopes to maintain her connections with NIJC moving forward as well. “The agency is very amenable to us taking cases with us to work on a pro bono basis,” she explains. “It is an amazing opportunity.”
Originally published November, 2011. Read more PILI Alumni Spotlights »