Outstanding Public Service from the Graduating Class of 2021

Public Service Awards
Every spring, the Public Service Law Center hosts an award ceremony and reception to celebrate graduating students who have performed extraordinary pro bono and public service work during law school.  Students engage in about thousands of hours of pro bono work, providing assistance to survivors of domestic violence, immigrants and refugees, LGBTQ individuals seeking a range of protections, low wage earners, returning veterans seeking medical care, tenants at risk of eviction or desperately needing repairs, exploited workers, consumers struggling with debt, persons facing foreclosure, children needing advocacy to obtain a decent education, and to many others. In addition to working with myriad non-profit organizations including The Legal Aid Society and Legal Services NYC, our students have developed dozens of pro bono projects that help improve the quality of life for vulnerable individuals and families.
Gold Award: 1,000+ Hours
Tara Mahon
Lauren Miller
Steven Montesano
Catherine Perez
Jessica Phillips
Zachary Rippe
Celeste Russell
Henna Rustami
Amanda Schaefer
Mckenzie Szarmach
Elliot Disha Tanha
Heather Todoroff
Maya Ureno-Dembar
David Vegvari
Rebecca Whedon
Christina Yellamaty
Michael Yoon
Hassan Ahmed
Kim Aquino
Melanie Bell
Zoe Bernstein
Alexandra Bertolino
Mark Bhuptani
Mary Bianco
Connor Blancato
Benjamin Buford
Mary Campbell
Semyon Davydov
Alexandra Dudas
Mia Guthart
Daniella Haviv
Michelle Lam
Jamie Levitt
Jennifer Liles
Devin Ly
Silver Award: 500+ Hours
Jason Houda
Lillianna Iorfino
Zachary Kotin
Jacqueline Lasker
Haley Leibowitz
Elise Lindenmayer
Rene Macioce
Bridget Mcdonagh
Gisette Paez
Alexa Anastasia Pantelidis
Jessica Paszko
Daniel Rabbani
Jennifer Rabbino
Ariana Reinhertz
Blaire Rose
Alexandra Sherer
Madison Smiley
Annabel Stanley
Christina Taylor
Evan Teich
Henry Thomson-Smith
Saba Waqar
Samuel Weinstein
Isabel Agosto
Francisco Alvarez
Ashley Avera
James Bass
Taylor Bates
Dzenela Becic
Alexa Bennett
Elizabeth Berkowitz
Ryan Bolger
Lance Bond
Kyle Campion
Joanna Chalifoux
Emma Charap
Michelle Chen
Sarah Colgan
Jill Davis
Marcelle Little Dawes
Jonathan Fertig
Michael Fiedler
KT Firstenberger
Tyler Fritzhand
Gehan Ghanem
Kathryn Gutt
Megan Hallson
Public Service: 250+ Hours
Desiree Knight
Susan Kritzmacher
Sheilagh Lichtenfels
Xuan Lu
Rachel Maryash
Ernira Mehmetaj
Sarah Meyers
Kate Rael
Hyezhin Rhee
Nick Rybarczyk
Oren Silverman
Eliza Simons
Jacqueline Steinberg
Noelle Stone
James Williams
Matthew Aronowitz
Andrew Baranetsky
Cian Barron
Blake Benton
Benjamin Black
Hyanna Cardoso
Elise Dee
Aaron Doyer
Tal Edri
Sarah Francois
Maggie Frei
Nicholas Fuchs
Andrew Garcia
Elizabeth Grefrath-Sessions
Janelle Jerome
Pro Bono Project Leaders
Elaina Mansley
Mehvish Maqbool
Oscar Matlala
Jesse Mautner
Fiona McFarland
Layla Noriega
Catherine Perez
Karra Puccia
Mateo Rendon
Monica Sanchez
Oren Silverman
Darby Singh
Michael Yoon
Amanda Ackaway
Kim Aquino
Zoe Bernstein
Jacqueline Bywater
Caitlin Cash
Joanna Chalifoux
Carley Cooke
Alexandra Dudas
KT Firstenberger
Joseph Giacona
Daniella Haviv
Jackie Lasker
Sheilagh Lichtenfels
Pro Bono Scholars
Alexandra Bertolino
KT Firstenberger
Talysia Francis
Sarah Francois
Gehan Ghanem
Joseph Giacona
Catherine Perez
Celeste Russell
Oren Silverman
Michael Yoon
"I recently ran across this quote from Theodore Roosevelt: Nobody cares how much you know until they know how much you care. We do know how much you care. So, despite current circumstances, we wanted to honor all of you for your hard work and dedication as well as for confirming Brooklyn Law School’s longstanding commitment to public service and social justice."
Dean Stacy Caplow