Faculty and Staff
Want to host an event during PaceŮٱƵs fifth annual Social Justice Week? Apply by Friday, September 26. Read the article to learn more about the origins of Social Justice Week and how to get involved.
Students
The Lawful Advocate
Content warning: brief mention of domestic violence and child abuse in the context of law.
Daniella Harris ŮٱƵ21 has made it her lifeŮٱƵs work to advocate for others. SheŮٱƵs considered becoming everything from a doctor to a veterinarian to even a singerŮٱƵall ambitious jobs that serve others in some way. Her plans really solidified, though, when she neared the end of her high school career.
ŮٱƵI knew that I wanted to be a lawyer from the moment I started the college application process,ŮٱƵ Harris explained. ŮٱƵWhen Pace offered me an opportunity to complete my bachelorŮٱƵs degree and my juris doctorate in six years instead of seven, I jumped at the opportunityŮٱƵand here I am.ŮٱƵ Harris is talking about PaceŮٱƵs Criminal Justice BS/Juris Doctorate JD combined degree program, an opportunity to immerse oneself in criminal justice while applying that expertise to law.
What inspired her to pursue law in the first place? ŮٱƵMy father, who is my hero and role model, had dreams to be a lawyer. He never graduated high school, [so he] went back years later to get his GED, and then obtained his college degree.ŮٱƵ Due to health reasons, his plan of continuing on to law school didnŮٱƵt pan out. He encouraged Harris to look into researching whether the field was right for her, and the rest is history. ŮٱƵBeing a lawyer would give me the opportunity to stand up for others and let their voice be heard,ŮٱƵ she said. A noble pursuit indeed.
Harris found plenty of opportunities to get exposed to what working as a lawyer might entail. In particular, Lecturer Maryellen MartiranoŮٱƵs class, ŮٱƵSystem Response to Domestic Violence and Child Abuse,ŮٱƵ was like stepping into an episode of Law and Order: SVU. ŮٱƵProfessor Martirano was a special victims prosecutor for almost 20 years, and she incorporated her [...] experience into the class.ŮٱƵ
Through audio and digital recordings, actual crime scene photos, and guest visits from experts in the field, Harris was inspired to consider becoming a special victims unit prosecutor herself someday. ŮٱƵI am still unsure of the type of law that I want to pursue,ŮٱƵ Harris admitted. ŮٱƵHowever, because of this class, I am planning to intern at the Domestic Violence unit at the Westchester CountyŮٱƵs District AttorneyŮٱƵs office.ŮٱƵ
She recently started interning for the Hillels of Westchester, which is part of the largest Jewish campus organization in the world. There, Harris has been working with the Ruderman Inclusion Program helping to promote disability inclusion on the Pleasantville Campus. ŮٱƵI like to think of Pace as a melting pot of different people and cultures, and so it is important that we include everyone,ŮٱƵ she said.
This is a subject thatŮٱƵs very close to home for Harris, who recently wrote an incredibly moving feature published in The Forward about her experience as a woman with hearing loss. ŮٱƵI think it is extremely important to recognize that everyone, whether they have a disability or not, is a human person.ŮٱƵ
When she approaches students and faculty members as a Ruderman Ambassador, Harris said she asks if they know anyone who has a disability. The common response? They do. ŮٱƵIt is essential to [realize] that 20% of the population has a disability, and this statistic doesnŮٱƵt [just] include people with a physical or visible disability. In other words: more people than you think can have a disability.ŮٱƵ
If thereŮٱƵs one thing Harris would like more people to understand, itŮٱƵs this: ŮٱƵA disability is not a disability, but rather an ability because it gives you the opportunity to prove people wrong.ŮٱƵ
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