Feature Story: GALILEE
Fifty-nine Notre Dame law students—about one-third of the first-year class—spent part of Christmas break learning more about the legal plight of the urban poor through the GALILEE program.
GALILEE, an acronym for Group Alternative Live-In Legal Education, is designed to introduce Notre Dame law students to the legal problems of the urban poor in ways impossible to learn in the classroom, and to broaden students’ understanding of the legal profession through exposure to various areas of public interest law. By spending several days meeting with public defenders, legal aid attorneys, governmental law agencies and other social service professionals, law students are provided the opportunity to explore public interest law while developing an appreciation for the tensions and complexities that result from interaction between real people and the law – something not necessarily available in casebooks.
Each participant selects one of several major cities in which to experience their immersion. This year, the cities are New York City, Chicago, Washington, D.C., Atlanta, San Francisco, Portland, and Los Angeles. There, students will visit battered women’s shelters, tour jails and prisons, ride with police officers, witness criminal trials, and meet with legal and social service professionals. GALILEE participants stay together in their chosen city in order to enhance the experience by allowing group reflection.
The GALILEE program includes two half-day seminars (one before the program and one after its completion) and requires submission of a paper documenting students’ reflections on their experiences. GALILEE participants earn one co-curricular credit (S/U) for their participation.
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