Access to Justice Tech Fellows Program Manual This manual is designed as a resource guide for both host organizations and summer fellows. The manual provides helpful guidance on policies and procedures, roles and responsibilities, and program activities. 1 Table of Contents WECOME 3 About ATJ Tech Fellows …............................................................................................................................ .......................................3 About the Legal Services Corporation .....................................................................................................................................................3 The ATJ Tech Fellows Program ............................................................................................... ..............................................................4 ROLES & RESPONSIBILITIES 4 ATJ Tech Fellows Program……………………………………………………………………………………………………………..4 Host Organizations……………………………………………………………………………………………………………………...5 Student Fellows…………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………5 PROGRAM COMPONENTS 6 Orientation & Training………………………………………………………………………………………………………………….6 Virtual Brown Bag Speakers Series…………………………………………………………………………………………………….7 Online Training & Resource Center……………………………………………………………………………………………………7 Host Organization Placements………………………………………………………………………………………………………….7 Slack Channel…………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………...8 Blog Challenges…………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………8 Community Engagement………………………………………………………………………………………………………………..8 POST SELECTION & ON BOARDING 9 Fellows Admin Portal…………………………………………………………………………………………………………………...9 Program Participation Agreement………………………………………………………………………………………………………9 Initial On boarding Form……………………………………………………………………………………………………………….10 Invitation to Drobox……………………………………………………………………………………………………………………10 Baseline Skills Assessment…………………………………………………………………………………………………………….10 Blog Creation Form…………………………………………………………………………………………………………………….10 Registration for Training & Resource Center …………………………………………………………………………………………10 Supplemental Funding & Academic Credit……………………………………………………………………………………………10 PROGRAM MANAGEMENT REQUIREMENTS 11 Time Logs and Timekeeping…………………………………………………………………………………………………………...11 Office Orientation………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………11 Establishing the Fellows Goals…………………………………………………………………………………………………………11 Highlighting the Fellows Arrival……………………………………………………………………………………………………….12 Documenting the Fellows Experience………………………………………………………………………………………………….12 Professional Development Opportunities………………………………………………………………………………………………12 Program Site Visits……………………………………………………………………………………………………………………..12 Stipend Allocation……………………………………………………………………………………………………………………...12 CLOSING OUT THE FELLOWSHIP 13 Student Performance Evaluation and Program Feedback Survey……………………………………………………………………...14 Data Collection and Exit Survey……………………………………………………………………………………………………….14 End of the Year Report…………………………………………………………………………………………………………………14 2 WELCOME Congratulations on being selected to participate in the 2019 Access to Justice Tech Fellows Program (ATJ Tech Fellows Program). This manual describes the policies and procedures of the program for both host organizations and summer fellows. We ask that all participants thoroughly review the contents of the manual to ensure the most rewarding experience for host organizations and summer fellows alike. Thank you for your commitment to engaging the next generation of social justice lawyers committed to closing the closing the civil justice gap. We are delighted to partner with you, and want to hear from you. We will be in touch throughout the program, but please feel free to contact us at any time. About ATJ Tech Fellows The ATJ Tech Fellows is designed to identify and equip the next generation of civil justice leaders to ensure equitable access to justice for all. Made possible through the generous support of the Legal Services Corporation and the Law School Admission Council. The ATJ Tech Fellows program connects law students with civil legal services organizations for an immersive, 10-week, full-time, paid project-based summer fellowship experience. Fellows spend the summer leveraging technology, data, and user-centered design approaches to develop solutions that address barriers preventing low-income Americans from receiving legal help. About The Legal Services Corporation LSC is the single largest funder of civil legal aid for low-income Americans in the nation. Established in 1974, LSC operates as an independent 501(c)(3) nonprofit corporation that promotes equal access to justice and provides grants for high-quality civil legal assistance to low-income Americans. LSC distributes more than 90% of its funding to 133 independent nonprofit legal aid programs with more than 800 offices. LSC promotes equal access to justice by awarding grants to legal services providers through a competitive grants process; conducting compliance reviews and program visits to oversee program quality and compliance with statutory and regulatory requirements as well as restrictions that accompany LSC funding, and by providing training and technical assistance to programs. LSC encourages programs to leverage limited resources by partnering and collaborating with other funders of civil legal aid, including state and local governments, Interest on Lawyers’ Trust Accounts (IOLTA), access to justice commissions, the private bar, philanthropic foundations, and the business community. 3 ATJ Tech Fellows Summer Program ATJ Tech Fellows program is a 10-week paid experiential program for law students. The summer program is funded in part by LSC’s Technology Initiative Grant (TIG) and the LSAC Presidential Innovation Fellowship. The program is housed within LSAC’s headquarters in Newtown, PA. The ATJ Tech Fellows program connects law students who are passionate about social justice with civil legal aid organizations, courts, and defender services to work on a range of new innovative projects aimed to improve clients’ access to quality legal assistance and address real-life service delivery gaps. Student Fellows’ projects focus on addressing the legal needs of a variety of populations and issue areas, including families, veterans and military families, victims of natural disasters, individuals facing barriers to employment, assistance for low-income rural communities, preserving affordable housing, and more. Upon the successful completion of the summer program, fellows learn new ways to leverage the use of technology, data, design thinking, and project management to more effectively address the unmet legal needs of low-income communities throughout our nation. Additionally, fellows will also gain an understanding of the systemic barriers that contribute to the unmet legal need and develop critical frameworks to analyze, interrogate, and improve existing solutions. ROLES & RESPONSIBILITIES ATJ Tech Fellows Program ATJ Tech Fellows is committed to being an effective partner with our host organizations and summer fellows. ATJ Tech Fellows responsibilities includes the following: Grant Management Collecting program data from host organizations and reporting to funders on the progress towards program goals, accomplishments, and overall impact. Managing the applicant tracking system, and coordination of the recruitment and selection process. Student Fellow Support Serving as a administrative liaison to on-board new fellows after accepting their offers. Coordinating a virtual orientation on program requirements and core skills training for all fellows. Providing summer fellows with an ongoing learning experience and access to a variety of learning resources and engaging activities. Providing technical assistance for summer fellows on program requirements related to reporting and time keeping. 4 Host Organizations Host organizations house the summer fellow, provide engaging summer projects, and supervise the summer fellow. Key responsibilities include: Selecting the law student fellow and supervision of the fellow. Ensuring proper time logs are kept by the fellow and verified by a supervisor on a monthly basis. Providing the fellow with a brief orientation to the office, including the office protocols regarding attendance, punctuality, security, safety emergency procedures, dress code, computer usage, etc. Ensuring the fellow is informed of the organization’s policies concerning confidentiality, ethics, and attorney-client privilege. Providing the fellow with a designated on-site workspace. Meeting regularly with the fellow to provide feedback and ensuring stated milestones are achieved during the duration of the program. Fostering an inclusive work environment and exposing the fellow to the organization’s culture, and staff throughout the course of the program. Serving as a positive ambassador for the program. Ensuring the fellow’s work aligns with the approved project. Completing an end-of-semester evaluation assessing the fellow’s performance and experience par- ticipating in the program. Student Fellow Fellows are expected to meet all of the obligations outlined in the ATJ Tech Fellows Program Agreement, and maintain the highest degree of professionalism during their service, interactions with clients, colleagues, and external parties. Fellows key responsibilities include: Signing and assuring compliance of the program participation agreement. Completion of 300 hours of service between May and September 2019. Attending the virtual orientation and core skills training on Thursday, May 30, 2019.. Completing all on boarding requirements prior to the fellow’s start date. Meeting regularly with host organization supervisor for feedback. Attending all required trainings and meetings at their host organization. To the fullest extent possible, participation in blog challenges and weekly webinars. Maintaining excellent attendance and keeping up to date time logs. Completion of exit requirements including final evaluation survey. Performing all assigned project duties at their host organization. 5 PROGRAM COMPONENTS Orientation & Training All fellows begin their experience by participating in a virtual orientation and boot camp training. The training provides fellow with the foundational knowledge of the U.S. civil justice system and insight into the access to justice crisis in America. Additionally, the training will expose fellows to topics including technology enabled legal service delivery, human centered design, and cultural competency. In addition to using plain language for legal services delivery, data collection, analysis, and ethics. The orientation provides summer fellows with broad exposure to the knowledge, skills, and leadership development to ensure success while engaging their host organization projects. The curriculum is delivered by leading experts in the civil justice, legal technology, and legal academic communities. The virtual orientation will take place on Thursday, May 30, 2019. Virtual Brown Bag Speakers Series Summer fellows will attend weekly webinar sessions that feature leaders from the legal tech and civil justice who have distinguished themselves as experts in their fields. Guest speakers will share their backgrounds, career paths, and current organization's work. Followed by a short Q&A. The goal of these sessions are to offer unique perspectives on various topics at the intersection of law, technology, and society. The virtual brown bag sessions will be held every Wednesday from 12:00pm - 1:00pm eastern standard time. The sessions will be recorded and assessable through the online training and resource center. 6 Online Training & Resource Center Summer fellows will have access to the online training and resource center. The online training and resource center provides the opportunity for fellows to expand their knowledge base, skills and learning competencies. Offering a curated catalog of courses, modules, training videos, job aids, and scholarly articles. The content covers a wide range of topics including those offered in our orientation training and many more. Host organizations will also have access to the virtual training and resource center and our strongly encouraged to contribute resources and/or suggest new topics to be covered. Host Organization Placements Host organizations placements and the communities where fellows serve, provide a living laboratory for fellows to understand the real legal needs and challenges communities face. Fellows are asked to contribute as much as they learn, and each will be expected to give their all to their host organization community, while learning directly from their experience there. Projects will be determined based on both the needs of the organization and the interests of the fellow and are intended to help the fellow develop professionally and gain leadership skills. ATJ Tech Fellows Slack Channel Slack is an online cloud-based messaging and collaboration tool that allow program staff, host supervisors, participating fellows, mentors, and our alumni network to communicate to one another virtually across the six time zones we service. The ATJ Tech Fellows Slack channel is designed to facilitate seamless communications, a co-learning experience and improve knowledge sharing of resources, news, opportunities, and discus- sions. 7 Reflective Blog Challenges Fellows will engage in a series of reflective online blogging exercises throughout the duration of the 10-week program. Fellows will be assigned five topical prompts that explore the impact of race, class, power, identity and privilege have in developing online tools intended to provide legal information and services. The blog challenges allow fellows to journal their experiences, reinforce acquired knowledge and skills, and to demonstrate their understanding of civil justice issues. Recognizing the fellows’ priority and time commitment needed to successfully complete assigned project duties. Each assigned blog post will be short in nature and submitted every other week to allow fellows to focus on their host organization projects. Community Engagement A new component of fellowship experience, the community engagement component seeks to ensure every fellow has an opportunity to directly engage with the communities they seek to serve as they complete their summer projects. Host organizations are strongly encouraged to coordinate at least one structured opportunity for their fellow to directly engage with the community the project and or solution intends to serve. Community engagement activities can include, but not limited to, gathering input and/or feedback from community members on the project/program solution. Conducting user testing of forms, websites, and tools with client community members. 8 POST SELECTION & ON BOARDING Fellows Admin Portal The fellows admin portal provides a streamlined process of collecting critical program data from fellows before and during the term of the program. The portal includes a series of online forms and surveys for fellows to complete in order to carry out their on administrative requirements. Each fellow will receive an email inviting them to the portal. The deadline to complete each form is listed under each form. Additionally, we’ll send out an email reminder days prior to the deadline. After each form is completed, you will receive a confirmation email to confirm receipt of the submission. A copy of each of the submitted forms will be uploaded to host organizations Dropbox folders for your reference. Program Participation Agreement The program participation agreement is the standard agreement between the fellow and the ATJ Tech Fellows, detailing the terms and conditions of the Fellowship. The fellow must sign and submit the agreement prior to their start date. The signed agreement will be uploaded to each fellows Dropbox folder. Fellows may not begin their service until this contract is signed and submitted. 9 Initial On boarding Form This form will request additional demographic information, including emergency contact information, professional headshot, and social media links. You will be asked to include your optimal start date in May/June & end date in August/September 2019, number of hours you plan to work per week, and work schedule (dates/ times you plan to be in the office). Invitation to Drobox Each fellow will be designated a personal Dropbox folder to store important program documents, including items such as this manual, and copies of submitted forms. Each fellow will be sent an email invitation to access their folders. Baseline Skills Assessment Each fellow will be asked to complete a short pre-learning questionnaire to assess their current level of knowledge, skills, and competencies possessed. This data will help our staff assess knowledge gaps and tailor suggested learning activities to better align with the specific demands of their projects. The questionnaire will also allow our staff to assess changes and impact as to the effectiveness of the learning material. Blog Creation Form Thanks to the generous support of the LexBlog team. Each fellow will receive their own unique hosted blog platform. Fellows will use this platform to complete their assigned blog challenges over the summer and can continue to use the platform beyond the program term. Please fill out the requested information in this form to initiate the process of creating your personal blog. Registration for Training & Resource Center Each fellow will receive an email with their unique registration link to access the online training and resource center. The virtual orientation and skills training, weekly brown bag speakers series, blog challenge prompts, and all other courses materials can be accessed through the online resource center. We have included instructions in the appendix on how to complete the registration process. Supplemental Funding & Academic Credit Fellows are allowed to receive supplemental funding and/or academic credit for their summer service. Each fellow is responsible for requesting and submitting the proper documentation required by their the law school issuing the academic credit or entity issuing the supplemental funding. 10 PROGRAM MANAGEMENT REQUIREMENTS The following section details the duties and activities during the program term. Time Logs and Timekeeping Fellows are expected to submit accurate time logs each month and should submit their time logs on the first day of each month of service beginning in July. Time logs help quantify the nature of activities the fellow completes throughout to indicate the number of training and service hours per day. We have included a sample timesheet in the appendix section. Time logs must have the following aspects in order to be approved: Time logs must indicate the number of training hours and service hours per day. Time logs must be kept within the host site’s timekeeping system. Time logs must be signed (either electronically or physically) by fellow and supervisor. Office Orientation We strongly recommend supervisors to facilitate an orientation to the host organization. So the fellow becomes acquainted with the office environment, team, and leadership. Please reference the orientation checklist in the appendix that includes a wide range considerations for planning the fellow’s orientation. Establishing the Fellows Goals Within the first week, fellows are encouraged to sit down with their supervisor to discuss their educational goals for the summer, as well as project goals regarding the work product to be completed. To the greatest extent possible, the work that fellows receive should promote the stated goals. Fellows should also share any professional development goals they may have for their fellowship. These include request for work product that they may use as a writing sample, discussing career strategies and participating in networking opportunities to gain exposure to their local legal community. Establish Regularly Scheduled Meetings It is important that host organization supervisors meet regularly with fellows to check in, review completed work, address any problems and provide feedback. Meetings should cover both substantive work and professional development when applicable. Schedule recurring meeting to ensure that even during particularly hectic work periods, there is time set aside to provide meaningful review of the Fellow’s work. 11 Highlighting the Fellows Arrival Following the virtual orientation training, our team will send out an email blast and blog post announcing the 2019 fellows’ cohort. Host organizations can leverage this opportunity to share this exciting news of the new fellow by sharing or tweeting tour post, or you can also create a unique announcement or newsletter. Documenting the Fellows Experience To help us highlight and promote the program and fellows’ work. Host organizations should make an effort to photograph each fellow during his/her placement. When possible, a professional or high level photographer/ camera should be used. Professional Development Opportunities Host organizations are strongly encouraged to expose their fellows to of a range professional development and networking opportunities over the summer. This can include, but not limited to, attending office wide meetings and training, legal hackathon, and other activities that interface with the broader the justice community. Program Site Visits Our staff will conduct several onsite visits over the course of the summer at selected host organizations. The site visits will consist of a short meeting with the summer fellow and host organization supervisor to gather qualitative feedback and better understand their program experience. Our staff will contact selected host organizations 4-6 weeks in advance to coordinate the visits. Stipend Allocation The program stipend is $5,000 and will be disbursed in regular increments by the host organization. We rec- ommends that host organizations allocate 50% of the stipend at the midway point of the fellowship period and the remaining 50% at the end of the fellowship term. Stipends are subject to federal and state taxes. Please be sure to communicate your organization’s tax treatment of the stipend to the fellow. Taking Extended Leave (1 week or more) Host organization should immediately notify our team when a fellow does not serve, or is expected to not serve, any hours for a week or longer. This notification is required for absences from service for any reason, including vacation, illness, etc. 12 Early Program Departure Retention of fellows is paramount to the success of the program. We understand that a fellow may be required to leave service due to a number of serious unforeseen circumstances. Host organizations should notify our staff prior to the departure of the fellow. Dismissal of a Fellow Host organizations should alert our staff immediately if any issues arise during the course of the summer after an attempt has been made by the host organization and the fellow to resolve the issue by themselves. Dismissal of summer fellows should only occur in cases of major and egregious misconduct or instances of significant willful violation of organization or program policy after prior instruction. The supervisor recommending dismissal must be able to clearly articulate the reason (s) for dismissal. CLOSING OUT THE FELLOWSHIP Exit expectations Clearly communicate to the fellow how things should end. Many supervisors find it helpful if a fellow drafts and submits an exit memo that outlines the completed projects. If a fellow is working on an ongoing project, let the fellow know how best to transfer information to another team member who will continue the work. Final Meeting Supervisors should schedule an exit meeting with the fellow during the final week in your office. Share your impressions of the fellow's work. Provide examples of areas in which you have seen improvement and areas in which the fellow still needs to grow and develop. We encourage you to let the fellow know if you would like to serve as reference in the future, and if you would be amenable to staying in touch. Our fellows look up to you and knowing that you have an interest in them and their professional development is very valuable. Reporting & Evaluation Measuring success is critical to achieving overall program success. Our team conducts an robust set of assessment and evaluation activities to ensure we meet program outcomes and provide an unparalleled experience for our summer fellows and host organizations alike. Each of the assessment and evaluation activities are listed below. 13 Student Performance Evaluation and Program Feedback Survey Host organization supervisors will be responsible for completing the end of the summer student performance evaluation and feedback survey in order to assess the fellows’ performance over the summer, share their experience with the program, and provide helpful feedback. Data Collection and Exit Survey All Fellows will be required to complete the data collection and program evaluation survey to quantify the efforts of the program and evaluate their impact. The survey will asks questions to better understand the fellows’ experience participating in the program, effectiveness of the training curriculum and program components. End of Year Program Report Our staff will compile a final report from the culmination of the program’s reporting and evaluation activities. This report will uncover key themes from the fellows’ experience, highlight the fellows’ impact, and evaluate the programs outcomes. The final report will be made available in early November 2019. Final Thoughts In closing, our team is committed to the success of this program and deems communication paramount to the partnership. Our organization will be in touch throughout the duration of the program, but please feel free to contact us at any time. Again, thank you for your participation. We look forward to collaborating with you and a lasting shared commitment to ensuring equitable access to justice. Miguel Willis Program Director miguel@atjtechfellows.org Access to Justice Tech Fellows Program 662 Penn Street, Newtown, PA 18940 P: 215.968.1207 • C: 215.669.4659 Web • Facebook • Twitter • Donate 14 APPENDICES A. Student Fellow Performance Evaluation B. Data Collection and Reporting Survey C. Sample Time Sheet D. Sample Orientation Checklist 15 A. Fellows Performance Assessment Survey Please refer to your admin portal to view this form in its entirety. 16 B. Fellows Data & Reporting Survey Please refer to your admin portal to view this form in its entirety. 17 C. Sample Timesheet Please use this sample time log if the Host Site’s internal time keeping systems do not meet eligibility requirements as defined in the manual. The time log is available for download as a Microsoft Excel Workbook here.. 18 D. Sample Orientation Checklist Please use this sample checklist to reference the range of considerations to think of when planning the fellow’s orientation. Review Organization and Department Missions Review Organization Standards Explain Need-to-Know Items Performance Standards Parking Attendance and Punctuality Workstation Conduct and Professional Responsibility Specific Work Dates/Times General Appearance and Expected Attire Explain the Work Process Job Authority and Responsibility Tact and Concern Office Hours/Breaks/Lunches Receive Contact Information from the Intern Computer Use Policy Resources and Secretarial Assistance Equipment Policies Weekly Meetings Smoking Policy Open Door Policy Review the Fellows Program Job Description Two-way Communication Expectations End of Program Evaluation Orient the Fellow to the Work Area Notify All Staff of the New Fellow Give a Tour How the Project Relates to the Orgs Mission Project Action Plan Introduce the Fellow to the Office Make Personal Introductions 19 Access to Justice Tech Fellows 662 Penn Street, Newtown, PA 18940 P: 215.968.1207 • C: 215.669.4659 Web • Facebook • Twitter • Donate 20
