Heather Adams

Heather Adams, a third-year law student at DePaul University College of Law, is an intern with The Law Project. Heather graduated from West Virgina State University with a BS in Business Administration and a minor in Economics. At DePaul, Heather participated in the Community Economic Development Clinic as well as the Poverty Law Clinic. Heather is passionate about building community wealth through small business development. Her law school work also includes internships with Business and Professional People for the Public Interest and the Honorable Judge Franklin U. Valderramma of the Circuit Court of Cook County. Prior to law school, Heather was the Donor Relations Director for Amethyst, Inc., a non profit dedicated to providing addiction treatment and long-term housing for homeless women and their children.

Rachel Brady, Civil Rights Intern

(May-August 2011, January 2012-)

Rachel Brady is a second-year law student at Chicago-Kent College of Law pursuing a Public Interest certificate. She graduated from Macalester College in 2007 with a degree in Political Science. As a Teach For America corps member, she taught 7^th and 8^th grade math and science on the southwest side of Chicago, and also earned her masters degree in teaching. While teaching, she became extremely passionate about inequities in the educational system and hopes to continue working to reform the public education system throughout her career. Before entering law school, she spent six months working as a farm hand on farms throughout New Zealand. She began interning with the Lawyers’ Committee in May of 2011 and has continued her work on the Educational Equity Project during the year.

Renee Hatcher, Civil Rights Fellow

Renee Hatcher is a Civil Rights Fellow, placed primarily in the Education Equity Project, Employment Rights Project, and Settlement Assistance Project. Renee received her Juris Doctorate from New York University School of Law and a Bachelor of Arts in Political Science and Management from Indiana University- Bloomington. During law school, Renee participated in the Racial Justice Clinic working with the ACLU's National School-Prison-Pipeline Project. She also was member of the Global Justice Clinic, researching the impacts of U.S. counter-terrorism and national security measures on gender equality. Prior to joining the Chicago Lawyers' Committee, Renee worked for Legal Services Corporation as the Inaugural Helaine Barnett Fellow. Her law school work also includes internships with the International Network for Economic, Social, and Cultural Rights (ESCR-Net) and a congressional member of the House of Representatives. Prior to law school, Renee interned with a lobbying firm, Politics Direct, based in London, UK.

Sharon Kim, Civil Rights Intern

(May-August 2011, January 2012-)

Ayman Mourad, Civil Rights Fellow

(January 2012-)

Ayman Mourad is a Civil Rights fellow working primarily for the Employment Rights Project and the Hate Crime program. He graduated from Whitman College in 2005 with a Bachelor’s degree in English Literature and received his Juris Doctorate from Lewis & Clark Law School in 2011. Ayman spent the three years between College and Law School working as an English teacher in South Korea and Japan. While living abroad, Ayman passed the fourth level Japanese Language Proficiency Test. During law school he participated extensively in Moot Courts, including the Texas Young Lawyers Moot Court Competition and the National Native American Law School Association Moot Court.

Andrea Repphun

Andrea Repphun is a Civil Rights Fellow, placed primarily in the Settlement Assistance Project and Employment Opportunity Project. Andrea graduated from the University of Wisconsin-Madison in 2007 with a Bachelor of Arts in Spanish and a certificate in criminal justice. She received her Juris Doctorate from Drake University Law School in 2011. During law school, Andrea worked for a preeminent employment discrimination law firm where she became passionate about using the law to help disadvantaged individuals in an employment context and better workplace conditions in general. She was also a junior staff member on the Drake Journal of Agricultural Law. Her student note, Pigs-in-a-Blanket: How Current Meat Inspection Regulations Wrap America in False Security, was published in the Spring 2011 edition.

Shana Scott, Civil Rights Fellow

(January 2012-)

Shana Scott is first year law student at Loyola University Chicago School of Law. She graduated with an undergrad degree in Biology from Morgan State University and a Masters Degree in Public Health from Armstrong Atlantic State University. Before entering law school, she worked as a Policy Consultant for the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention in Atlanta, GA. Shana is currently a member of the Intellectual Property Law Society and a Beazley Institute Health Law Fellow at Loyola.

Peter Surdel, Community Development Fellow

(September 2011-)

Peter Surdel is a Community Development Fellow with The Law Project (TLP). In this capacity, he provides legal assistance to each of The Law Project’s primary client groups: nonprofit organizations, small businesses, and first-time home buyers. Peter received his B.A. in History and American Studies from Columbia University in 2005 and graduated from Harvard Law School in 2010. Prior to joining The Law Project, Peter spent a year at the Brennan Center for Justice at New York University School of Law, where he contributed to litigation and research regarding voting rights and redistricting issues.

Taro Tomiya, Civil Rights Intern

(March 2012 -)

Taro is an undergraduate student at Northwester University majoring in Social Policy and International Studies with a minor in Spanish. On campus, he was the President of Supplies for Dreams, a student-run non-profit that provides basic school supplies and mentorship programs to Chicago Public School students. Taro also worked with Northside Power, a local community organization in Rogers Park, to help preserve and increase the affordable housing options within the area. Through these experiences, he has become passionate about reducing the discrepancy in educational and economic opportunities in the United States. During his time at the Chicago Lawyers’ Committee, he hopes to assist the efforts of the consortium in resolving these problems.

Eric White

Eric White is a Public Interest Law Initiative (PILI) Fellow. Eric received his Juris Doctor from Northwestern University School of Law and a Bachelor of Arts in Political Science from the University of Florida. Before law school, Eric was a Teach For America corps member in Charlotte, North Carolina where he taught 6^th grade social studies and science. During law school, Eric participated in the Juvenile Justice Clinic, working primarily with the Illinois Coalition for the Fair Sentencing of Children. While at Northwestern, Eric interned for the Honorable Judge Matthew F. Kennelly at the Northern District of Illinois and the Office for Civil Rights at the U.S. Department of Education. Eric was also an Associate Editor of the Northwestern University Law Review and a Kirkland & Ellis LLP Diversity Fellow. After completing his work at the Chicago Lawyers’ Committee, Eric will join the litigation department at Kirkland & Ellis LLP in Chicago.

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Interns and Fellows