With Generous Support, Public Interest Fellows Engage in Service, While Developing Their Legal Skills
Yet again, generous donors have stepped up to enable Texas A&M School of Law students to spend the summer advancing the public interest, even while developing their legal skills.
Through the student-run Texas A&M Public Interest Law Fellowship program, Texas A&M Law develops legal professionals who serve with purpose. Reflecting Texas A&M University’s Core Values, Public Interest Law Fellows become impactful models of leadership and of selfless service.
"The Public Interest Law Fellowship is a way for the community to support public interest work,” said Huyen Pham, University Distinguished Professor and Faculty Co-Advisor to the program. "Our fellows do amazing work, provide valuable legal services to our communities, and gain experiences that shape their future careers. Only the support of the entire community makes that possible.”
Over the summer of 2025, 12 fellows worked in positions from the Denton County District Attorney’s Office to the Dallas County Public Defender’s Office, and from Legal Aid of Northwest Texas to Unbound Now. To enable fellows to serve in those unpaid positions, attorneys from the community, faculty, staff, and even fellow students stepped up to help fund $3,500 fellowships, which are intended to cover a portion of their housing and other expenses over the summer.
“The Kelly Hart & Hallman Fellowship provided me with the financial assistance I needed to devote my summer to public interest work that I am passionate about,” said Mariam Farahmand, a 2L concentrating in criminal law. “It helped me take advantage of opportunities that I might otherwise have had to pass up, and helped shape my goals after graduation.”
Alison Maguire-Powell, the Crowe Dunlevy Fellow for Summer 2025, describes a similar impact on her education and professional development: “There are many law students who want to serve the public but cannot afford to take unpaid internships. The Fellowship helped remove that obstacle and let me focus on service and learning. Thanks to the Fellowship, I am more prepared to be a public interest lawyer, have clearer goals, better skills, and a stronger sense of purpose.”
Among the many donors who contributed to the Fellowship program this summer, several current students – including Zach Brown, Gwen Logsdon, and Caroline Ulanoski – deserve particular mention. Even as they are building their own career paths, these rising 3Ls committed to donating to support a full or half fellowship to support their classmates’ aspirations to work in the public interest. Two faculty members — Bob Probasco and Huyen Pham — also stepped up to support the Fellowship at those generous levels.
“Texas A&M Law is deeply grateful for the generosity of its donors — and especially the firms, students, and faculty who sponsored a full Fellowship for the summer,” said Robert B. Ahdieh, Texas A&M Law Dean and Vice President for Professional Schools and Programs. “This program is a cornerstone in advancing our students’ professional goals. A transformative summer experience in the public interest can solidify their career aspirations, strengthen their sense of purpose, and inspire a lasting commitment to public service.”
Visit the Texas A&M giving page to give to the Public Interest Law Fellowship.
Hear from some of our 2025 Public Interest Law Fellows
Mariam Farahmand
Kelly Hart & Hallman Fellow
Travis County District Attorney's Office & Collin County District Attorney's Office
Law school is a very fast-paced and unique experience, and it is sometimes difficult to see the forest through the trees. However, my summer internships provided me with insight into a future career that I feel more confident I will not only enjoy but one in which I can thrive. I am ending this summer with a clearer picture of what I want my future career to look like, and I am eager to continue striving toward that goal.
Alison Maguire-Powell
Crowe Dunlevy Fellow
Legal Aid of Northwest Texas
I came to law school interested in public service. I want to be in a role where I can represent clients directly and help protect low-income communities. This Fellowship helped turn that interest into a clear direction.
The Fellowship sends a message that public interest work matters at Texas A&M Law. Students pursuing these paths deserve support, and financial barriers should not stop law students from helping others. That support meant a lot to me. It made me feel like I was not doing this work alone. Thanks to PILF, I am more prepared to be a public interest lawyer. I have clearer goals, better skills, and a stronger sense of purpose. I am deeply grateful for the opportunity it gave me, and I hope future students will continue to benefit from it.
Adam Portillo
U.S. District Court, Western District of Texas
I thoroughly enjoyed my experience in a federal judge's chambers. I was provided with more than ample opportunity to craft my legal research and writing skills over the course of ten weeks for Senior U.S. District Court Judge David A. Ezra. All issues presented me with the opportunity to learn how the law has developed and been interpreted by courts at all levels of the federal judicial system.
My biggest takeaway from my experience is the human aspect to every set of facts in all of the cases I was assigned. Each case contained an individual who may have faced some sort of structural barrier in their community or workplace that led them to file suit in the first place. Through this, my commitment toward using the law as a tool for equity deepened.
Kaylee Vitato
Office of the Attorney General of Texas, Child Support Division
Denton County District Attorney's Office
My biggest takeaway has been the importance of separating my own perspective from the client's. My role is not to guide them toward what I would personally choose. I want to ensure that they fully understand their options, as well as that they make an informed decision for themselves. I must advocate for them with clarity, commitment, and a sense of respect, not just for their past experiences, but I must also acknowledge their future goals. I learned that trust forms the foundation of an ethical, client-centered legal practice.
I deeply appreciate that Texas A&M Law recognizes the importance of public interest work, as well as its active support for students who want to serve others through the legal profession. I feel truly honored to have received the Public Interest Law Fellowship for the summer of 2025, and I look forward to carrying the lessons, values, and purpose that I gained through my participation into every stage of my future career.