Employment Opportunities

Education Staff Attorney

The Center for Civil Rights is currently accepting applications for the position of Education Staff Attorney.  The Education Staff Attorney will have primary responsibility for the Center's Educational Advancement and Fair Opportunities Program. The Education Staff Attorney will work with parents, community organizations, public school leaders and other attorneys to advocate for the preservation of diversity in public schools and further develop the Center's strategic vision and advocacy agenda.  The full job description and application instructions are here.  

Center for Civil Rights Fellowship Overview

The Center for Civil Rights annually awards a recent law school graduate with a two-year fellowship. Fellows work under the direct supervision of the Center's senior attorneys. Fellows have primary responsibility for one program area (most recently either community development or education) and may contribute to other program areas as well. Fellows conduct legal research, work directly with Center clients and draft legal and policy documents submitted to the courts and other organizations.

A primary objective of the fellowship program is to ensure that future generations of attorneys are equipped to continue the ongoing campaign to secure fair and equal opportunities for minority and low-income people.

Fellowship Requirements

Strong fellowship applicants will have a commitment to civil rights and social justice, excellent verbal and written communication skills, be self-directed, have the ability to manage multiple assignments simultaneously, work with people with diverse perspectives and positions, and exhibit promising leadership potential through professional experiences or law school activities.

Applicants also should be graduates of an ABA accredited law school program within the last two years. Hired fellows should be admitted to a State Bar within one year of employment. Admission to the North Carolina State Bar is preferred, but not required.

How to Apply?

The 2009-2011 Center for Civil Rights Education Fellowship position has been filled. 

The Center will next hire a fellow to work with the Community Inclusion and Economic Development Program. This fellowship will begin on or around October 2011 and end on or around October 2013.  Please check back on this site for information about when and how to apply for the fellowship in early spring 2011. A complete application for a fellowship position may require a cover letter, resume, law school academic record, three references, and two writing samples (at least one should be legal in nature).

Former Fellows

Leah C. Aden

October 2007-September 2009

Leah joined the Center as a fellow to work on the education program in October 2007. Leah is a graduate of Columbia University. She received her law degree from Howard University Law School in 2006, where she was a Merit Scholar and twice recipient of the Dean's Public Interest Law Summer Fellowship. During law school, Leah was a Student Attorney with the D.C. Law Students in Court Program, a constitutional law instructor in a D.C. charter school, and a research assistant to Professor Andrew E. Taslitz. Further, Leah served as a legal research intern with the Mississippi Center for Justice, NAACP Legal Defense & Educational Fund, Inc., and the ACLU Women's Rights Project. After graduation, she served as a judicial law clerk to the Honorable John T. Nixon of the U.S. District Court for the Middle District of Tennessee. Prior to attending law school, Leah was a middle school teacher in a D.C. public school. 

Leah completed her fellowship in September 2009. Leah will relocate to New York City to work for two years as a litigation associate at Fried, Frank, Harris, Shriver & Jacobson, LLP, followed by two years as a staff attorney at the NAACP Legal Defense and Educational Fund, Inc.  

Diane M. Standaert   

August 2006-August 2008

Diane joined the Center as a fellow working with the community development program in August 2006. Diane is a graduate of Florida State University. She received her law degree from UNC-Chapel Hill in 2006 where she was a recipient of the Chancellor's Scholarship, the Law School's highest merit scholarship. Prior to law school, Diane was a housing policy analyst with the Florida Housing Finance Corporation in Tallahassee, FL, a law clerk for the NC Court of Appeals and a summer associate with Brown, Goldstein, and Levy in Baltimore, MD. During law school, Diane was a research assistant with the UNC Center for Civil Rights. She is the recipient of the inaugural Winston Crisp Award given to the graduating student who has had a lasting impact on public service while a student at the UNC School of Law.

Diane completed her fellowship in August of 2008. Currently, Diane is Legislative Counsel at the Center for Responsible Lending in Durham, NC.

Barry Williams

March 2006-June 2007

Barry joined the Center in March 2006 to work with the community development program. Barry is a graduate of the University of North Carolina School of Law where he received his law degree in 2005 and was a recipient of the Chancellor's Scholarship, the Law School's highest merit scholarship. Prior to attending UNC-Chapel Hill Law School, Barry attended Hampton University where he received his BA in Mass Media Arts and also was awarded the Presidential Scholar award. During law school, Barry was a research assistant with the UNC Center for Civil Rights and also an assistant to Professor Thomas Hazen where he updated Uniform Commercial Code.

Currently, Barry is the Diversity Project Coordinator at Conservation Trust for North Carolina located in Raleigh, NC.

Torrey D. Dixon

July 2005-May 2007

Torrey joined the Center in July 2005 and worked on a number of civil rights matters including education, voting rights and community development. Torrey is a graduate of Averett University in Danville, Virginia, where he was valedictorian of his graduating class. He received his law degree and master's of theological studies degree from Duke University in December 2004. During law school, Torrey was a legal research assistant witht he Southern Christian Leadership Conference and served as a clerk with Danville Circuit Court in Virginia.

Currently, Torrey is the Director for Fair Vote North Carolina, and he is based in Durham, NC.

Shoshannah A. Smith

September 2004-August 2006

Shannah joined the Center to work with the education program in September 2004. Shannah is a graduate of New College of Florida, Honors College of the Florida University system. She received her law degree from UNC-Chapel Hill in 2004. Prior to attending law school, Smith worked for Manatee Glens Rape Crisis Center and Planned Parenthood of Southwest and Central Florida. While in law school, Smith designed and implemented the Pro Se divorce clinic, which helps people who cannot afford attorneys navigate the divorce process in North Carolina.

Shannah currently is the Director of the Orange County Human Rights and Relations Department in Chapel Hill, NC.

Heather Hunt

January 2003-January 2005

Heather joined the Center as a fellow to work with the community development program in January 2003. She graduated with a BA in History from Columbia College in New York City and received a J.D. from the University of North Carolina School of Law in May, 2002.

Currently, Heather is the Assistant Director at the UNC Center on Poverty, Work, and Opportunity and works just down the hall from the Center for Civil Rights' staff.

Rebecca High

January 2003-January 2005

Prior to becoming a fellow at the Center in January, 2003, Rebecca was a researcher for the North Carolina Death Penalty Project, collecting and recording information on death penalty cases to document racial disparities in capital sentencing in North Carolina. Before law school, she was a researcher and editor at the Institute on Race and Poverty at the University of Minnesota Law School. She also worked in independent film and theater, mostly in New York's Lower East Side. Rebecca holds and AB from Harvard University and a J.D. from UNC-CH.

Summer Internships

The Center provides current law students summer employment opportunities. Summer interns assist with the Center's current case load, participate in special projects, and have opportunities to meet lawyers, advocates, and community leaders that are engaged in social justice work.

How to Apply?

Law students interested in applying for Summer 2010 internships should submit a cover letter, resume, and current (unofficial) law school transcript to: Adrienne M. B. Davis, Director of Research, Community Services and Student Programs, UNC School of Law Center for Civil Rights, CB#3382, Law School Annex, Chapel Hill, NC 27599-3382, civilrights@unc.edu. (Please do not fax application materials.)  Submit application materials no later than 5:00 p.m. on October 2, 2009. 

Fall/Spring Externships, and Fall/Spring Pro Bono Opportunities

The Center also offers externships and pro bono work during academic year. Externs and pro bono students obtain practical experiences in civil rights lawyering, ensuring that the law school is fulfilling its public service mission, and furthering the university-wide efforts to engage with North Carolina communities. Read more about the 2009 Spring Break pro bono trip.

The Center also engages UNC undergraduate students, who express an interest in applying to law school and pursuing a social justice career, to work with the Center on various projects.