Two AUWCL Students Selected as 2020 Gallogly Public Interest Fellows

Feb. 27, 2020

American University Washington College of Law (AUWCL) is proud to announce the selection of two 3L students as fellows for this year’s Gallogly Family Foundation Public Interest Fellowship Program.

3Ls Sahar Takshi and Hannah Yates are the fourth class from AUWCL to be selected for this prestigious fellowship.

Jim Gallogly and his family started the Gallogly Family Foundation in 2011. His daughter, Kasey DeLuke, is the foundation’s Executive Director and a 2009 graduate of AUWCL. The foundation’s giving is focused on educational opportunities and land conservation. Modeled after the Skadden Public Interest Fellowship program, the Gallogly Foundation Fellows work for nonprofit organizations that provide direct legal services to low-income individuals and/or those deprived of their civil or human rights.

“We are thrilled to support Sahar and Hannah as they begin their careers as public interest attorneys,” DeLuke said. “Their focus on elder law services will have a huge positive impact on underserved communities in Washington, D.C. and rural Virginia.”

Sahar Takshi

Sahar Takshi
 

During her time at AUWCL, Takshi has interned with organizations that advocate for seniors rights, including AARP/Legal Counsel for the Elderly, Justice in Aging, and the Office of Elder Justice at the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. She also had the opportunity to represent clients with disabilities as a student attorney in the Disability Rights Law Clinic. Takshi is currently a research assistant with the Georgetown Institute of Technology Law & Policy working on policy papers about algorithmic bias in the areas of public benefits, employment, and risk/threat assessments and their potential discriminatory effects against people with disabilities.

As a Gallogly Fellow, Takshi will work at the AARP Legal Counsel for the Elderly in D.C. There, she will partner with their Economic and Health Security Unit to address the disparities in the District’s provision of Medicaid home- and community-based long-term care services through the Elderly and Persons With Physical Disabilities Waiver program (EPD Waiver), representing seniors whose EPD Waiver services are terminated or reduced, or who are denied from the program, in their administrative hearings; collaborating with the Office of Administrative Hearings to create resources for pro se litigants; and researching methods to bolster the availability and accessibility of home- and community-based long-term care services in the District and present those findings to the D.C. Council.

“I am extremely excited to serve my community as a Gallogly Family Foundation Fellow and to work alongside the incredible attorneys at AARP Legal Counsel for the Elderly,” Takshi said. “This opportunity is an important step towards empowering low-income seniors and creating a sustainable future for home-based long-term care in D.C.”

Hannah Yates

Hannah Yates
 

Yates has interned at the Virginia Poverty Law Center, AARP Legal Counsel for the Elderly, and the Legal Aid Justice Center during her time at AUWCL. She has also volunteered with Tzedek DC and the Justice Collaborative. In 2019, she participated in an alternative spring break trip to the Navajo Nation, where she volunteered with DNA-People’s Legal Services. Hannah is currently a student attorney with the Disability Rights Law Clinic, and serves as a Dean's Fellow for both the Office of Public Interest and the Office of Development and Alumni Relations.

As a Gallogly Fellow, Yates will partner with Blue Ridge Legal Services to provide legal services to historically underserved rural seniors living in Virginia’s Shenandoah Valley. As an advocate for older adults, she hopes to improve rural seniors’ access to aging services and prevent elder abuse and neglect, allowing rural seniors to stay in their communities.

"I am incredibly excited to for this opportunity to serve my community,” Yates said. “Blue Ridge Legal Services is an excellent resource for the community, and our work together will protect the dignity and rights of older adults in Virginia's Shenandoah Valley."