Skip to main content

Sixth Annual Public Interest Week celebrates “The Power of Public Interest at Penn Law”

February 10, 2014

Penn Law’s Sixth Annual Pubic Interest Week, which celebrates the public interest work of students, alumni, and community partners, begins Feb. 17.

Penn Law’s Sixth Annual Pubic Interest Week, which celebrates the public interest work of students, alumni, and community partners, begins Feb. 17 and will feature student-organized presentations on topics ranging from environmental justice, to indigent defense, to gender equality.

The program calendar, culminating with the annual Equal Justice Foundation Auction on Feb. 27, is so jam-packed this year, it will take 10 days to fit everything in. The annual event, whose theme is “The Power of Public Interest,” takes place each spring. Programs feature public interest practitioners, scholars, alumni, and an Honorary Fellow-in-Residence, who this year is Christina Swarns L’93, Director of the NAACP Legal Defense Fund’s Criminal Justice Practice. 

“The Power of Public Interest at Penn Law grows each and every year,” said Arlene Rivera Finkelstein Associate Dean for Public Interest Programs and Executive Director of the Toll Public Interest Center. “We can take pride in being a part of an institution that dedicates itself to service year-round.  We look forward to celebrating that long-standing tradition of service with our Public Interest Week activities.”

The annual Sparer Symposium , a highlight of the celebration, will focus on “Gender and Social Inequality: Why Women’s Rights Still Matter.” The keynote speaker is Marcia Greenberger, L’70, co-president of the National Women’s Law Center. Symposium panel topics include “Recognizing Problems and Sharing Solutions:  Sexism in our Communities”; “Domestic Violence and its Effects on the Family”; “Women in Immigration”; and “Trafficking Women: Legal Responses to a Global Problem.”

Public Interest Week event details and invitations to the annual Sparer Symposium and Public Interest Alumni Dinner follow.

Monday 2/17:

Tuesday 2/18:

Wednesday 2/19:

Thursday 2/20:

Monday 2/24 and Tuesday 2/25: Honorary Fellow-In-Residence

TPIC is proud to host the Director of the NAACP Legal Defense Fund’s Criminal Justice Practice, Christina Swarns L’93, as our Honorary Fellow in Residence from 2/24 to 2/25.

  • Tuesday 2/25: All are invited to the Honorary Fellow’s Presentation and Dinner, “Every Goodbye Ain’t Gone”: Understanding and Addressing the Past and Present Role of Race in the Administration of the Death Penalty. Reception, 5:30 p.m. and Dinner, 6:30 p.m. in the Levy Conference Center. RSVP Required.

Thursday 2/27:

  • Annual Equal Justice Foundation Auction:  The silent auction and reception begin at 6 p.m., and the live auction begins at 8 p.m. Tickets are $10 for students and $20 for non-students. Tickets Here.