College of Law
Home 2L AND 3L FELLOWSHIPS & SCHOLARSHIPS EDWARD D. & CAROL J. SPURGEON PUBLIC SERVICE SUMMER FELLOWSHIP

EDWARD D. & CAROL J. SPURGEON
PUBLIC SERVICE SUMMER FELLOWSHIP

DISCLAIMER: The following notice does not affect any existing committed scholarships. However, there is potential that the scholarships, fellowships, and awards listed below may be affected by the 2025 legislative session. At the conclusion of the session, the College will evaluate the outcome and make the appropriate changes to the language associated with the list below. Students should know that the criteria may change significantly and should not rely on this information in the interim.

Please direct any questions to lawfinancialaid@law.utah.edu.

The Spurgeon Fellowship provides a stipend to pursue a proposed public service project or placement in a low-paying or non-paying public service summer job (law-related), excluding, however, a typical clerkship or internship with a governmental agency.

Benefits

$5,000 stipend
Possible tuition benefit

Eligibility

The fellowship is open to first- and second-year students.

The recipient must:

  • have exemplary character and excellent judgment
  • have dedication and ability to be a professional and community leader
  • believe that a lawyer has a primary responsibility to serve the broader public interest
  • Demonstrate a proven commitment to public service as evidenced by academic, vocational and public service activities and focus

Application requirements and selection

Applicants must complete the common scholarship application and provide the following:

  • resume
  • written personal statement (no more than 500 words) that addresses the personal qualifications required by the scholarship
  • unofficial College of Law transcript
  • letter from agency

Applicants should indicate the extent of the commitment they will make to the proposed project; i.e., how many hours per week they will work (the selection committee has favored full-time more than part-time commitments in the past). They should also indicate whether they will be paid anything or receive academic credit for their work (the selection committee has not favored proposed projects where academic credit is also awarded in the past).

Finally, applicants should address the feasibility of and need for the work to be performed and the impact or benefit the work will have. A letter from someone at the proposed agency or organization addressing the feasibility of and support for the project, as well as the benefit and impact the proposed project will have on that organization, would also be useful.

The awards committee and the prior year's fellow will select recipients.

Past public service project ideas

  • Rocky Mountain Innocence Project office development
  • Women’s human rights program at Minnesota Advocates for Human Rights Internship in Sofia, Bulgaria, with Bulgarian Gender Research Foundation to help establish legal clinics for women in Bulgaria
  • Work with Utah Legal Services to develop urban/Wasatch Front clinics and recruit and train volunteer attorneys in Salt Lake City
  • Utah Legal Services at JEDI (Justice, Economic, Dignity, Independence) Women office in Rose Park area of Salt Lake City to update public benefits handbook for client use and help clients with administrative hearings and welfare-related matters
  • Homeless outreach program at St. Vincent de Paul Center in conjunction with Utah Legal Services
  • Study of Atlanta, Georgia, Olympics impact on homeless and low-income inner-city resident services and resources available and use of results to help plan for the Salt Lake City Olympics
  • Lavender Families Resource Network: research and material development addressing laws relevant to gay parents
  • Warranty of habitability development in landlord/tenant cases in the Ogden, Utah, area
  • Study of housing for the mentally ill in conjunction with the Legal Center for People with Disabilities in Salt Lake City
  • Internship with the Chicago, Illinois NAACP office
  • Internship with Utah Legal Services and homeless outreach efforts
  • Street Law Utah Legal Services administration and expansion of St. Vincent’s Street Law site
  • Utah Legal Services domestic violence project (recruiting rural attorneys and developing sensitivity training)
  • Legal internship with Families Against Incinerator Risk (FAIR)
  • Massachusetts Correctional Legal Services legal clerkship, providing pro bono legal service to Massachusetts prisoners and their families
  • Creating Utah Legal Services housing discrimination testing project
  • NAPIL/VISTA summer legal corps fellow at the Indian walk-in center
  • Natural Resources Defense Council in New York
  • Utah State Bar Needs of Children Committee (translation of “Rights Responsibilities Relationships: Your Rights as a Young Person in Utah” into Spanish)
  • Disabled Rights Action Committee (preparing policies and procedures manual)
  • CASA (court-appointed special advocate) representing best interests of children in court proceedings
  • Jackson Hole Land Trust work on conservation easements