Public Service Program Director

The Public Service Program Director leads Southwestern’s Public Service Program (PSP), including pro bono initiatives, student engagement, and public-interest career development. The Director builds and sustains collaborations with legal services organizations and government agencies; designs and implements high-impact programs and recruiting events in collaboration with the Career Services team and Externship Office; assist students and recent graduates with fellowship applications; and counsels individual students.

The Public Service Program Director is an exempt position and reports to the Associate Dean of Career Services.

• Design, develop, and oversee pro bono legal service volunteer opportunities and training programs for students; launch initiatives to increase student participation and support.
• In collaboration with senior leadership, establish annual goals and metrics (e.g., participation rates, training completions, pro bono hours); produce an annual PSP report for the Associate Dean, President & Dean, and Board of Trustees.
• Create and update PSP guides, handouts, web pages, and related resources.
• Plan and oversee an annual awards luncheon.
• Maintain positive relationships with employers, alumni, students, staff, and faculty.
• Serve on committees related to public service programming and awards.
• Collaborate with student organizations to design pro bono projects and student-led initiatives; help student groups manage projects.
• Manage pro bono hour tracking and compile statistics for internal and external reporting.
• Vet projects and host sites; ensure appropriate student supervision, scope-of-work, and confidentiality; manage memoranda of understanding; align with FERPA and various institutional risk policies.
• Ensure programs and materials meet accessibility standards and support diverse student participation (e.g., online students across jurisdictions and part-time day students).
• Advise on New York’s 50-hour pro bono bar-admission requirement and similar jurisdictional rules for interested students.
• Advise students and alumni on public service career goals, professional development, and legal job-search strategies; assess interests and recommend targeted avenues of exploration.
• Counsel students on application procedures for summer, academic-year, and post-graduate roles, fellowships, and government honors programs; review materials for post-graduate public interest fellowships; track outcomes.
• Develop and publicize programming (career programs, information sessions, speaker panels) focused on public service and pro bono.
• Integrate financial literacy into programs and resources.
• Stay current on federal student aid and repayment programs; coordinate with various offices, including Admissions, Financial Aid, Student Services, Externship, and Academic Success & Bar Preparation, to provide practical guidance on the financial implications of public service careers.

• Expand employer relations and increase public-sector and public-interest opportunities; attend public service career conferences and fairs and promote these opportunities to students.
• Forge positive relationships with alumni with public service backgrounds or careers.
• Represent Southwestern on the Southern California Public Interest/Public Sector Career Day Consortium and facilitate student participation in its job fair.
• Serve as the point person for post-graduate fellowship funders, host organizations, and student applicants.
• In collaboration with the Institutional Advancement Office, identify and support grant opportunities and philanthropic collaborations that expand pro bono placements and funding for fellowships, scholarships, and other opportunities.
• Represent Southwestern at national, regional, and local meetings of EJW, NALP, AALS, and interface with peer program directors.
• Oversee public service job fairs and recruiting events in partnership with the Career Services Team and Externship Office.

• Use data to make decisions and improve programming and processes.
• Research and prepare public service and public interest award…