The Children's Justice Project (CJP) was founded in the spring of 2002 by three law students, Sarah Helvey, Hannah Renfro, and Notesong Srisopark Thompson. Their mission was to promote justice for children through interdisciplinary teaching, scholarship and service. Sarah, Hannah and Notesong established CJP as a dynamic student organization that contributed to the law student community by hosting speakers, sending students to national conferences, and establishing a successful fellowship program for students doing legal work on behalf of children. Since its founding, CJP has grown stronger every year.
Upcoming Events
The 2008-2009 CJP Executive Board:
President:
Heather Orth
Vice-President: Jewel Casper
Executive Secretary: Sara Kelton
Administrative Secretary: Will Bratcher
Treasurer: Jenny Zimmerman
Co-Community Liaisons: Jenny Vandermeuse
& Kirsten Reneau
Also, was elected:
Children and the Law Liason:
Jessica Ozalp
CJP will be electing a Conference Coordinator and another Children
& The Law Section Liaison in the fall.
The Gargoyle is the alumni publication of the UW Law School and
one of the articles in the most recent publication featured CJP's 5
year anniversary! Check it out here
Pictures of CJP's 5 year anniversary.
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One of CJP’s greatest accomplishments is its summer fellowship program, which was made possible in 2003 with an initial award of $3000 from the American Academy of Matrimonial Attorneys, matched by the UW Law School. The program has been further sustained with funding from a generous donor, Attorney Clark Smith and other private donors, including Foley and Lardner. The Fellowship Program provides funding to students who take unpaid summer internships that focus on children’s law. Students compete for a fellowship through an application and interview process and recipients receive up to $5,000 to fund their summer internships. In 2008, CJP has also made smaller awards available, through a grant program, to fund summer work related to children.
2008 Marygold Melli Fellowship Recipients:
Jenny Zimmerman ~ Intern with ProBAR - South Texas Pro Bono
Asylum Representation Project, Harlingen, TX
Jenny will be working with ProBAR's Immigrant Children's Assistance
Project, representing unaccompanied immigrant children detained in
South Texas. Many of the children are fleeing dangerous situations in
their home countries due to domestic violence, gang violence and human
trafficking. These children are extraordinarily vulnerable and face
impending deportation without any way of obtaining counsel, aside from
ProBAR's efforts. Jenny's other experience working with children
includes a position with Youthworks of Minneapolis, where she oversaw
an eight week summer program for 80 children at an orphanage in
Tijuana, a position as an after-school teacher for Latino students at
an elementary school in south Minneapolis, and she was a mentor for
inner-city youth at the YWCA on the University of Minnesota campus.
Jenny was recently elected to the 2008-2009 CJP Executive Board as the
Treasurer.
Sara Kelton
~ Intern with Legal Aid Society - Guardian ad Litem
Division, Milwaukee, WI
Sara will be working with court-appointed attorneys who represent the
best interests of children in CHIPS, paternity, divorce, TPR and
adoption cases. The GAL Division represents about 5,000 children
annually in such matters. In addition to supporting the attorneys with
direct client contact and researching and preparing court documents and
memoranda, Sara will also conduct at least one major research project
related to children's law. Sara has always worked in child-centered
environments including as a camp counselor at Greenwood Lake Camp, a
Salvation Army Camp in Columbus, OH, as an English teacher in Madrid,
Spain, and as a bilingual Head Start home visitation teacher with the
Dane County Parent Council, Inc. in Madison. Sara also served as a
member of the 2007-2008 CJP's Conference Committee and assisted with
organizing the networking lunch. Sara was recently elected to the
2008-2009 CJP Executive Board as the Executive Secretary.
2008 CJP Summer Grant Recipients:
Karen Siettmann ~ Intern with Dane County Corporation Counsel,
Madison, WI
Melanie Black ~ Intern with the United States Department of
Education - Office for Civil Rights, Cleveland, OH
Kirsten Reneau ~ Intern with Legal Aid Society - Guardian ad
Litem Division, Milwaukee, WI
Jessica Ozalp ~ Intern with Wisconsin Coalition Against
Domestic Violence - Immigrant Project, Madison, WI