Deadlines
- Northeastern: 02/06/2023
- Fellowship: 02/06/2023
Contact
If you meet the eligibility criteria and are interested in applying for this fellowship, please fill out a preliminary questionnaire. You may contact the office with any questions.
Award Details
Since 1940, the NAACP Legal Defense Fund (LDF) has been committed to racial justice and equity. Through litigation, advocacy, and public education, LDF seeks structural changes to expand democracy, eliminate disparities, and achieve racial justice in a society that fulfills the promise of equality for all Americans. LDF is building on this legacy with the Marshall-Motley Scholars Program.
Named in honor of civil rights legends Thurgood Marshall — LDF's founder and the nation’s first Black Supreme Court Justice — and Constance Baker Motley, former LDF attorney and the first Black woman to become a federal judge, the MMSP will create pathways to leadership, self-sufficiency, and socio-economic progress, while developing individuals to become ambassadors and advocates for transformational change in Black communities in the South.
This program comes at a time when Black students are facing more barriers than ever to attend law school. Studies show that the cost of a private law school education has grown by a whopping 175% since 1985. According to the American Bar Association, student loans take a disproportionate toll on lawyers of color, often forcing them to take unwanted career paths. The support offered by the MMSP is an intentional effort to address the racial and economic barriers that often deter students from pursuing their dreams of becoming civil rights attorneys, and a targeted effort to support the civil rights ecosystem in the South.
Term Length: 5 years
US Citizenship Not Required
To be eligible to participate in the Marshall-Motley Scholars Program (MMSP), applicants must:
- Hold a bachelor’s degree from an accredited college or university no later than September 2021.
- Be admitted, or expect to be admitted, to an ABA-accredited law school as a first-year, full-time law student to begin in the fall of 2021.
- Eligibility is limited to students beginning law school in fall of 2021. Law students who have completed one or more semesters of law school or who intend to defer enrollment are not eligible.
Part-time law students are not eligible.
Applicants do not need to designate the law school they will be attending at the time of application. Many applicants may not be admitted to law school at the time they submit their MMSP application. However, all applicants that are selected to participate in the MMSP are required to demonstrate admission and plans to enroll at an ABA-accredited law school prior to receiving any program funds. - Be eligible to work in the United States.
- Intend to pursue a career in Civil Rights law, and, if awarded, will work full-time in pursuit of racial justice in a southern state for a period of 8 years immediately following the fellowship portion of the MMSP.
- Be able to describe in their application their sustained personal engagement in Civil Rights and racial justice in one or more of the following areas:
- Work/Internship
- Academic/Coursework
- Campus Organizations
- Community-based Organizations
- Volunteer
- Research
The Marshall-Motley Scholar is:
• Purposeful & Committed: We want to understand why you care deeply about racial justice and why you are committed to pursuing the practice of civil rights law.
• Resilient: We want to understand how you foresee challenges, respond to them, and bounce back from them.
• Prepared to Lead: We want to understand how you are uniquely equipped to take on such a substantial leadership role in the world.
• Connected: We want aspiring lawyers who have a demonstrated commitment to working on issues of racial justice and equality and who have an interest in working in the South.
Over the next five years, the MMSP will afford 50 aspiring civil rights lawyers:
- A full law school scholarship for tuition, room, board, and incidentals to alleviate the debt burden that can prevent future lawyers from pursuing a career in racial justice;
- Summer internships at LDF and other national civil rights organizations with offices in the South to begin their training as civil rights lawyers early in their law school careers;
- A two-year postgraduate fellowship at a national, regional, or local civil rights organization with a racial justice law practice in the South; and
- Access to special trainings sponsored by the LDF and the National Academy of Sciences.
In return, the Scholars will commit to serving as civil rights lawyers based in the South, engaged in a law practice focused on achieving racial justice for 8 years following the conclusion of their fellowship. The MMSP will continue to offer support for the newly emerging civil rights lawyers as they develop their practice and form a distinguished regional network of legal practitioners.
A complete application package should be completed online and will include the following components:
- Contact and Demographic Information
- Personal Statement
- Essays (2)
- Undergraduate Transcript(s)
- Résumé
- LSAT or GRE Report
- 3 Letters of Recommendation
Review Process and Selection Timeline
January 18, 2021 – Application Opens
February 16, 2021 – Application Deadline (5 PM EST)
February/March – Phase 1 Review and Semifinalists Selected
March 29 – Phase 2 Materials Due (Semifinalists)
March/April – Phase 2 Review and Finalists Selected
April/May – Finalist Interviews
Eary May – Scholars Announced
Interested? Have Questions?
If you meet the eligibility criteria and are interested in a fellowship or opportunity, please fill out a preliminary questionnaire. Contact the office with any questions: