The Nelson A. Rockefeller Center for Public Policy this year launched a Judicial Fellowship Program that is placing 12 undergraduates as fellows with 12 different Dartmouth alumni judges in state and federal courts across the country.
The program's roots date back close to a decade with the advocacy of New Hampshire Supreme Court Associate Justice James Bassett '78 and also received subsequent support from New Hampshire Chief Justice Gordon MacDonald '83.
In promoting the program, MacDonald wrote, "I have benefited enormously from the exceptional work of highly talented and exceptionally motivated Dartmouth students. I strongly recommend participation to any alumni/ae or judge."
"This project has been almost 10 years in the making, particularly via Justice Bassett's longstanding efforts and Chief Justice MacDonald's support," says Herschel Nachlis, associate director and senior policy fellow at the Rockefeller Center.
"Now, we're delighted to launch this nationally trailblazing program placing Dartmouth's law-engaged students with Dartmouth's alumni judges around the country," Nachlis says. "It took a village to bring all of this together, including alumni judges, alumni resources, faculty insights and connections, and of course our brilliant students—all of whom are dedicated to the study and practice of law and democracy."
Understanding the legal system, whether through the study of constitutional law, public policy research, or interning with government and nonprofit groups, is integral to its students' education, in the view of Rockefeller Center leadership.
"We don't have a law school, but there are clearly a lot of students who are very interested in the law, and this program intersects with public policy, government, legislation, and Rocky's overall mission," says Rockefeller Center Lecturer Julie Kalish '91, coordinator of the Judicial Fellowship Program.
Charlotte Sadelain '26 was a judicial fellow in winter term for Judge Dominic Lanza '98 in the U.S. District Court for the District of Arizona, where she did research and prepared a written report on whether incarcerating people who repeatedly cross the border illegally is an effective method of deterrence. It was a subject of great interest to Lanza, who sees a high volume of illegal entry cases in his courtroom, Sadelain says.
"We discussed my progress throughout my internship and once I produced my final report," she says.
The judge also gave Sadelain what she called "amazing access" to court proceedings. He discussed his thinking, and teamed her with his clerks for advice and support.
"I was able to go in anytime he had any sort of court proceeding," she says. "I would go into court with him—walk in with him and walk out with him—and we would discuss afterwards how Judge Lanza was thinking about the different issues on the table and the different factors judges have to weigh in coming to a criminal sentence."
New Hampshire Supreme Court Chief Justice Gordon MacDonald '83 and Associate Justice James Bassett '78 with Jessica Chiriboga '24, left, and Skylar Wiseman '24, who interned at the court in 2023 during the pilot phase of the Judicial Fellowship Program. (Photo By David Marquis)
From the early days when Bassett and MacDonald were advocating for the program, convincing judges that a Dartmouth undergraduate would be able to contribute to judicial work was a main focus of building the program. Lanza was convinced.
"This experience greatly exceeded my expectations," Lanza says. "I was skeptical about how an undergraduate without legal training could fare, but Charlotte was incredibly impressive and inquisitive. I hope to participate again in the future in light of how well this term went."
"I really loved the entire experience. It convinced me for sure that I wanted to go to law school. I ended up doing a couple of early applications," says Sadelain, who is majoring in government and quantitative social science.
JJ Dega '26 has been studying diversionary judicial programs like drug courts, veterans courts, and competency proceedings through a Hanlon Scholarship and projects with the Class of 1964 Policy Research Shop.
This summer he is working in Chicago under the mentorship of Magistrate Judge Beth Jantz '99 and District Court Judge Jorge Alonso, a Dartmouth parent, in the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Illinois, which sees a lot of criminal cases.
"I'm grateful to learn from these fantastic jurists who are top of their field as well as the agencies involved—everyone from the U.S. attorneys, federal defenders, U.S. Pretrial Probation services," says Dega, a history major modified with economics and a public policy minor.
"I was very excited about the opportunity to be in the courthouse for the summer because of that intersection of law, policy and economics, especially as I think about post-grad jobs and applying to law school," Dega says.