Dr. Aizik Wolf Human Rights Post-Baccalaureate Fellows

2011: David Schmutzer, Northwestern University Law School's Center on Wrongful Convictions (CWC)

The 2011 Dr. Aizik Wolf Human Rights Post-Baccalaureate Fellowshipwas awarded to David Schmutzer (BA 2011, Political Science, Human Rights Minor). David received a Human Rights Internship in 2010 to work for Northwestern University Law School’s Center on Wrongful Convictions (CWC) , which is dedicated to identifying and rectifying wrongful convictions and other serious miscarriages of justice. The CWC was instrumental in the abolition of the death penalty in the state of Illinois this past year. His year at the CWC will be spent primarily working on a research project that examines the social factors that lead to the wrongful conviction of women. This paper is particularly relevant because women are one of the fastest growing yet greatly understudied segments of the prison population.

2010: Hannah Birnbaum, Business and Professional People for the Public Interest

The 2010Dr. Aizik Wolf Human Rights Post-Baccalaureate Fellowshipwas awarded to Hannah Birnbaum (AB 2010, Sociology). Hannah received a Human Rights Internship in 2009, during which she worked for Business and Professional People for the Public Interest (BPI) . She returned to work with BPI, a public interest law and policy center that addresses issues of social justice and quality of life in the Chicago region. BPI uses legal and policy research, advocacy, organizing, litigation and collaboration with non-profit, business, community and governmental organizations to accomplish its mission. Currently, BPI works in the program areas of affordable housing, public housing, public education, and political reform. Hannah’s year at BPI will be spent helping to develop and implement holistic school improvement strategies in the Schools in Transformation Communities project’s target communities. Hannah’s work on the STC project will not only involve traditional research, but also hands-on involvement in the communities selected through organizing, advocacy, and policy development.

2009: Julia Coburn, Centro de los Derechos del Migrante

The 2009 Dr. Aizik Wolf Human Rights Post-Baccalaureate Fellowship was awarded to Julia Coburn (AB 2009, Anthropology and Latin American Studies). Julia received a Human Rights Internship in 2008, during which she worked for Centro de los Derechos del Migrante (CDM), or Center for Migrant Rights. She returned to work with CDM, the first transnational workers' rights law center based in Mexico to focus on U.S. workplace rights. Operating on the ground in Zacatecas, Mexico, CDM is an innovative non-profit organization dedicated to improving the working conditions of migrant workers in the United States. Julia worked primarily on CDM's Justice in Recruitment Documentation project, where she researched sources of fraud and human rights violations committed against Mexican H2 guestworkers. She conducted community outreach, interviewed migrant workers, and drafted a report on guestworker recruitment in order to facilitate positive change in immigration reform policy.

2008: Rochelle Terman, Women Living Under Muslim Laws

The 2008 Dr. Aizik Wolf Human Rights Post-Baccalaureate Fellowship was awarded to Rochelle Terman, a 4th year in the College, majoring in Political Science. Rochelle received a Human Rights Internship in 2007, during which she worked for Women Living Under Muslim Laws. She returned to work with Women Living Under Muslim Laws, an international solidarity network that provides information, support and a collective space for women whose lives are shaped, conditioned or governed by laws and customs said to derive from Islam. Rochelle researched the Iranian women’s rights movement and wrote for publication, organized the Women’s Empowerment in Muslim Contexts research consortium, and served as a campaign team leader for the Global Campaign to Stop Stoning and Killing Women!. Rochelle also conducted field research in Iran, interviewed key women’s rights activists, and presented her own research at various workshops.

2007: Gary Lee, Garment Worker Center

The first Dr. Aizik Wolf Human Rights Post-Baccalaureate Fellowship was awarded to Jack Jin, Gary Lee (AB ’07, Sociology). Gary received a Human Rights Internship in 2006, and used his Fellowship to work with the Garment Worker Center in Los Angeles, using spatially-oriented research methods (such as Geographic Information Systems or "GIS") to inform and support worker organizing and empowerment projects.