Vt. Law School’s Jill Pfenning Wins Vermont Service Award

Jill Pfenning ’07 has been named Vermont Law School’s winner of the Vermont Campus Compact (VCC)/TD Banknorth Commitment to Service and Civic Engagement Award for 2006. This award is given to one student per VCC member campus for both the breadth and depth of her/his community involvement. Pfenning and her fellow winners and finalists will be honored at the VCC Gala Thursday, March 30, at the Vermont State House in Montpelier.

Pfenning has made numerous contributions to both the Law School and wider Vermont communities. As a Burlington High School teacher, Pfenning advised a student-led group that addressed racial and ethnic discrimination, and was co-coordinator of a week-long school "international week." She also coordinated a statewide tolerance conference and advised a Cultural Awareness Council.

At Vermont Law School, Pfenning is a member of Students for Community Outreach and Education (SCORE). The group’s activities have included organizing a diversity week panel presentation for South Royalton Elementary School.

Last summer, Pfenning was a law clerk for the Consumer Protection Division of the Vermont Office of the Attorney General, and received the Janet D. Steiger Fellowship from the American Bar Association. Her projects involved protecting consumers from deceptive pharmaceutical advertising, and an identity theft initiative.

Pfenning is currently ranked number one in her class (Class of 2007) and serves as a mentor in the Law School’s Academic Success Program. She is contributing to the VLS diversity plan as a member of the Law School’s diversity committee. Under the supervision of Professor Jackie Gardina, Pfenning is researching immigration law issues, including the policy and legal bases for treating non-citizens differently than citizens. She is currently a judicial extern in Justice John Dooley's chambers at the Vermont Supreme Court.

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