Applications are due each January for the following academic year (which includes paid summer fellowships).
The Wayne Morse Center offers an annual fellowship for a small group of UO law students who have demonstrated a commitment to serve the public interest. Some have done grassroots work on civil rights or the environment, others have served as staff for nonprofits, government entities, or elected officials, others have volunteered on political campaigns or worked for their tribe. All have a commitment to change the world for the better.
The program has two parts:
- The summer job, which is a paid full-time 10-week position in Washington, D.C., Portland, or Salem. (Some positions have hybrid or remote options.)
- The academic year program, during which Law Fellows are invited to join other students affiliated with the Wayne Morse Center at optional monthly lunches with prominent speakers as well as field trips, service opportunities, and occasional trainings. Fellows also have access to one-on-one mentoring. Past lunch speakers include Oregon Supreme Court Chief Justice Martha Walters, Pulitzer Prize-winning immigrant rights advocate Jose Antonio Vargas, and then-director of the Congressional Budget Office Keith Hall.
The application for a summer fellowship serves as the application to the program itself.
Expectations
Each fellow will:
- attend an orientation in April
- write a short report about their summer experience before fall term begins
- gather together in August with Wayne Morse Law Fellows to debrief their summers
- help staff two of the Wayne Morse Center’s public events during the academic year
- attend a gathering with donors to the Law Fellows program and share about their fellowship experience
Support law fellowships with a donation (please note in the gift instructions if your gift is to be used specifically for a fellowship).
