Announcing the Global Impact Fund - Donate Used Books to Support a Cause!

I am delighted to announce the creation of the Hofstra Law School Global Impact Fund, a campaign to support students working domestically and internationally on worldwide causes.  The Global Impact Fund will contribute financially to Hofstra's Law Brigades, Legal Emergency Aid Project, and Public Justice Foundation organizations.  Read on to learn more about how to contribute and the impact of these groups!

Supporting the Fund:

The Global Impact Fund will be supported solely through the donation of used textbooks to Hofstra Law.  Donated books will be resold to the Hofstra Bookstore for recirculation to future law students.  The funds raised by reselling the books will be distributed through the Global Impact Fund to beneficiary organizations. 

How to Participate:

To participate, students, faculty and staff can drop off unwanted textbooks to the new Global Initiatives & Multicultural Affairs Office in room 307 of the Law School.  Book collection for the fall semester will begin on Wednesday, December 8 and end on Wednesday, January 12, 2011.  At the time of donation, make sure to leave your name, Hofstra ID number, book titles, and email address with Joanne Masci, who will process the intake.  Please try to donate unwanted text books as early as possible, preferably in December after exams, to make sure they are quickly recycled onto the Bookstore's shelves for spring semester.  Text books from all disciplines taught on the collegiate level will be accepted.

Beneficiaries of the Fund:

1.  Law Brigades - Hofstra Law Brigades is a chapter of a larger umbrella organization called Global Law Brigades. The organization collaborates with legal professionals to work with developing communities on their legal necessities and elaborate projects to implement legal empowerment strategies. The Law Brigades work alongside community members to help them address legal issues and provide solutions. The organization currently focuses on projects in Panama to alleviate poverty and foster human rights and community development.

2.  Legal Emergency Aid Project - The Legal Emergency Aid Project is dedicated to providing legal assistance to victims of disasters across the United States and abroad, including victims of Hurricanes Katrina and Rita.  Members have traveled to New Orleans over spring break to provide legal assistance on a variety of issues, including FEMA claims, insurance claims, social services benefits, mortgage foreclosures, criminal justice matters, housing for displaced residents, voters' rights, immigrant labor, and access to counsel.

3.  Public Justice Foundation (PJF) - The Public Justice Foundation is the Law School's public interest law student organization.  PJF annually raises funds to support summer fellowships for Hofstra students.  These fellowships enable recipients to take low or nonpaying jobs in the public sector that they otherwise would be unable to accept due to financial constraints.  The money raised through the Global Impact Fund's book collection will specifically support PJF summer fellowships for students working around the world on global causes.

4.  Law Libraries in Developing Countries - Books that cannot be resold to the Hofstra Bookstore or other organizations will be donated to a law library in a developing country.  Providing legal texts, even old editions, to a law library can serve as an educational resource to advance principles of democracy and the rule of law.  So, feel free to donate any and all books you no longer need - we have a use for all contributions!

Benefits to You:

1.  Increase in Used Books Available at the Bookstore - Donating to the Global Impact Fund guarantees your classmates next semester and in the future a supply of books to buy at a discount rate in the Bookstore.  The more people that donate, the more used textbooks that will recirculate - potentially saving you and your classmates money.

2.  Charitable Contribution Tax Deduction - For those of you interested, donated books are treated as gifts-in-kind to Hofstra Law School.  At the time you donate, you will be asked if you want a tax deduction letter generated for you.  The letter will indicate the titles of the books and you can work with your tax professional to estimate the fair market value of the total donation.

3.  Support Students - If the above reasons to donate don't appeal to you, hopefully the personal satisfaction of supporting Hofstra Law School students does.  Students in the beneficiary organizations help in major relief efforts, work on important global causes, and change the world - all while representing Hofstra Law's pursuit of global impact! 

I strongly believe that if every law student and faculty member donates at least one book a semester, the Fund could significantly increase the financial support to and impact of the beneficiary organizations.  If you have any questions, please feel free to contact me directly.  Best of luck on your final exams!

Jeffrey A. Dodge, Esq.

Assistant Dean for Global Initiatives & Multicultural Affairs

Hofstra Law School

121 Hofstra University, Suite 244

Hempstead, New York 11549

(O) 516.463.0417

(F) 516.463.1017

(E) Jeffrey.Dodge@hofstra.edu

(B) Legally Global Blog

(W) International Programs

Helton Fellowship Program - Summer and Post Graduate Funding

The Arthur C. Helton Fellowship Program, established in 2004 on the recommendation of the ASIL Honors Committee, recognizes the legacy of Arthur Helton, a remarkable ASIL member who died in the August 19, 2003 bombing of the UN mission in Baghdad along with UN High Commissioner for Human Rights Sergio Viera de Mello and 20 others.

Funded in part by contributions from ASIL members and private foundations, Helton Fellowships provide financial assistance in the form of “micro-grants” for law students and young professionals to pursue field work and research on significant issues involving international law, human rights, humanitarian affairs, and related areas.

Helton Fellowship micro-grants are intended to ensure that these individuals have access to modest amounts of funding that can often stand between them and their first professional opportunities to become effective practitioners, experts, and scholars of international law.

Helton Fellowship micro-grants are intended to contribute to paying for logistics, housing and living expenses, and other costs related to the Fellow’s international law fieldwork and research in affiliation with the sponsoring organization.

Eligibility/Qualifications

Fellows must undertake their fieldwork between April 2011 and September 2011 in association with an established educational institution, international organization, or non-governmental organization working in areas related to international law, human rights, and humanitarian affairs.

The Helton Fellowship Program seeks applicants in the early stages of their academic and professional careers who demonstrate the potential to make significant contributions to the use and study of international law around the world.

Law students, practicing lawyers, human rights professionals, scholars, and other individuals seeking assistance in conducting international fieldwork and law-related research are encouraged to apply.

Applicants can be of any nationality but must be current law students or have graduated from law school (at either the undergraduate or graduate levels) no earlier than December 2008.

As mentioned above, applicants must also be sponsored or affiliated, for purposes of completing their project, in some way with an educational institution, international organization, or non-governmental organization working in international law, human rights, humanitarian affairs, or related areas.

Applicants should have contacted the sponsoring organization to discuss their proposal prior to applying for the Helton Fellowship. The name of the sponsoring organization and contact information for its representatives must be included in the application.

Individuals pursuing independent research or fieldwork are not eligible for Helton Fellowships.

Applicants should also identify other potential sources of funding, including their own, to cover costs related to their fieldwork. ASIL does not assist in securing organizational sponsoring or alternative funding for Fellows.

In acknowledgement of Arthur Helton’s commitment to human rights and humanitarian affairs in the field, preferential consideration may be given to applications demonstrating a significant fieldwork component as well as those involving the human rights of refugees, internally displaced persons, and other vulnerable populations. Applications for fieldwork in the area of international criminal law and international humanitarian law are also encouraged.

Application Materials

Completed applications will consist of the following materials:

• Online application form, including description of intended project, career statement, and funding sources
• Writing Sample
• Current CV or resume
• Confirmation of law student status and/or date of graduation from a law school
• Two letters of recommendation/support, including one from sponsoring organization

Writing Sample: The writing sample may take the form of any published or unpublished document which demonstrates in-depth research, critical thinking, and analysis of a topic related to international law. Excerpts of more lengthy documents may also be submitted. However, writing samples should be no longer than 10 pages.

Current CV or Resume: All applicants must submit an updated curriculum vitae or resume, which includes contact information, education, professional employment or volunteer history, and special skills and interests.

Student Status/Date of Graduation: Applicants are required to provide documentation indicating current status or date of graduation. The following documentation will be accepted: photocopy of valid student identification; photocopy or facsimile of current official or unofficial transcript indicating student status; photocopy or facsimile of official or unofficial transcript indicating graduation date; photocopy or facsimile of diploma.

Letters of Recommendation/Support: One letter of recommendation should come from any individual who is in a position to assess academic performance, professional skills and expertise, and any other qualifications for selection as a Helton Fellow (e.g. current or former professor or supervisor). The second should be a letter of support or sponsorship from the educational institution, international organization, or non-governmental organization that has agreed to sponsor the project.

The writing sample, current curriculum vitae or resume, and documentation confirming student status or graduation date should be submitted as a package if possible. Letters of recommendation and support may be submitted separately if necessary.

Applicants will be considered by the Helton Fellowship Selection Committee on the basis of the written materials included in the application package. No interviews, or any other communications with applicants, will be conducted.

Deadlines and Announcement Schedule

Applicants may submit application materials beginning Monday, September 13, 2010. All applications must be received no later than Monday, January 10, 2011.

Incomplete applications and those received after January 10, 2011 will not be reviewed under any circumstances.

ASIL will acknowledge receipt of application materials, and the date they are received, in a timely fashion by email.

Due to administrative constraints, only the first 50 completed applications, submitted on-line, and received in full by the submission deadline will be reviewed. A notice that the application process has closed will be posted on the ASIL website once 50 completed applications have been received.

Awards will be announced by February 18, 2011. The Fellowship Selection Committee is unable to respond to individual requests for information about the status of applications prior to this date.

Applicants are required to complete an online application form and submit related materials in a timely fashion to the Helton Fellowship Program at fellowship@asil.org. Materials that can not be transmitted electronically may be faxed to the ASIL Helton Fellowship Program at + 1 202 797 7133.

Online Application: An online application is made available at http://www.asil.org/helton-application.cfm. Applicants are asked to provide basic biographical information and brief descriptions of intended projects and career statements. Emailed or faxed applications forms will not be accepted without prior written approval. The online application should be completed before other application materials are submitted.