St. John’s Law Students Spend Spring Break Serving the Greater Good

“Transformative” isn’t a word students usually use when talking about spring break. But that’s exactly how Kayla Dorancy ’26 describes the week she spent participating in the Public Interest Center’s annual Spring Break Service Program. 

“My good friends Nicolas Espinosa ’24, Justin Gorgchuck ’25, and Caroline Johnson ’25 introduced me to the program, sharing how unique the experience was, especially the chance to spend time in a federal defender’s office working on death penalty appellate cases,” Dorancy says. “What I took away from them was clear: If you want to pursue a career in public defense, this is an opportunity you can’t miss.”

After talking to her Law School career counselor, Chelsea-Leigh Flucus-Holloway, and Public Interest Center Director Jeanne Ortiz-Ortiz, Dorancy submitted her application, along with her friend, Fiona Donovan ’25. “Fiona shares a strong commitment to public defense, and I knew I wanted to experience this program alongside colleagues who are equally passionate about social justice and challenging the status quo,” Dorancy shares.

Dorancy and Donovan were among the 50 students—including 1Ls, 2Ls, 3Ls, and LL.M. candidates—who participated in this year’s Spring Break Service Program. Working in Kansas City and locally, they volunteered over 1,000 hours of pro bono work across a range of practice areas, including queer legal advocacy, civil legal aid, criminal justice, consumer rights, elder law, tenant advocacy, and special education law. 

“We had an overwhelming response this year, with 70 students prepared to volunteer their time for social justice and public interest causes,” says Ortiz-Ortiz. “We were delighted to work with past program partners and, with help from our Center Fellows and Career Development Office, we welcomed new partners, including Queens Defenders, Brooklyn Legal Services Corporation A, Mobilization for Justice, Volunteer Lawyers Project of CNY, Inc., The Children's Law Center, and the Long Island Advocacy Center.”

Placed with the Federal Defenders of the Western District of Missouri’s Capital Habeas Unit, Dorancy and teammate Vivian Cordon ’27 prepared to meet with a client who has been incarcerated on death row for 20 years. “While Vivian focused on another critical aspect of the case, I compiled an extensive research memo that analyzed relevant precedents in capital cases. I also gathered various Circuit Court data for current and future briefings, including data vitally important to my client’s case,” Dorancy explains.

Her advance case work and the client meeting were formative experiences, Dorancy says. “The entire Capital Habeas Unit embodied everything I hope to find in my future career and the kind of attorney I aspire to be. I didn’t expect to feel so emotional about this work. Despite the severe harms some clients caused (or were accused of), I came to understand the experiences that led them to the moment where society deems them no longer human. I kept thinking, who could this person be if they weren’t incarcerated, deprived of the chance to truly be held accountable and rehabilitated?”

While Dorancy weighed that important question, back in New York, Anna Sanchez ’27 was gaining valuable insight and experience in her Spring Break Service Program placement at Mobilization for Justice (MFJ), a legal services organization that offers advice, counsel, and representation to low-income tenants on housing matters.

During the week she spent volunteering, Sanchez shadowed MFJ attorneys in housing court. “It really opened my eyes to the need for housing lawyers,” she says. “While tenants in New York City have access to free legal representation, there aren’t not enough attorneys to meet the demand. It's unfortunate that the right to counsel doesn’t address all the underlying issues that lead to eviction and housing proceedings. But it's a start to helping those that go through these proceedings, and it's very admirable work.”

Sanchez also assisted at MFJ by interpreting interviews from Spanish to English and English to Spanish. “As I helped interpret, it's a different feeling as you see the client’s stress ease when they realize someone understands them and someone will make sure to ask and communicate their needs accurately,” she says. “I’ve been interpreting for the Law School’s Child Advocacy Clinic since last semester as well, and both experiences have shown me how crucial it is to have someone who speaks the client’s native language.”

As Sanchez, Dorancy, and their fellow Spring Break Service Program participants served the greater good, the organizations where they worked noted their enthusiasm, high-quality work, ability to apply the law, thoughtful questions, and strong dedication to public interest. “I couldn’t be prouder of our students and what they represent,” Ortiz-Ortiz says, recalling the positive feedback she got from this year’s partner organizations.

The Spring Break Service Program is also a source of pride for Dorancy, who offers this assessment: “Working full time in the public interest isn’t for everyone, but using your legal brilliance to help communities with issues they can’t solve alone is the most impactful use of your legal education. The Spring Break Service Program gives you the opportunity to do that. Before my meeting with my client ended, he prayed with us. He prayed that my colleagues and I would stay on the legal path, using our education and passion to make the world a better place for everyone. Just as he prayed, I hope we can all continue to use our legal education to keep pushing the arc of the moral universe toward justice.”