ELC Executive Director Deborah Gordon Klehr is featured in Generocity‘s article on women leading public interest law organizations in Philadelphia. Read more here.
ELC staff
ELC Executive Director Deborah Gordon Klehr Elected to Membership in the American Law Institute
On October 24, The American Law Institute announced the election of 37 new members nationwide, including ELC’s Executive Director Deborah Gordon Klehr. The American Law Institute is the leading independent organization in the United States producing scholarly work to clarify, modernize, and otherwise improve the law. “This latest group of new members exemplifies the diversity in perspective and experience essential to the work of The American Law Institute,” said ALI President David F. Levi. “We always hope to work with thoughtful and wise people who care about the things that we do. This is another great opportunity to do just that.” Congratulations Deborah!
Maura McInerney, Esq., Appointed ELC’s New Legal Director
The Board and Staff of the Education Law Center are thrilled to announce that Maura McInerney has been named ELC’s Legal Director! Maura, an attorney at the Education Law Center since 2007, has over thirty years of litigation experience in the private and public sectors. Maura’s appointment is an exciting new development as we continue to grow our work. She is a brilliant, hard-working, visionary, and compassionate attorney. More information here.
ELC Welcomes New Board Members, Board Officers, and Staff
Please join us in welcoming our
- Two new Board members: W. John Lee and Lezlie Madden,
- Two new Board Officers: Gretchen Santamour and Al Suh,
- Five new members of ELC’s staff: Reynelle Brown Staley, Paige Joki, Rabiyah Mujahid, Jackie Perlow, and Lizzy Wingfield.
Click here for more details about our growing team.
ELC Staff Attorney Cheryl Kleiman will be honored on July 26th at The Incline’s “Who’s Next in Education” celebration.
ELC Staff Attorney Cheryl Kleiman of ELC’s Pittsburgh Office will be honored on July 26th at The Incline’s “Who’s Next in Education” celebration. The event honors Pittsburgh’s emerging leaders in education. Join ELC as Who’s Next in Education Honors Cheryl
Program and Administrative Assistant Job Opening in Pittsburgh
The Education Law Center is hiring a Program and Administrative Assistant in its Pittsburgh, PA office. The Program and Administrative Assistant is responsible for general office management and administration, coordination, and contributions to program implementation, communication, and development strategies and other administrative support for three full time attorneys. The Program Administrative Coordinator is a key member of our staff and is involved in all aspects of our work. This position is critical to ensuring that our Pittsburgh office operates efficiently and effectively, and in collaboration with our Philadelphia office, to provide high quality legal services on issues of public education to parents, students, and community advocates across Pennsylvania. This position is to be filled as soon as possible.
Click here to view the full announcement and how to apply.
Click here to view other opportunities to work with ELC.
Education Law Center Welcomes Two Accomplished Attorneys to its Staff
May 2016
Education Law Center welcomes two experienced staff attorneys! Kristina Moon and Thena Robinson-Mock have joined ELC’s team of lawyers committed to ensuring that all children in Pennsylvania have access to a quality public education.
Kristina Moon joined the Philadelphia office on Monday, May 9. Kristina comes to us from Prisoners’ Legal Services in New York, where as a staff attorney she specialized in young adult advocacy, administrative advocacy, and federal civil rights litigation.
Kristina previously worked as a litigation associate at Dechert LLP in New York and as a fellow at the Juvenile Law Center in Philadelphia. Kristina is a graduate of Franklin & Marshall College and Temple University’s Beasley School of Law. She brings a wealth of litigation experience and deep understanding of civil rights.
Thena Robinson-Mock joined the Education Law Center’s Pittsburgh office on May 16. Thena was most recently a Senior Attorney and Director of the “Ending the Schoolhouse to Jailhouse Track” Program at the Advancement Project. Thena brings extensive experience with issues of education equity as a staff attorney at the Southern Poverty Law Center.
Thena is a graduate of Hampton University and Loyola University New Orleans College of Law. She is the recipient of the “40 under 40” award from Gambit Weekly in New Orleans and was named as a Women Rule! Leadership Honoree from Oprah Magazine and the White House Project.
Education Law Center is pleased to welcome these two experienced attorneys who will expand our capacity to protect the educational rights of students and families and further support ELC’s work to ensure all children in Pennsylvania have access to quality public education.
Work with ELC: Attorney and Paralegal Positions
The Education Law Center, a statewide nonprofit legal advocacy organization founded in 1975, is seeking:
- a full-time policy attorney in our office in Philadelphia, PA
- a full-time staff attorney in our office in Pittsburgh, PA
- a full-time paralegal in our office in Philadelphia, PA
Applicants will be reviewed on a rolling basis.
Click here to learn more.
Public Interest Leadership Changes Reflect National Trend
June 15, 2015 – by Ben Seal, The Legal Intelligencer – The Philadelphia public interest community is in the midst of a flurry of leadership changes, and as longtime pillars of the community pass on their organizations’ torches, the same appears to be happening nationwide as a generational shift occurs. Continue reading
Education Law Center names Deborah Gordon Klehr Executive Director
The Board of Directors of the Education Law Center-PA is pleased to announce the appointment of Deborah Gordon Klehr as Executive Director.
With nearly a decade of legal experience at ELC, Deborah has shown a deep commitment to the Center’s mission and is well respected as an effective and strategic leader statewide on issues of public education. Deborah brings extensive expertise on education law and policy issues, including fairness in school discipline, equal access to education for at-risk students, and fair funding for public education. She has served as ELC’s Interim Executive Director since the end of 2014. Deborah has strong working relationships with the education policy and advocacy communities across Pennsylvania and nationally.
“We are thrilled that Deborah has accepted the role of Executive Director. We know that the Education Law Center will continue to thrive under her direction. Deborah will ably lead ELC in the tireless pursuit of quality public education for all children in Pennsylvania,” said ELC Board President Dr. Bruce Campbell, Jr. “I am looking forward to continuing to work with Deborah as we take ELC into the future,” said Nancy A. Hubley, Director of ELC’s Western PA office located in Pittsburgh.
Deborah joined ELC after clerking for U.S. District Court Judge Raymond J. Dearie in the Eastern District of New York. She was selected for and served on the Supreme Court of Pennsylvania’s Juvenile Court Procedural Rules Committee and currently serves on the Executive Committee of the Campaign for Fair Education Funding. Deborah has taught education law at the University of Pennsylvania’s Graduate School of Education, and her article Addressing the Unintended Consequences of No Child Left Behind and Zero Tolerance: Better Strategies for Safe Schools and Successful Students was published in theGeorgetown Journal on Poverty Law and Policy. Deborah serves on several non-profit boards. She is a graduate of Princeton University and Harvard Law School. Deborah previously taught kindergarten and first grade in Hoboken, N.J. She resides in Philadelphia with her husband and two children.
Since its founding in 1975, ELC’s mission is to ensure that all children in Pennsylvania have access to a quality public education. ELC pursues this mission by advocating on behalf of the most vulnerable students — children living in poverty, children of color, children in the foster care and juvenile justice systems, children with disabilities, English language learners, and children experiencing homelessness.
For more information, visit www.elc-pa.org or follow on Twitter @edlawcenterpa.
Fellowship Opportunities
ELC seeks to sponsor applicants for postgraduate legal fellowships to start in the Fall of 2016. Applicants should be law students graduating in the Spring of 2016 or current law clerks and should have a demonstrated commitment to public interest law.
ELC Webinar on School Climate and Discipline for Youth in Foster Care
Join ELC for this hour-long webinar highlighting current best practices, policies, and tools that can improve school climate for all students, and especially those in the child welfare system. The webinar was developed for educators, school administrators, teachers, and advocates, and guides participants through the Legal Center on Foster Care and Education’s new tool on school discipline.