Harvard Law School Public Interest Auction
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The Harvard Law School Public Interest Auction began in 1994 as a student-run fundraising event to support Harvard Law students working in full-time public interest positions during the summer. Since then, it has raised over $800,000 for students involved in public interest work. The donations received allow the school to provide stipends for students working in areas ranging from civil rights and child advocacy to securities regulation and antitrust law. The Auction helps all students interested in working in the public sector. Funds raised are distributed equally to eligible first- and second-year law students. In order to receive funding, a student must be working for a 501(c)(3) non-profit organization or a government entity. Every student who receives funding for the summer is required to contribute at least six hours of their time to help prepare for the Auction.
In 2005 alone, the Auction raised over $155,000 for students. Financial support from the Auction made volunteer summer work (in over 30 states and overseas) a viable option for students who otherwise could not have accepted these positions. Students worked for non-profit organizations, direct legal service providers, and government agencies to assist underrepresented clients and communities and to work on issues of social importance.
Some more notable items for auction have included vacations in Alaska, Canada, and Australia, a picnic at Fenway Park, and home-cooked dinners hosted by HLS professors.
