Public Interest Resource Center Staff
-
Email: [email protected]
As Assistant Dean, Leah leads and coordinates much of the law school's public interest and social justice efforts. Before becoming Assistant Dean, she was the Director of Public Interest Student Engagement in PIRC, working closely with public interest students and student leaders of our pro bono projects. Before coming (back) to Fordham, Leah worked as a public defender at The Bronx Defenders for almost a decade. While at The Bronx Defenders, in addition to zealously representing clients, she created the Client Library to provide books to incarcerated and non-incarcerated clients and started an initiative to address solitary confinement. Leah will always be a public defender at heart. Leah received her law degree from Fordham Law School and her undergraduate degree from Cornell University. During her years at Fordham, Leah was a Stein Scholar and served as the president of two PIRC student organizations.
Leah is admitted to the Bar in New York and Connecticut.
-
Email: [email protected]
As the Director of Public Interest Scholars and Fellowships, Angela works closely with student leaders and faculty directors to administer and support all aspects of the Stein Scholars Program. Previously, Angela was Deputy Director in the housing practice at Bronx Legal Services, where she advocated to prevent evictions and secure safe and affordable housing on behalf of low-income New Yorkers. During her time at Bronx Legal Services, she focused much of her litigation on rent overcharges and helped preserve rent stabilization protections for many Bronx tenants. She also regularly engaged with and mentored law students as a co-facilitator of the summer internship program.
Angela received her J.D. from the University of Nebraska College of Law and her B.A. in International Studies from the University of Utah. She is admitted to practice law in New York State and the Southern District of New York. -
E-mail: [email protected]
Sofia Linarte is the Director of Engagement and Counseling at Fordham Law. Sofia works closely with law students, faculty, and the broader legal community to identify and support opportunities that connect students with enriching, experiential learning in the service of others. Sofia also provides students with individualized public interest career counseling and supports the exceptional work of PIRC's student-led organizations.
Prior to joining PIRC, Sofia was the Managing Attorney at Catholic Charities NYC’s Unaccompanied Children’s Program (“UCP”) where she led a team of 50 attorneys, case managers, and other legal professionals in annually helping thousands of young immigrants who were facing family separation, federal government detention, and deportation by providing pro bono know-your-rights presentations, legal screenings, and legal representation. Outside the courtroom, UCP welcomed recently-arrived young immigrants with educational and integration opportunities, social services, and community-building experiences. Sofia has practiced across various state and federal settings, and has extensive expertise in non-profit legal program management and in representing survivors of complex trauma.
Sofia earned her B.A. at Rice University and her J.D. at Fordham University School of Law. During law school, Sofia was a Stein Scholar, a Feerick Fellow, a New York Women’s Bar Association Foundation Fellow, served as president of two PIRC student organizations, and earned the Archibald R. Murray Public Service Award summa cum laude.
Sofia is admitted to practice law in New York State and the United States Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit.
-
Ashleigh provides career counseling for students and alumni focused on pursuing public interest career opportunities. Ashleigh joins the PIRC advising team with years of experience as Director of Public Interest Programs at another New York law school, where working with students was her favorite part of the job.Prior to working in law school administration, Ashleigh worked as a public defender with Orleans Public Defenders (criminal defense) and Neighborhood Defender Service of Harlem (family defense). Ashleigh's passion for advising future public defenders through internship and externship programs led her career towards student advising.Ashleigh earned her J.D. from Harvard Law School and her B.A. from Wellesley College. She is admitted to practice in New York.
-
E-mail: [email protected]
Sophie Spiegel Klein focuses on advising students who are applying for postgraduate fellowships. Prior to joining PIRC, Sophie worked for nearly a decade as a public defender representing low-income individuals in criminal and family court proceedings across New York City, first at Neighborhood Defender Service of Harlem and then at Brooklyn Defender Services (BDS). At BDS, Sophie served as Team Leader of the Integrated Defense Practice, where she represented clients facing concurrent proceedings in criminal and family court. Sophie is Of Counsel at the Family Justice Law Center, where she consults with FJLC’s litigation team on cases challenging systemic abuses in the child welfare system. Sophie is a graduate of Brown University and New York University School of Law. She is admitted to practice law in New York.
-
Email: [email protected]
Adiaha Foglino is the Office Manager for The Public Interest Resource Center. She will be able to help with any administrative task you may need, such as helping with email accounts, student group space, and listing opportunities in PIRC UP!