Join LSC to celebrate our 30th anniversary with the Words, Wine & Wit fundraising event. This exciting evening features speakers include:

Dave Eggers - editor of McSweeney's magazine, teacher at UC Berkeley's Graduate School of Journalism, author of A Heartbreaking Work of Staggering Genius and You Shall Know Our Velocity!

and

Michael Lewis - contributing writer for The New York Times Magazine, a columnist for Bloomberg, visiting fellow at UC Berkeley and author of Moneyball and Liar's Poker

Special guest appearance by Mayor Gavin Newsom

For more information or to RSVP, please contact:

Kelli Nakayama
Development Director
(415) 863-3762 ext. 318
kelli@lsc-sf.org

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BERKELEY, Calif. March 2005 - In a settlement agreement that may affect as many as 55 low-income students of color, nine students have obtained assurances from the Berkeley Unified School District that it will ensure students their right to a formal hearing before expulsion and will reduce the disproportionate impact of expulsion policies on students of color.

The African American and Latino students were represented by Legal Services for Children, Stanford Law School’s Youth and Education Law Clinic, and Pillsbury Winthrop. They filed a federal class action law suit in August 2004 against Berkeley Unified School District in the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of California, claiming that the district violated the California Education Code, their due process rights under the U.S. and California Constitutions, and their right to be free from discrimination under the California Constitution by expelling or reassigning students to an alternative school program without a hearing.

The settlement agreement stipulates that the school district will ensure students have a right to: 1) a hearing and due process before expulsion, 2) a comprehensive school program at a school like Berkeley High, 3) compensatory education for time spent in the alternative school program or on independent study.

As part of the settlement in the case, the Berkeley School District has committed to respect the constitutional rights of students, and to reduce the disproportionate impact of its policies on students of color.'

Abigail Trillin, managing attorney at Legal Services for Children, says, “It’s a very good settlement because it addresses what happened to students in the past and compensates them, but also really looks to the future to make sure this doesn’t happen to any other students.”

"I am very pleased with the settlement because it not only affects my son, but it will prevent other students from being mistreated in the future," comments Lagertha Smith, mother of Yarman Smith, one of the student plaintiffs in the case. "Being involved in this lawsuit has given my son more self esteem, since he was empowered to stand up for his rights."

For further comment, please contact:

Bill Koski
Director of the Youth and Education Clinic
(650) 724-3718

Smith v. Board of Education of the Berkeley Unified School District, No. C043306, Complaint (N.D. Cal. Aug. 13, 2004)

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LSC recognizes and honors Karen Nardi for her 12 years of volunteer service. Karen is a partner at the Bingham McCutchen law firm in San Francisco, and an active member of LSC’s Pro Bono Panel. In addition to her work on the panel, Karen assists LSC’s fundraising efforts as a member of the Event Committee, makes a personal contribution and obtains annual contributions from her law firm. Reprinted below is an excerpt from a letter of support Karen wrote on LSC’s behalf.

Many years ago I read an article about Legal Services for Children and the direct help they provide kids and teenagers here in San Francisco. I decided to become a panel volunteer, helping arrange legal guardianships for children whose parents cannot, for one reason or another, care for them.

The experience has enriched my life. I have the deepest respect for not only LSC, and their dedicated attorneys, staff and social workers, but also for their clients, who cope with some very difficult circumstances with great dignity….

I worked with a young woman of 21 who, with her partner, decided to take on the care of her brother’s two children who were living in somewhat chaotic circumstances with their birth mothers who had drug and alcohol problems. I’ve known this family for a decade and am amazed at how deeply loving this family is. The guardian continues to involve her brother and encourage him to see his children, while she takes on the difficult task of raising them, on a daily basis. She gave up much of her own young adulthood to care for her brothers’ children and make sure they had a stable home where meals were put on the table, someone helped you with homework and got you to school everyday….

Legal Services for Children has an excellent reputation in the community, and has done so much to improve the lives of Bay Area youth…. I am proud to be affiliated with the wonderful staff at LSC.

Sincerely Yours,
Karen J. Nardi

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Through the Detained Immigrant Children Project (DICP), LSC’s attorneys, social workers and staff represent unaccompanied immigrant children and youth detained by the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) and facing deportation proceedings. Annually, LSC provides brief services to over 100 detained youth and represents 50 children seeking relief from deportation.

Earlier this month, DHS opened a new detention center in Pleasant Hill, and it is already filled to capacity. Northern California currently has three detention facilities, including one of only 2 secure facilities in the nation. As a result, the San Francisco Bay Area has one of the highest concentrations of detained immigrant children. LSC is the only organization providing free legal representation to these children. Many of the children return to their homeland, or are released to a relative while they await their immigration proceedings. Some of the children are eligible for asylum or other types of immigration relief and depend upon LSC’s free legal advocacy to ensure their safety and survival.

In addition to brief services and legal representation, LSC is active in changing policies to decriminalize the status of unaccompanied children, advocate for humane and culturally sensitive living environments and treatment, and ensure expedited release of detained children to their families and relatives. Listed below are a few recent highlights of our work through the DICP. For more information about LSC’s Detained Immigrant Children Project, please contact Gaby Ruiz or Lisa Frydman at (415) 863-3762.

- LSC has committed to provide an initial screening interview to all minors detained in the Bay Area. Because there are now three sites where minors are detained, LSC is meeting regularly with over 30 minors.

- LSC has committed to provide free representation in Immigration Court to any of the minor detained in the Bay Area.

- LSC attorneys are currently representing many minors in their efforts to obtain Special Immigrant Juvenile Status (SIJS). These are minors who have fled their home country because of abuse and neglect. Our efforts are assisting them to stay in the United States and obtain legal status.

- Through the help of our pro bono attorneys, we are assisting other minors in their SIJS and asylum cases.

- LSC attorneys are advocating with Immigration Enforcement and Border Control to protest appalling conditions some of our minor clients faced when they entered the United States.

- LSC attorneys are part of a national network of advocates working with the Office of Refugee and Resettlement to improve conditions for detained youth.

- LSC staff recently trained a group of probate court judges on Special Immigrant Juvenile Status and will be training a group of delinquency judges on April 14th. We also presented on SIJS for a large audience at the state-wide dependency conference in December.

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LSC’s Guardianship, Education and Immigration pro bono panels assure that more children have access to quality, free legal services. To join our panel of volunteer attorneys, please attend one of our upcoming trainings, request a DVD recording of our latest Guardianship and Education trainings, or contact Adetunji Olude for more information (415) 863-3762 ext. 324 or adetunji@lsc-sf.org.

For more information on joining our pro bono panel visit our website.

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LSC is proud to launch our new website: www.lsc-sf.org. Our new site features:

Helpful information for youth seeking services

Updated information about LSC’s programs and services

Published resources and links for children, youth and providers (including training manuals, pamphlets, reports and resource guides)

Donation and contact information

Information on upcoming events and trainings

LSC’s new logo and design

Special thanks to LSC’s Web Designers & IS Managers I-Li Brice and Kei Gowda!

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All contributions to LSC directly benefit our programs and services. On a modest budget, LSC serves thousands of youth annually. Your support ensures LSC continues to provide free quality legal and social work services to children and youth in the Bay Area.

Listed below is LSC’s Wish List. If you have, or your company has, any equipment or furniture to donate, please contact:

Office Furniture
L-Shaped Desks
18” file cabinets

Electronics
LCD Projector
Screen
DVD/VCR player
TV
Digital Camera
Video Camera
Hands-free headsets
Cisco Routers
Hubs with 8-ports or more
Belkin mouse/monitor switches
Travan40 backup tapes

Software
QuarkExpress for Windows
Adobe CS Suite for Windows

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