Interdisciplinary Child Advocacy Clinic - The Student ExperienceThe impact of this unique and important educational experience is documented in journals maintained by the students. The following excerpts convey the potency of this interdisciplinary experience from the perspective of law, medical, and social work students. Medical Student Shirley D. Viteri, M’06:One of the main reasons I was attracted to the medical profession was the team-centered approach to patient care. I was able to experience just that on many of my rotations in the hospital, solidifying my desire to pursue medicine. Now as I near the end of my medical school education, I have had a very truly rewarding experience working in team with law and social work students in this course – further bolstering my resolve to act in the capacity of a child advocate. The most rewarding aspect of the course from my perspective was being able to use the medical knowledge I had gained to aid children outside of a clinic setting. In theory, I had always known I could eventually apply my knowledge to other fields. Now that I have had the chance to do so, I feel I am better prepared for my future profession as a pediatrician. In addition to this intellectual wisdom, I have also gained a sense of pride in my contemporaries, knowing that my great passion for working with children is shared by those in other professions. Their work in this course has been a result of true dedication to their clients, and I am inspired by their efforts. Social Policy & Practice Student Celina Bedard, SP2‘06:Reflecting on this semester’s experience as a part of the Child Advocacy Clinic, there is one lesson I have learned that stands out in importance and meaningfulness. The role of the child advocacy team and each of its disciplines is to ensure that children in the child welfare system are not forgotten by society and the system itself. Advocating for their best interests in safety, academics, physical and mental health, and overall well-being is our mission, and as I have learned over and over, it is a critical one. Thinking of all the differences our clinic teams have been able to make this semester in our clients’ lives is extraordinary. Through working on child advocacy teams with the law and medical students, I have learned how personal and unique this work can be. It is truly heart-warming and hope-bringing to see the amount of time, energy, and emotion that each person put into each case. I have really enjoyed the interdisciplinary collaboration on our cases as well as just hanging around my team members, including my supervisors. I am very excited to have met many new people outside the social work world, who are so passionate and committed to working for children. Law Student Leigh McMullan, L’06:
In most classes, working together is either forbidden or it is just not done because students are competing with one another for a top spot in the curve. In the clinic, however, I learned how important it really is to rely on and work with other people. All of our clients had problems that one lawyer, no matter how gifted, could never solve alone. It took working with professionals in other fields and with each other in order to become helpful. I don’t think I could have handled either of my cases in any sort of successful way without the case rounds classes. Not only did they often provide practical advice (i.e. who to call at DHS about insurance) but it also created a network of support that I really relied on. I often saw members of the clinic in the halls at school or on the street and they would stop and say “how is the interstate compact going? Did you reach the woman in Harrisburg?” or ask about some other detail of my cases. I think we all felt really emotionally involved with each other and with each other’s cases. I was always amazed about the little details I remembered about other people’s cases and the details they remembered about mine. I think we were all able to have such good memories for each other because we cared so much. The clinic was also really emotional for me because I think it exposed me to a side of life I just had not experienced first hand before and that was hard to see. I think dealing with other people’s pain and suffering can also really evoke emotions you have about your own life—that certainly did happen to me. But I also think that having emotional reactions to the events in my cases made me better able to be an advocate. While it is certainly important to be professional, I think that having the emotions was a real catalyst for working hard on my cases. If I was not feeling so sad or so angry or so distraught, I am not sure I could have churned out four-page emails three times a week. I think a lot of the work I did as made better by the emotions I was having and that it is when you are unable to have emotional responses that you feel burnt out. I know that I will think about [one case] for the rest of my life and wonder about how they are doing. Being in the clinic was the first time I really felt like a lawyer in any real sense. I don’t think that it had to do with the legal work that I was doing as much as the sense that I was helping someone who had placed a great deal of trust in me. I hope that I always strive to feel like this about my work. If I can do that, I know that I will feel both exhausted and excited at the same time—exactly like a lawyer should feel. Law Student Katie Calabrese, L’06:
I have worked on pro bono projects in several areas since being a law student and nothing has (and I expect nothing will) inspired me like the work I have done for the Clinic. Next year, when I enter the private sector, I can’t imagine devoting my time to any other kind of pro bono work. The Clinic is one of the reasons I chose to come to Penn over other law schools. Now that I have participated in it, it has fulfilled (and in some cases surpassed) all of my expectations. Thoughts from Law Student Rodger Pichardo, L’07:Final Journal Time: January Time: February Time: March Time: April Time: May I am ready to embrace this next transition. Law Student Emily Saffitz, L’06:Journal Week Ending 12/09/05
There were some immediate benefits to participating in the clinic, like making new friends. I have been close friends with RD since the beginning of law school, and was friendly with all of the other students, though not close. However, since experiencing this clinic together I think that we have all formed strong relationships and they now serve a unique role in my life. These are the only individuals who can understand and share my enthusiasm when I get excited about an FSP meeting. Consider these two reactions. Upon hearing that DHS worker SB has planned the meeting, (Child Advocacy Clinic student) KC responds: “Every time SB plans a meeting an angel gets his wings. ”Juxtapose this with my non-clinic friend A’s (non-CAC student) response to hearing I have a meeting on the 19th of December: “Man, that’s during finals.” A longer lasting benefit to participating in the clinic is that I now have realized that I really cannot not do pro bono work. I must always, no matter what else is going on in my life, incorporate some sort of community work into my schedule. In addition to helping the community, it provides balance to my life, puts my “for profit” work into perspective, and gives me a great chance to interact with people with whom I might not normally interact. |
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The clinic was undoubtedly my most difficult and most rewarding experience in law school. It was completely different than any other class. The clinic was collaborative where other classes promote individual competition. The child advocacy work also placed a premium on emotional intelligence that would be inappropriate in other coursework. These differences with the rest of my law school experience made the clinic an invaluable experience for me as a person and as an attorney.
It is safe to say that this semester in the Clinic I have learned more substantive and practical information than I have in any other class that I have taken at the Law School. The experience has taught me an unquantifiable number of discrete legal lessons—how to prepare a line of direct questioning, how to file a motion, how the Rules of Professional Conduct apply in real life, how to plan a case, etc. The list goes on and on. The experience has also taught me life lessons and has provided me with skills that apply both in the legal world and the “outside” world—the importance of knowing your audience as part of being an effective communicator, the value of persistence, and that (pardon the cliché) you can always catch more bees with honey. 
Even though this class took up a significant amount of time this semester, overall I must say that I have really enjoyed the experience. I intended to make an impact on the system and on my clients, which I think has been accomplished in some ways but perhaps not others. However, one thing I didn’t anticipate was the personal benefit I derived.