Susan J. Feathers to Direct the John and Terry Levin Center for Public Service and Public Interest Law at Stanford.

STANFORD, Calif. -- Stanford Law School today announced the appointment of Susan J. Feathers as executive director of the John and Terry Levin Center for Public Service and Public Interest Law. Feathers, currently assistant dean for public service at University of Pennsylvania Law School, will join Stanford Law School this July. She brings 14 years of experience directing public service initiatives in law schools, as well as eight years of experience as a public interest law practitioner.

Feathers joined the University of Pennsylvania Law School in 1998. In her role as assistant dean for public service, she directs all aspects of the law school's public interest initiatives, including student-led pro bono projects, a public interest scholars program, and public interest career counseling. Additionally, she works with faculty to design and implement public interest curricular offerings and identifies areas of unmet community law-related needs. Under her leadership, the law school places 600 students in law-related volunteer programs per year, representing as many as 1200 clients.

Prior to her position at the University of Pennsylvania, Feathers was one of the founding directors of the public service program and career center at Brooklyn Law School, where she worked from 1994-1996. From 1996-1998, she served as the director of Yale Law School's public service counseling and programs. During that time she co-edited two books, Law School Guide to Public Interest Careers and A Guide to International Public Service Opportunities. Feathers received her BA/MA in 1983 from the University of Pennsylvania and her JD in 1987 from Northeastern University School of Law, after which she worked for The Legal Aid Society in New York and later supervised students in criminal defense and constitutional litigation clinics at Hofstra Law School.

"I am honored to join Stanford Law School as the executive director of the Levin Center for Public Service and Public Interest Law," said Susan J. Feathers. "Stanford's deep and abiding philosophical and financial commitment to clinical legal education, pro bono, and public interest careers make it a new frontier for legal education. As the center's new director, I hope to expand the depth and breadth of public interest and pro bono opportunities as well as to further integrate them into the curricular experience. Most important, through my work for the center, I hope to work to nurture our students' vigilance of spirit so that they will pursue their own personal ideal of justice."

"Stanford Law is committed to training lawyers who understand the imperative of public service and spend all or some of their careers engaged in that noble endeavor," said Professor Lawrence C. Marshall, who serves as the David and Stephanie Mills Director of Clinical Education and Associate Dean for Public Service and Clinical Education. "Susan Feathers comes to us with a wealth of experience that will enrich our program and help us expose all our students to the values that our profession holds dear."

The Levin Center was established earlier this year to expand on Stanford Law School's deep and longstanding commitment to public service and public interest law by providing students with enhanced opportunities to make public service a pervasive part of their JD experience. Its establishment coincides with changes underway to Stanford Law School's second- and third-year curriculum, part of a comprehensive plan to transform the JD into a multidimensional degree program that combines the study of other disciplines with team-oriented, problem-solving techniques and expanded clinical training.

In addition to expanding existing programs at the law school such as the pro bono program, a national mentorship network, career counseling and job placement, the Public Service Leadership Fellows program, and National Public Service Awards, the Levin Center will offer new curriculum options; resources to students seeking jobs in non-traditional legal careers; and an annual conference for practicing attorneys that will

promote national conversations about the future of public service practice.

"We are thrilled to have selected Susan Feathers to lead the Levin Center into a new era of expansion and activity," said Stanford Law School Dean Larry Kramer. "I am confident that she will expertly guide the Levin Center as it tackles an ambitious agenda."

About the John and Terry Levin Center for Public Service and Public Interest Law

The John and Terry Levin Center for Public Service and Public Interest Law is a program at Stanford Law School that aims to make public service a pervasive part of every law student's experience and ultimately help shape the values that students take into their careers--regardless of ideology or political persuasion and regardless of whether they work as full-time public interest lawyers or work in business, a private law firm, or elsewhere.

About Stanford Law School

Stanford Law School is one of the nation's leading institutions for legal scholarship and education. Its alumni are among the most influential decision makers in law, politics, business, and high technology. Faculty members argue before the Supreme Court, testify before Congress, and write books and articles for academic audiences, as well as the popular press. Along with offering traditional law school classes, the school has embraced new subjects and new ways of teaching. The school's home page is located at www.law.stanford.edu.