'As a long-time practitioner, I didn’t think a transition to academia was possible. When someone suggested a teaching fellowship, I didn’t even really understand what that meant much less that it would be such a life-changing experience.
The UB fellowship program is the most supportive program that I could have imagined. Being able to teach under the supervision of an experienced teacher who cares deeply about teaching is an incredible opportunity. I was able to think about and discuss my teaching goals and how to create a class to reach those goals and after teaching, I could spend time with my clinic director reflecting and getting feedback about what worked well and what could be improved next time. I was also able to help to determine the vision for each semester including choosing community projects to lead.
What makes this program so unique is that you not only have the dedicated support and mentorship of your clinical director, you also have access to and guidance from the other members of the clinical faculty who are incredibly talented at identifying and nurturing your strengths as a teacher while also helping you to improve and grow. They’re all so kind and empathetic and so eager to help that I never felt like I was bothering anyone. And as a bonus, I was able to join an amazing community of former fellows that are teaching at law schools across the country and are always willing to respond to questions from other UB fellows.
Now as a doctrinal professor, it’s even more clear to me how much I learned as a fellow. I frequently think back to conversations that I had with my clinic director and with other colleagues as I make decisions about how to proceed in my own classes. I could not be more grateful for everything I learned in my fellowship and for the continued relationships that I have with the clinical faculty at UB.' Shanta Trivedi, Asst. Professor of Law, Director, Sayra and Neil Meyerhoff Center for Families, Children & the Courts
The Bronfein Family Law Clinic represents low-income individuals and organizations in domestic violence and family law litigation, legislative advocacy, legal reform and community education. The Clinic handles a wide variety of cases, which include civil protection order, divorce, custody, support, adoption, paternity, Special Immigrant Juvenile Cases and name changes. The Family Law Clinic is dedicated to serving low income clients residing in Baltimore City, and places a special focus on persons subjected to abuse and the LGBTQ community. In the clinic, law students are licensed to practice law under the supervision of faculty and serve as first-chair lawyers on their clients' matters and on community-based projects.
The University of Baltimore School of Law will announce when a fellowship position becomes available in the Clinic. This public interest fellowship program offers practicing attorneys exposure to law school clinical teaching.
The Fellow’s duties include direct supervision of clinic students’ client, case, legislative advocacy and community education work, co-teaching a weekly clinic seminar, and engaging in course planning and preparation with the other faculty members in the Bronfein Family Law Clinic. The Fellowship focuses its first year on the skills of teaching, from crafting and leading seminars, to facilitating supervision meetings with student-attorneys. The second year of the fellowship focuses on developing legal scholarship. The third year, we support the Fellow to go on the clinical teaching job market. In addition to teaching, supervision, and legal scholarship, the Fellow is responsible for case coverage during school vacations. The Fellow works with and is supervised by the Associate Dean for Experiential Education and Bronfein Family Law Clinic Director Professor Margaret E. Johnson. Fellows are responsible for case coverage during school vacations. This position is a three-year contractual appointment.
Qualifications: Excellent oral and written communication skills; a J.D. and at least two years of experience as a practicing lawyer preferably in family law litigation; a strong academic record and/or other indicia of high-performance ability; commitment to work for low income clients; and a strong interest in law school teaching and scholarship. Fellows must be members in good standing with the Maryland Bar or another State bar and willing to complete the necessary documentation to be permitted to supervise law practice by students.
Salary: The current salary is $70,000. The position includes full benefits, including retirement annuities, research support, and a travel allowance to attend relevant conferences and workshops.
For more details about the Fellows’ Program, please view our website at http://law.ubalt.edu/clinics/fellows/
The University of Baltimore ("UB" or "University") does not discriminate on the basis of sex, gender, race, religion, age, disability, national origin, ethnicity, sexual orientation, gender identity, or other legally protected characteristics in its programs, activities or employment practices. UBalt is an Equal Opportunity/Affirmative Action/ADA Compliant Employer & Title IX Institution.