Legal Research at the U.S. Department of Education Office for Civil Rights and the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission: a Panel Discussion

Description: Please join us on Wednesday, April 12 at noon for a discussion of the legal research that takes place at the U.S. Department of Education Office for Civil Rights and the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission. Attorneys Lauren Moynihan Skerrett (U.S. DOE, OCR – Chicago) and Kirsten Peters (formerly with U.S. EEOC – New York) will discuss various types of legal research performed by at the two agencies and how that research relates to the laws the agencies enforce, as well as the agencies’ structure. Come prepared with any questions you wish to ask of our panelists.

Presenters: Kirsten Peters is an Assistant District Director with the U.S. Department of Labor Office of Federal Contract Compliance Programs (OFCCP) in its New York District office, a position she has held since July 2022. Prior to that, she worked for the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) in various offices from 2004 to 2022. During her last eight years with the EEOC, she litigated as a trial attorney in its New York office. She also worked as an investigator with the EEOC’s Chicago office from 2007 to 2014. Kirsten attended law school at DePaul University College of Law.

Lauren Moynihan Skerrett is an attorney with the U.S. Department of Education – Office for Civil Rights (OCR) in Chicago.  Lauren has been with OCR for almost 17 years.  Before joining OCR, Lauren worked with the Illinois State Board of Education (ISBE) and represented parents in special education matters in private practice in the D.C. area.  Prior to that, she worked as a litigator for two large law firms in New York City, specializing in securities fraud litigation.  Lauren is also the parent of two boys who qualify for services under Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act (Section 504) and the Individuals with Disabilities in Education Act (IDEA).  She attended Georgetown University Law Center.

When: Wednesday, April 12, 12:00 p.m. to 1:00 p.m.

Where: At your desk via Zoom. Registrants will receive webinar details prior to the program.

Please register here.

Demystifying the American Bar Association Policy Process: How Can ABA Policy Help You?

Description: The American Bar Association, the largest voluntary association in the Country, has a long and distinguished reputation as being a leader on issues of national importance within and around the legal profession. But many don’t know about the ABA policy process or just to what extent the ABA takes stances on national legislation, court rulings, and attacks on civil liberties. This program will examine the ABA policy process and look at some of the current Resolutions and Reports that will be up for consideration at the ABA Midyear Meeting in February. Skip Harsch, the Director of the ABA’s Commission on Sexual Orientation and Gender Identity and the ABA’s Commission on Hispanic Legal Rights and Responsibilities, will also discuss some of the recent ABA resolutions and policies that have made the news and discuss some of the important work of the ABA Diversity and Inclusion Center’s eight core diversity entities.

Presenter: Skip Harsch is the Director of the ABA’s Commission on Sexual Orientation and Gender Identity and the ABA’s Commission on Hispanic Legal Rights and Responsibilities.  As director of these Commissions, Skip oversees and is involved in the planning and implementation of many of the ABA’s Hispanic and LGBTQ+ initiatives including national advocacy, ABA policy work, and legal educational programming. In his role at the ABA, Skip helped created and implement the ABA’s ‘How to Be an Ally’ Toolkit and has presented both nationally and internationally on allyship in the workplace.  Skip is also a contributor to the publication Out and About: The LGBT Experience in the Workplace.

Skip is a native of Illinois with strong ties to the Midwest. He received his Bachelor of Science from the University of Iowa and his JD from DePaul University College of Law. While at DePaul, Skip began his association and non-profit crusade as a summer intern at Lambda Legal. Skip is the immediate past Co-Chair of the Chicago Bar Association (CBA) LGBT Committee and sits on the board of the Lesbian and Gay Bar Association of Chicago (LAGBAC). He is a past CBA Young Lawyers Section executive committee member, a past at-large board member for the National LGBT Bar Association, and was extremely involved in the Constitutional Rights Foundation of Chicago.

When: Wednesday, January 25, 12:00 p.m. to 1:00 p.m.

Where: At your desk via Zoom. Registrants will receive webinar details prior to the program.

Please register here.

All About the TEAACH Act

Description: Illinois State Representative Jennifer Gong-Gershowitz will speak about the process involved in getting the Teaching Equitable Asian American Community History (TEAACH) Act drafted, introduced and passed in Illinois. She will also discuss the advocacy done by various organizations that assisted her in passing the bill, and she will touch on how the implementation of the TEAACH Act is proceeding in the first school year that the Act’s requirements are in place.

Presenter: Representative Jennifer Gong-Gershowitz has served as State Representative of the 17th District in the Illinois General Assembly since 2019. The 17th District includes Evanston, Glenview, Golf, Morton Grove, Northbrook, Skokie and Wilmette.

Prior to being elected, Representative Gong-Gershowitz worked as a lawyer focused on advocacy for immigrants, including victims of child trafficking and forced marriage. She served on the Illinois Unaccompanied Children’s Task Force where she pioneered the use of pro bono social workers to serve as guardians ad litem for children navigating the immigration system.

Representative Gong-Gershowitz serves as the Chair of both the House Judiciary – Civil Committee and House Immigration & Human Rights Committee. In 2021 she sponsored the TEAACH Act, which made Illinois the first state in the nation to require teaching Asian American history in K-12 public schools. She is a member of the House Asian American Caucus, Progressive Caucus, Green Caucus and Jewish Caucus.

When: Wednesday, December 14, 12:00 p.m. to 1:00 p.m.

Where: At your desk via Zoom. Registrants will receive webinar details prior to the program.

Please register here.