Established in 1997, the PIHRL facilitated more than 200 intern placements in over 75 countries on 6 continents. The Program was also granted Special Consultative Status with the UN in 2011 and operated the U.S. Military Commission Observation Project at Guantanamo Bay, Cuba until 2023.
Proud Program in International Human Rights Law Alumni:
Sukrat Baber, J.D. ’14
Senior Legal Counsel, Ferrara Candy Company, Chicago, IL
Baber was an intern for BABSEA CLE, an NGO in Thailand whose mission was to create and support free legal clinics in law schools. He took part in a Guantanamo Bay Military Commission Observation Project hearing in April 2023 after several previous attempts to attend a proceeding. His work with PIHRL, Baber said, “cemented my desire to participate in human rights work throughout my life. It also motivated me to be a good citizen and to do meaningful pro bono work. Also, the program instilled in me a desire to finish my career, or, ‘soft retirement,’ working exclusively in human rights or related humanitarian fields. One day!"
Raio Krishnayya, LL.M. '11
Founder and Executive Director, Center for Victim and Human Rights, Indianapolis, IN
Professor Irene Victoria Massimino, LL.M. '05, S.J.D. candidate
A human rights lawyer, professor, and activist. She currently teaches in the Department of International Education of the National University of Tres de Febrero and at the National University of José C. Paz.
Mark Shope, J.D. '12
Associate Professor of Law, National Yang Ming Chiao Tung University School of Law, Taiwan.
During his time as a law student, Shope went to Geneva, Switzerland, for a human rights internship at the Centre for Civil and Political Rights.
Sheila Willard, J.D. '19
Department of the Interior
During her time in law school, Willard observed hearings as part of the Guantanamo Bay project, and took part in internships in Lisbon; Portugal; Prague, Czechia, where she worked with asylum seekers; in Edinburgh, Scotland, with Amnesty International; and Suva, Fiji, where she worked with UNICEF. “My greatest takeaway from those experiences was an overwhelming sense that there is a lot to do to improve the world for underserved people, but that there are a lot of good people from around the world dedicating their lives to the cause,” Willard said. “I also learned a lot about myself and what I wanted--and ultimately what I did not want--out of a career.”
