Issue link: https://trevordayschool.uberflip.com/i/1519579
managed to get through to me (and get me through it). They focused me on which messages to take in and helped me filter out the rest. They also helped me learn to tame my own voice. Each of my teachers paid careful attention to my academic and social challenges and successes. And they pulled no punches. It's with some regret and embarrassment that I now read their multipage progress notes penned for my benefit, highlighting my potential but also detailing the many opportunities I squandered. Maybe more than a voice, good lawyering requires excellent listening skills, empathy, and understanding. In fairness to myself, Ms. Hajar noted, "Peter has found a special niche in the class this term. As [one of his peers] has strayed farther and farther from the bounds of appropriate behavior, Peter, a loyal friend, has stepped into the role of counselor. Others have followed his ministering model and taken on the business of calming [this peer] down." For the past 24 years, I have had the honor and privilege to serve as counsel to several Commissioners of the New York State Division of Human Rights, New York's human rights law enforcement agency. Before that, I defended the State Commissioner of Labor's decisions on appeal as an Assistant Attorney General with the New York State Department of Law, and before that, reviewed requests by prisoners to have their civil rights cases proceed without fee for the United States Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit. Through the incredible immigration clinic at the City University of New York School of Law, I became deeply involved in preparing the asylum application Peter's 8th Grade Class of 1985 Even at a young age, Peter's social conscience is evident 8th grade,1985 TREVOR DAY SCHOOL / 43 INSIDE TREVOR TREVOR TRANSLATES FEATURE AR TICLES ALUMNI