Newman Ferrara LLP is pleased to announced that one of our law clerks, Courtney Chenette, was recently honored by the Pace Women's Justice Center with the "Justice for Women Award"--given for her work with the Family Court Legal Program and her commitment to domestic violence issues, women's rights and public interest law.
Congratulations, Courtney!
Justice for Women Award Courtney Frances Chenette
This is the second year of the Center's Justice for Women Award, which is being generously funded by Dr. Sheree Wen. The award is given annually to a current Pace Law School student who successfully completed the Center's Family Court Legal Program ("FCLP") Externship. The Justice for Women Award recipient is selected by the Award Committee based on criteria such as commitment to domestic violence issues and women's rights, public interest law, diversity, and scholarship.
COURTNEY FRANCES CHENETTE, Pace Law '12, has been selected as this year's recipient of the Justice for Women Award. Ms. Chenette demonstrated her strong commitment to domestic violence issues and public interest law and exhibited a high level of scholarship even before coming to Pace Law School. As a gender and women's studies major and summa cum laude honors student at Hollins University, Ms. Chenette volunteered het time as a counselor and trainer at the Roanoke, Virginia-based Coalition against Sexual Assault Center from 2006 to 2009. During the course of her studies at Pace Law since 2009, Ms. Chenette has been named a Dean's Scholar and a Presidential Scholar. In the summer of 2010, Ms. Chenette first interned at the legal services organization Day One, representing teenage and young adult victims of domestic violence under a student practice order in the Family Courts and Integrated Domestic Violence Courts throughout New York City. Ms. Chenette then participated in the Pace Women's Justice Center's Family Court Legal Program Externship in the spring of 2011 before again returning to Day One with a NYU Charles H. Revson Law Student Public Interest Fellowship in the summer of 2011. In her Justice for Women award application, Ms. Chenette cited her work serving clients through Day One and PWJC's Family Court Legal Program as "the reason I came to law school" further stating "I chose Pace Law because of this opportunity to grow academically, professionally, and personally in a field I am deeply committed to. The Pace Women's Justice Center Externship lived up to all these expectations...It is my daily motivation that the help I can provide as a law student and soon, as a lawyer, makes a tangible difference. I am fortunate to have had these opportunities through Pace, and look forward to continuing my lifetime commitment to support survivors through the law after graduation."
Dr. Sheree Wen, U.S. National Commissioner for UNESCO, has been a longtime supporter of women's organizations and the Pace Women's Justice Center. Dr. Wen has committed to funding the Justice for Women Award for five years.