Post Date: April 19, 2006
Susan F. Cole, a clinical instructor at the Hale and Dorr Legal Services Center, recently won the 2006 Legal Services Award, presented by the Massachusetts Bar Association. The award honors an attorney for exceptional work in providing legal services to low-income groups.
“I am deeply honored by the award,” Cole said. “[I] hope it can bring attention to the significant impact that trauma from exposure to family violence can have on learning and behavior in school.”
In 2004, Cole became director of the Trauma and Learning Policy Initiative, a partnership between Massachusetts Advocates for Children and the Legal Services Center. The program focuses on the intersection of law, psychology and education and, specifically, on understanding links between domestic violence and learning difficulties among children affected by domestic violence. The award recognized Cole’s advocacy behalf of children and her work teaching law students how to become effective advocates.