Youth Advocacy Writing Group Working Paper Lunch with Haylee Levin, Lindsey Richards, and Sophie Lenihan

Join Y-Lab for the first of four events in this spring’s Youth Advocacy Writing Group Working Paper Lunch Series with presentations by Haylee Levin, Lindsey Richards, and Sophie Lenihan.

*Be sure to RSVP here for a lunch on April 10.

Haylee Levin

Harvard Law School J.D. Candidate

Paper Topic: Coaches have unique, unrestricted access to children in sports, where the absence of other authority figures, the physical nature of sports, and other factors can create opportunities for physical abuse. Given the propensity of delayed disclosure of childhood abuse, and the challenges children face when they do attempt to report, the statutes of limitations for physical abuse of children in these contexts should be expanded.

Biography: Haylee is a J.D. candidate at Harvard Law School (Class of 2026). While at HLS, Haylee participated in the Child Advocacy Clinic, where she interned at the Suffolk County District Attorney’s Office in the Human Trafficking and Exploitation Unit. Outside of clinical work, Haylee is an executive member of HLS’s National Security Journal and National Security & Law Association.

A Natural Rights Argument for Homeschool Regulation

Lindsey Richards, Harvard Law School J.D. Candidate

Paper Topic: This paper sets out to establish something quite simple: child abuse is wrong. Children, like all people, have a right to be free from harm inflicted by others. While few need convincing of this truth, a growing coalition of parents believe that they alone have a natural right to control the upbringing of their children, requiring the government to allow them to homeschool their children free from regulation. Yet the same principles that bestow natural parental rights demand recognition of the child’s natural rights to safety. This paper will show that a parental rights absolutism approach to homeschool policy is contrary to natural law because it fails to protect the natural rights of vulnerable students facing abuse in hidden homeschooling situations.

Biography: Lindsey is a 3L in the Y-Lab Fellows Program passionate about making homeschooling safe and effective. Homeschooled herself, Lindsey arrived at HLS eager to find bipartisan solutions to keep at-risk homeschooled kids safe. While in law school, Lindsey has interned in the Child Exploitation Unit of the San Diego U.S. Attorney’s Office, externed with the Coalition for Responsible Home Education, represented clients through the Family Justice Clinic, and interned with the Center for the Rights of Abused Children through the Child Advocacy Clinic.

Elevating Student Voices: A Vision for the Youth Leadership Team

Sophie Lenihan, Harvard Law School J.D. Candidate

Paper Topic: In the fall of 2024, the Education Law: Administrative and Legislative Lawyering Clinic established the Youth Leadership Team (YLT), a group of Massachusetts high school students who work alongside clinic students to guide and shape the clinic’s advocacy efforts. In its inaugural year, the YLT has grown from six to fourteen students, beginning its statewide advocacy to increase student voice in school decision-making. This project outlines the vision and practical considerations for the YLT’s continued collaboration with the Education Law Clinic in its second year and beyond.

Biography: Sophie is a J.D. candidate at Harvard Law School (Class of 2025) and a Youth Advocacy and Policy Lab Fellow. Prior to attending law school, Sophie studied psychology and education at Dartmouth College and spent two years working at an education nonprofit focused on increasing youth civic engagement. At HLS, she has participated in the Education Law Strategic Litigation and Administrative and Legislative Lawyering clinics, as well as the Child Advocacy Clinic.