Muskie Fellows Help Americans Affected by the Economic Crisis

Muskie fellows bring more to their host communities than just strong academic skills and diverse international backgrounds.  Whether they assist low income individuals to file their tax returns, teach financial literacy, or volunteer at a local food bank, Muskies are making a crucial impact on their American hosts at a time when there is an urgent need for this aid.  When selecting community service projects, many fellows chose to focus on helping those Americans who are hardest hit by the current economic downturn.

Several law fellows are helping their communities through pro bono legal work. Maria Kuzmina, a LL.M. candidate from Russia, volunteered at the Land of Lincoln Legal Assistance Foundation, which provides free legal services to low income clients.  Maria enjoyed her work at the center and noted that, “It was a new experience.  We don’t have many organizations at home that do this kind of work for free.”  Maria, who studied at the University of Illinois at Urbana Champaign, helped a senior attorney who specializes in family law with client interviews.  She also analyzed current developments to help solve legal problems, and wrote case summaries for the Foundation.

Sakina Ibrahimova, a LL.M. candidate at Pennsylvania State University from Azerbaijan, assisted low income individuals and households to prepare their tax returns.  After taking two online courses and passing exams administered by the IRS, Sakina helped guide locals through this complicated process and was constantly finding useful deductions and credits to increase their returns.

In addition to helping with tax preparation and family law, pro bono legal work can have an important impact on families who are facing the threat of foreclosure.  Oleksandr Pankiv of Ukraine completed his community service at the Neighborhood of Affordable Housing’s Foreclosure Prevention project in East Boston.  Oleksandr, a L.LM. candidate at Boston University, consulted with families and filed documents in order to prevent foreclosures.  Reflecting on his experience, Oleksandr noted that, “Because of the financial crisis, foreclosure is an actual and crucial problem in the US.”  He noted that community service is not widespread in Ukraine and added, “I was glad to help.”

Other Muskie fellows are helping families manage their financial resources more effectively.  Bakai Madybaev, who is from Kyrgyzstan and studies in the MBA program at Texas Christian University, volunteered at Catholic Charities in Fort Worth, where he taught a financial education class for low income households.  Bakai explained that, “the financial education initiative grew out of a desire to contribute to permanent solutions to household poverty.  [The] classes provide participants with the tools they need to decide how to use their money to meet their family's needs and goals.”

American families are also in need of food aid and safe living environments. Otar Kantaria, a fellow from Georgia who studies at the Georgia State University, recognized these needs in his community and responded by volunteering at the Atlanta Community Food Bank, which distributes nearly two million pounds of food and other grocery items every month to agencies in Metro Atlanta and Northern Georgia.  Maksym Klyuchar, a Ukrainian fellow at the University of Texas in Brownsville, helped low income families build their own homes through his work at the Community Development Corporation of Brownsville.  Pleased with this experience, Maksym observed that, “you see the results immediately and you are working with the people who are building their own housing and who are appreciative of your time and labor investment.”

In addition to pursuing these highlighted activities, Muskie fellows responded to the needs of their communities by participating in community service activities at schools, universities, hospitals, business development centers and non-profit organizations.  In total, the 2009 cohort of Muskies contributed over 4600 hours of service to their host communities.  Through the process of identifying community service projects, Muskie fellows learned about the effects of the economic crisis in America while also positively affecting the lives of many Americans who are impacted by the challenging economic times.