11.23.21 — Diana Howat ’22 has been awarded a two-year Skadden Fellowship, among the most competitive awards for law students pursuing careers in public interest law. Howat will spend her fellowship at the EdLaw Project, where she completed a co-op in 2020. There, she will enforce the education rights of court-involved youth and young adults with disabilities who face barriers to accessing education in the community, while incarcerated, or while preparing to return to the community after a period of incarceration. She will employ direct representation, partnership with public defenders and access to justice strategies to support young people in self-advocacy. Prior to law school, Howat worked with youth and families at a nonprofit organization in Boston’s South End.
“My goal is to reach older students, who have been most deeply impacted by the school-to-prison pipeline,” said Howat. “We are failing youth when we allow system-involvement to stand in the way of education. This project will allow me to work at the intersection of the education and court systems, to amplify the voices of young people who have overcome the legal system’s dehumanizing treatment to maintain their aspirations and potential, and demand that we build pathways to address their needs.”
“We are so pleased that the Skadden Foundation is supporting Diana’s project,” said Renay Frankel ’06, director of public interest and government in the law school’s Center for Co-op and Career Development. “Her work will positively impact many communities and we are proud that Northeastern students continue to be recognized for their commitment to social justice and advocacy.”
About the Skadden Fellowship
The Skadden Fellowship Foundation, described as a “Legal Peace Corps” by the Los Angeles Times, was established in 1988 by the firm of Skadden, Arps, Slate, Meagher and Flom to support students who have shown exceptional promise in the field of public interest law. The two-year fellowship gives fellows the freedom to pursue their interests in public interest work, providing legal services to the poor, elderly, homeless and disabled, as well as those deprived of human rights or civil rights. Only 28 individuals nationwide are annually selected for this high honor. To date, the foundation has funded more than 900 fellowships. Ninety percent of former fellows remain in public service, and almost all of them continue working on the same issues they addressed in their original fellowship projects.
About Northeastern University School of Law
The nation’s leader in experiential legal education since 1968, Northeastern University School of Law offers the longest-running, most extensive experience-based legal education program in the country and is a national leader in legal education reform. Founded with cooperative legal education as the cornerstone of its program, Northeastern guarantees its students unparalleled practical legal work experiences. All students participate in full-time legal placements, and can choose from the more than 1,500 employers worldwide participating in the school’s signature Cooperative Legal Education Program. The future of legal education since 1968, Northeastern University School of Law blends theory and practice, providing students with a unique set of skills and experience to successfully practice law.
For more information, contact d.feldman@northeastern.edu.