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On Wednesday, March 29, Haub Law presented the Second Annual Pace Access to Justice (A2J) Workshop themed: Voting, Democracy, and the Law. The Workshop brought together national voting rights and election law experts and advocates with Haub Law faculty, staff, students, and community guests to learn and engage in a dialogue centering on the important issues of voting access, election law, and our democratic process. The Workshop was hosted and moderated by Adjunct Professor Elyse Diamond, Director of the Public Interest Law Center, and featured a panel discussion with Sophia Lin Lakin, Interim Co-Director of the ACLU’s Voting Rights Project, Perry Grossman, Director of the New York Civil Liberties Union’s Voting Rights Project, Jarret Berg, Founder of VoteEarlyNY, and Brianna Cea, Executive Director and Founder of the national youth advocacy organization Generation Vote. The panel was followed by a special video message from March For Our Lives Founder and Activist David Hogg and an interactive community discussion to generate and explore action steps for how we as a law school community might actively contribute to efforts to promote voting access, engagement and our democracy.

Last year, the inaugural Pace Access to Justice Workshop focused on the critical importance of housing access, the current housing crisis, the status of "right to counsel" in eviction cases, and public service careers in housing law and related fields. The annual workshop is part of the larger initiative launched by Haub Law, the Pace Access to Justice Project. Pace A2J, housed and coordinated within Haub Law’s existing Public Interest Law Center, is serving as a hub for community collaborations, programs, scholarship, policy initiatives, and hands-on innovative academic and non-credit bearing experiential law student opportunities. Together, Pace A2J is designed to more actively engage students in learning about and contributing to real-world efforts to address the access to justice gap.

"I am incredibly excited to have hosted our Second Annual Pace A2J workshop and deeply grateful to our panelists for sharing their immense expertise and insights on voting access, elections, and democracy and the larger implications of all,” said Professor Elyse Diamond. “Voting access and participation in our democratic process is fundamental and our hope is that programs like this one bring awareness to the issues and empower our community to discuss innovative ways to contribute."

Watch the Video of the Second Annual Pace A2J Workshop

In Fall 2023, Pace will open its newest building, 15 Beekman, a 26-story mixed use vertical learning hub on the corner of Beekman and Nassau streets. This state-of-the-art addition to Pace’s NYC Campus will be home to classrooms, student life spaces, the main dining hall, first-year student housing, administrative and faculty offices, the Beekman Library, and the Seidenberg School of Computer Science and Information Systems.

Major Upgrades for the Campus Community

New library? Check.

New dining hall? Check.

New classrooms and student spaces? Check and check.

Plus, we’re creating some really amazing student spaces, a brand-new Bianco Room (more space for events!), brand new space for the Seidenberg School, new classrooms with cutting-edge tech, a new home for the Learning Commons, and a coffee bar and lounge in the new lobby.

Our favorite feature? An outdoor terrace space on the 6th floor. Dining al fresco? Yes, please.

New Residential Space for First-Year Students

Within 15 Beekman, a 12-story tower will be dedicated to first-year student housing (replacing the existing Maria’s Tower in One Pace Plaza) with a total of 484 beds. Other features for the new living spaces include a common fitness center, meeting and dining commons, and an independent residential entrance. Here are some other housing highlights:

• Suite style room layouts with groupings of 3-4 rooms with semiprivate bathrooms per suite
• Semiprivate common spaces with kitchenettes per suite
• Three discreet residential elevators
• Central laundry room
• Independent ADA rooms on every floor
• Independent welcome/security desk with independent turnstiles
• Bicycle room with space for up to 65+ bikes (the bike room will actually be open to everyone on campus!)

It’s not every day that a Supreme Court Justice comes to class. But thanks to Pace International Special Programs going the extra mile, that’s exactly what happened on a recent Friday afternoon.

International Special Programs (ISP) is a unique wing of Pace University. Among other initiatives, ISP partners with universities from all over the world to create custom study abroad opportunities and programs for international students, who are then afforded the opportunity to study in New York. Tokyo’s Japan Women’s University (JWU), the oldest and largest private women’s University in Japan, is one such school Pace has partnered with over the years.

Currently, 29 students from JWU are engaging in an immersive, four-week experience at Pace. To prepare for their arrival in New York City the students read My Beloved World—Justice Sonia Sotomayor’s memoir about her childhood growing up in the Bronx, overcoming all odds to ascend to the greatest heights of the American judicial system. The students read the book first in Japanese and have been discussing themes of the book in English while at Pace.

Knowing that Justice Sotomayor’s book was going to be studied, English Language Institute Associate Academic Director Jeff McIlvenna wanted to ensure JWU students’ time at Pace was truly memorable. He thought: what if we added a talk with the Justice herself to the curriculum? And after going the extra mile and writing a well-received, snail-mail letter to Justice Sotomayor’s Office, that’s exactly what has happened.

In an hour-long Zoom, Justice Sotomayor engaged in a wide-ranging Q+A session, discussing aspects of her book, her storied career, and offered advice to the 29 young women who were no doubt inspired by Justice Sotomayor’s authenticity and steadfast commitment to her principles. Students asked questions ranging from: What motivates you to continue serving as a Supreme Court Justice? to How do you keep yourself confident and looking toward the future?—among a multitude of others. The students were uniformly engaged, and took Justice Sotomayor’s answers to heart.

I was impressed by what she said about everything with small steps,” said student Honoka Takahashi. “I read her biography, I realize that she is where she is today because of the small steps she had taken. I heard that her answer, I must take small steps to come true my dream, even that step doesn’t looks like to directly connect my dream.”

Director of International Special Programs at Pace Lisa Kraft and McIlvenna were thrilled that ISP and Justice Sotomayor were able to create such a memorable opportunity for students–and believe that the special classroom session epitomizes the quality of experience that ISP provides its students.

“Everything about the experience exceeded any expectations I could have ever had,” noted McIlvenna. “In International Special Programs, we have a unique opportunity to create memorable, meaningful, and innovative student experiences, not just traditional courses. This has set the bar higher than any of us could have imagined, but we are all up for the challenge moving forward.”

Interested in learning more about International Special Programs at Pace? Send an email to Lisa Kraft.

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Haub Law student Remila Jasharllari was recently awarded the prestigious NYC Bar Diversity Fellowship. The Diversity Fellowship Program offers students from underrepresented backgrounds to gain experience at major companies and firms in New York and the opportunity to learn more about corporate law. This summer, she will be interning with New York Life, within their Office of the General Counsel.

“As a first-generation student, born and raised overseas, I have learned early on the values of diversity and how important it is to be accepted for who you are,” said Remila. “My research in my undergraduate years focused on analyzing how an individual’s socio-economic background affects their academic performance, and their chances of social mobility in life. There are wonderful individuals out there that do not fit our predetermined notion of what success is supposed to look like, but that have the potential to succeed.” At Haub Law, Remila is motivated not only to succeed, but to help others along the way – she serves as both a peer mentor and a Dean Scholar, as a way of giving back.

Remila credits Haub Law’s Center for Career and Professional Development (CCPD) with her being awarded this competitive Fellowship, which has stringent selection criteria. “CCPD assisted in polishing my resume and reviewing my personal statement. I participated in several mock interviews in order to better understand and master the interview process. Dean Kapila Juthani and Assistant Director Hailey Harvis were always willing to help guide me along the way and push me to bring out the best of myself during this whole process. Their advice is always practical and genuine, and I continue to be extremely grateful for their support, along with all of the guidance I have received from others at Haub Law.”

Currently, Remila was selected to participate in a State Judicial Externship, where she was placed with the Hon. Gretchen Walsh in the New York Supreme Court, Commercial Division. This summer, Remila looks forward to gaining experience in corporate law, an interest she has held since her undergraduate studies. “I took various classes on business law and securities during college. In law school, I continue to be interested in detailed work and strategic thinking. Now, I will have the opportunity to sharpen these skills while understanding the day-to-day operations of a big corporation.”

Barclays, Con Edison, and the FBI among nearly 150 recruiters

The largest Career Fair in the University’s history

Pace University Career Services on Wednesday hosted its first in-person job fair since the start of the pandemic – and with record-breaking student turnout, it was the largest Job Fair in the University’s history.

Hundreds of students turned out – including many from its campus in lower Manhattan -- to the employment fair and over 150 companies were in attendance, including Barclays, Morgan Stanley, Regeneron Pharmaceuticals, U.S. Department of State, Internal Revenue Service (IRS), Con Edison, Deloitte, U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), Montefiore, Northwell Health, and the Federal Bureau of Investigation, among many others.

The fair was open to all majors and was sponsored by PricewaterhouseCoopers (PwC), which is among the Big Four accounting firms, offering clients various professional business services, including accounting, auditing, human resources consulting, and strategy management.

“At Pace, we understand the importance of engaging students early, bringing them into our Career Communities designed to build pre-internship skills and experiences, and leveraging our relationships to help them get those internships and jobs,” said Phyllis Mooney, assistant vice president of Career Services at Pace University. “For Bachelor graduates in the Class of 2021, students were over 15% more likely to work in their field of study if they engaged with Career Services and had an internship than if they didn’t.”

Pace’s Career Services is a leader in the region for providing a range of career counseling and programming (both virtually and in-person) to ensure that the students they serve are career-ready and know how to articulate the skills employers are looking for in their entry-level candidates. In fact, Pace’s Class of 2021 exceeded national average in employment rates by 10+ percentage points, and the Class of 2022 data is trending to be just as positive.

Pace’s Career Services also offers their employer partners a tailored, successful recruiting experience that introduces recruiters to talented students that represent the very best of Westchester, the New York City region, and the world—resulting in extraordinary outcomes. Some top companies that employ Pace students include Deloitte, EY, KPMG, Montefiore, NewYork-Presbyterian, Northwell Health, NYU Langone Health and PwC.

For Josiah Jones, a junior majoring in business management, the packed room provided ample opportunities to land a job or an internship.

“Having this in-person is important,” said Jones, noting that Pace’s Career Services is one of the University’s distinguishing advantages. “It’s important for employers to see us in-person so that you can showcase your personality, charisma, and communications skills.”

“As a transfer student, I’m really loving it,” Jones, of Virginia, added. “I’m getting every opportunity out of my experience here and Pace is delivering.”

Melissa Louis, a communications major with a minor in sports media broadcasting, was impressed that there were employers for all career paths and interests.

“There are so many opportunities,” she said. “There are so many people and potential employers … Career Services is a great program. It’s nice to get past COVID and it’s great to see so many people in-person.”

Chiara Priarone, a graduate student from Italy who is studying financial risk management, took Pace’s shuttle bus from Manhattan to seek out opportunities in her desired field.

“It’s nice to see all of these people,” she said, “and to experience this great energy.”

About Pace University

Since 1906, Pace University has been transforming the lives of its diverse students—academically, professionally, and socioeconomically. With campuses in New York City and Westchester County, New York, Pace offers bachelor, master, and doctoral degree programs to 13,600 students in its College of Health Professions, Dyson College of Arts and Sciences, Elisabeth Haub School of Law, Lubin School of Business, School of Education, and Seidenberg School of Computer Science and Information Systems.