16th Class, 2009-2010
Field Placement: Medical-Legal Partnership |Boston (Boston, MA)
Linda provided legal advocacy to low-income and food insecure patient families of the Boston Medical Center to help them access SNAP, food resources, and other income supports. She also interviewed community stakeholders and conducted research on the relationship between financial security and domestic violence.
Hunger Free Community Report:
Empowering Families Affected By Domestic Violence: Optimizing Financial Stability Through Medical-Legal Partnerships examines the various regulatory and abuse-related barriers that domestic violence survivors face when trying to access public benefits. It outlines the special legal protections for survivors, suggests best practices for advocates, and explores how a medical-legal partnership can best support survivors.
Policy Site: American Public Human Service Association (Washington, DC)
Linda surveyed human service agencies to identify the various innovations, practices, options, and/or waivers that states have utilized in order to process the dramatic increase in SNAP caseloads. She compiled the data and shared lessons learned with states seeking to increase their capacity to assist families.
Pre-Fellowship Education and Experience:
Originally from Chicago and Las Vegas, Linda is a 2009 graduate of the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign with a degree in psychology and a minor in urban and regional planning. Linda served on the Minority Association for Future Attorneys, supervised at risk youth at the Urban League, advocated for low-income families with the Family Advocacy Program, and volunteered with a women’s homeless shelter and the East St. Louis Action Research Project. Linda also studied the root causes of poverty in Haiti and interned in the Office of Senator Barack Obama.