Elizabeth Frankel Fellowship

ABOUT THE YOUNG CENTER
The Young Center for Immigrant Children's Rights is a national organization dedicated to protecting and advancing the rights and best interests—safety and well-being—of immigrant children in the United States. The Young Center’s Child Advocate Program (CAP) serves as the federally-appointed bests interests representative for unaccompanied and separated immigrant children in federal custody. Through CAP’s state initiative, we also serve and are appointed by the Superior Courts of New Jersey as independent Child Advocates to children released from federal custody into the New Jersey community. Child Advocates meet with children and learn their stories in order to identify and advocate for their best interests through an interdisciplinary, trauma-informed, and culturally sensitive lens. The Young Center’s Policy Program fights for wholesale reform of the immigration system while pursuing immediate changes in policy and practice that center children’s rights and best interests in all decisions. The Technical Assistance Program, the Young Center’s newest program, offers intersectional expertise and critical resources to advocates and service providers working with immigrant children involved in child welfare and other state court systems.

The Young Center has offices in Houston, San Antonio, and Harlingen, Texas; Chicago, Illinois; New York, New York; Washington, D.C.; Phoenix, Arizona; Los Angeles, California; and Grand Rapids, Michigan. We also serve children through our programs in New Jersey.

ABOUT ELIZABETH M. FRANKEL (1977-2021)
Elizabeth M. Frankel (Liz) was the first Associate Director of the Young Center. She joined the Young Center in late 2009, as just the third full-time employee, becoming part of a trio of attorneys in Chicago who would develop and implement an entirely new model for advocating for the rights of immigrant children and youth. Today the Young Center has ten offices across the country with more than 130 staff; Liz was involved in the creation and development of each office. From 2009 to 2015, Liz taught in the Immigrant Child Advocacy Clinic at the University of Chicago Law School. She loved mentoring law students and seeing them use their skills to take pro bono cases or jobs in public interest law.

ABOUT THE ELIZABETH FRANKEL FELLOWSHIP PROGRAM
The Young Center for Immigrant Children’s Rights annual Elizabeth Frankel Fellowship began in 2022. This Fellowship Program intends to honor Liz’s passion for supporting law students as they learn to advocate effectively for immigrant children and families. The Fellowship Program will enable fellows to spend 10 weeks training to zealously advocate for children, and to carry on Liz’s vision of honoring the child’s wishes through careful, strategic best interests advocacy. The Fellows will serve as Child Advocates for individual children, communicate with stakeholders, conduct legal research and writing, and draft best interests determinations under the guidance of Young Center staff within the Child Advocate Program. The Fellows will also engage in policy advocacy through ongoing initiatives at the Young Center under the supervision of the Policy Program staff. Fellows will be based in Houston, Texas. As part of the Fellowship (and expenses covered by the Young Center), Fellows will spend one week of the Fellowship Program in the Young Center’s Harlingen office to understand how immigration patterns, enforcement, and advocacy play out on the ground along the U.S.- Mexico border. The fellows will also travel to the Young Center’s New York office to learn about the immigration system in New York. The Elizabeth Frankel Advisory Committee, comprised of Liz’s family, friends, colleagues, and Young Center staff, advises the Young Center regarding the operation of the Fellowship Program.

MINIMUM REQUIREMENTS AND QUALIFICATIONS
Law Students who are rising 2 L’s or 3 L’s


PREFERRED QUALIFICATIONS
Lived experience/knowledge that lends insight into supporting immigrant children and their families
Bilingual in Spanish and English (oral and written)
Additional consideration will be given to law students who come from backgrounds/circumstances which prevent them from engaging in pro bono work during the summer

PHYSICAL DEMANDS
Physical demands include regular attendance, keyboarding, sitting for long periods (at least 5 hours a day), and driving. Ability to use computer, telephone, and copy machine. Ability to travel by plane, car and other conveyances within U.S. Occasional lifting for event setup/preparation.

APPLICATION DETAILS
Young Center encourages students from all qualified individuals without regard to race, color, creed, religion, gender, sexual orientation, gender identity or expression, age, national origin, ancestry, marital or parental status, pregnancy, citizenship, non-disqualifying physical or mental disability, genetic information, or veterans’ status. Reasonable accommodation will be made so that qualified disabled applicants may participate in the application process; no applicant will be penalized for requesting accommodation. Please advise in writing of special needs at the time of application.

COMPENSATION
Fellows will receive a stipend of $12,000 for 10 weeks (35 hours per week). The Fellowship Program will run from June to August 2026 with the same start date for all fellows. The Fellowship is based in Houston, TX but includes travel to New York, NY and Harlingen, TX, with travel expenses paid for by the Fellowship Program.

A criminal background check, child abuse and neglect check (CANS), and tuberculosis test will be conducted and is a condition of fellowship.

Review of candidates will begin immediately with interviews occurring in November of 2025. Please apply on the Young Center website with (1) Cover Letter, (2) Resume, (3) Personal Statement [two pages maximum; statement must highlight the applicant's relevant experience, interest, and future aspirations with respect to legal work with immigrants and children], and (4) three references. Applicants do not need to submit a writing sample. Only complete applications will be considered. The final deadline to submit application materials is Friday, October 31st, 2025 . Materials will be reviewed by the Fellowship Advisory Committee, and interviews with Young Center staff will take place in mid to late November 2025. The Young Center anticipates making offers to potential fellows in late November 2025/ early December 2025. If you have any questions, please contact Pam Nickell at [email protected] .

To learn more about the Young Center’s work, please visit