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

The Spurgeon Fellowship provides a stipend to allow a student 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

First- and second-year students.

The recipient must be a person who has an exemplary character and excellent judgment; has the dedication and ability to be a professional and community leader; believes that a lawyer has a primary responsibility to serve the broader public interest; and has demonstrated 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 App and provide the following:

  • a resume
  • a written personal statement (no more than 500 words) that addresses the personal qualifications required by the scholarship
  • an 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. (In the past, the selection committee has favored full-time commitments more than part-time commitments.) Applicants should also indicate whether they will be paid anything or receive academic credit for their work. In the past, the selection committee has not favored proposed projects where academic credit is also awarded.) 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, also would be useful.

Recipients will be selected by the Awards Committee and the prior year’s Fellow.

Public Service Project Past Ideas

  • Development of Rocky Mountain Innocence Project office.
  • 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.
  • Utah Legal Services at JEDI (Justice, Economic, Dignity, Independence) Women office in Rose Park area of Salt Lake City, Utah to update public benefits handbook for client use and assist clients with administrative hearings and welfare related matters.
  • Homeless Outreach Program at St. Vincent de Paul Center and in conjunction with Utah Legal Services, Salt Lake City, Utah.
  • Study of impact of the Olympics in Atlanta, Georgia on the services and resources available for the homeless and low income residents of the inner city and use of results to assist in planning for the Salt Lake City Olympics.
  • Lavender Families Resource Network – research and development of materials addressing laws relevant to gay parents.
  • Development of warranty of habitability 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, Utah.
  • Internship with the Chicago, Illinois office of the NAACP.
  • Internship with Utah Legal Services and homeless outreach efforts, Salt Lake  City, Utah.
  • Street Law, Utah Legal Services – Administration / expansion of St. Vincent’s Street Law site.
  • Utah Legal Services – Domestic Violence Project – recruitment of rural attorneys and development of sensitivity training.
  • Legal Internship with Families Against Incinerator Risk (FAIR)
  • Massachusetts Correctional Legal Services legal clerkship – pro bono legal service to Massachusetts prisoners and their families.
  • Utah Legal Services – creation of housing discrimination testing project.
  • NAPIL/VISTA Summer Legal Corps Fellow at the Indian Walk-In Center.
  • Natural Resources Defense Council, 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 – preparation of 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