Ten years ago Professor Ira Mickenberg approached former dean Fran Conte about starting a week-long education program for public defenders and hosting it at UDSL. Ten years later, UDSL is preparing to host the 10th annual National Defender Training Project, Friday, June 1 to Wednesday, June 6.

About 75 participants from all over the country have registered and 17 of the nation’s best criminal defense attorneys, including Mickenberg, have been tapped to teach the week’s classes.

What makes this program unique, says Mickenberg, is that it is the only training program where public defenders can come together from so many different places and work on actual cases. Another unique benefit that Mickenberg built into the project is the opportunity for three UDSL students to receive full scholarships. This year’s scholarships have been awarded to Julius Carter, Kathryn Poppe, and Daniel Schubert. 

“It’s a good opportunity to give students access to professionals with whom they’ll work in the future,” Mickenberg said. “It also allows them to match up with attorneys in the geographical area where they would like to work.”

Mickenberg also pointed out that a program for attorneys who only represent the poor is very much in line with Marianist principles.