Abby Eshghi ’16, Simon Fischer ’15 and the Mowafaghian Foundation Establish Northeastern Law Student Co-op Fund in Vancouver

04.08.26 — Northeastern University School of Law has received a gift of $200,000 from the Mowafaghian Foundation to support law student co-ops at social justice organizations in Vancouver, British Columbia. Abby Eshghi ’16, a lawyer serving as a board director of the Foundation, spearheaded the gift alongside her husband, fellow Northeastern Law grad Simon Fischer ’15.

The gift will provide compensation to law students for their co-op experience, including travel and living expenses, enabling students to work with two founding partner organizations, the legal nonprofits West Coast LEAF and BC Civil Liberties Association (BCCLA). West Coast LEAF advances gender equity and BCCLA advances human rights and civil liberties.

The initiative marks an exciting expansion of Northeastern Law's social justice work into new communities across the Northeastern Global campus network. The Vancouver campus is one location in Northeastern’s network of 13 campuses across the U.S., Canada and the U.K., all of which provide education through academic programs and curricula developed with the university’s nine colleges and schools. Learners in Vancouver can expect the same high-quality education as our flagship Boston campus with unique benefits available only in Canada.

“We are deeply grateful to Abby, Simon and the Mowafaghian Foundation for this transformative gift,” said James Hackney, dean of Northeastern Law. “This support will open extraordinary doors for our students to engage in meaningful social justice work in Vancouver and reflects the very spirit of a Northeastern Law education — learning by doing, in service of communities that need it most.”

Eshghi and Fischer’s connection to Northeastern Law runs deep. The two met while representing inmates in the Prisoners’ Rights Clinic, an experience that shaped their shared commitment to social justice and public interest law. The Mowafaghian Foundation, whose mandate is to advance education and health through philanthropy, has channeled that mission into this gift, which will empower the next generation of public interest lawyers to make an impact in British Columbia.

Additional contributions to support law student co-ops at social justice organizations are welcome at this link: give.northeastern.edu/co-op/GF0906-21.html.