Pfizer Receives 2017 Excellence in Service Award

Street Law is proud to announce the winner of its 2017 Excellence in Service Award—Pfizer, Inc. The Excellence in Service Award recognizes the volunteer efforts of companies, law firms, and organizations that provide exceptional community service in the form of a Street Law program. Pfizer representatives will accept the award at Street Law’s annual awards gala on April 26, 2017, in Washington, DC.

Pfizer participates in Street Law’s Legal Diversity Pipeline Program. Through this program, Pfizer employees encourage young people of color to pursue legal careers, working to increase their knowledge of the law by providing them with role models, career education, and hands-on experiences in the legal field.

Pfizer’s program with Street Law began in 2009. Volunteers from Pfizer’s law department bring the law and legal careers to life for students at the Bronx High School of Law, Government, and Justice. Classroom visits and workshops teach young people about intellectual property law, counterfeiting, arbitration and negotiation, advertising, and marketing, as well as different career opportunities in the field of law.

As with all of Street Law’s Legal Diversity Pipeline Programs, the program culminates in a Legal Careers Conference. Pfizer hosts the students from the Bronx School for Law, Government, and Justice at its headquarters for a day. With coaching from Pfizer’s volunteers, students participate in interactive, authentic workshops on legal topics where they utilize the skills and knowledge acquired over the course of the semester. In one particularly well-received conference activity, students spend the morning applying their knowledge of trademark law by creating an advertising campaign and a trademarked logo, and presenting their campaign to Pfizer volunteers.  In the afternoon the students take on the role of attorneys in a mock trial activity based on a copyright infringement scenario, while Pfizer volunteers serve as judges.

The Pfizer team has also developed a special way to further serve their partner students. Each year, in addition to the Legal Careers Conference, Pfizer brings their students to the company offices for a day dedicated to building students’ career-preparation skills. During this trip, students learn about the legal profession, and then practice both interviewing and resume-writing under the careful tutelage of Pfizer volunteers.

Educators, students, and staff at the school report that the program has excelled, due in large part to the dedication, expertise, and enthusiasm of Pfizer volunteers.

Street Law is thrilled to recognize Pfizer’s long term commitment to their community with the 2017 Excellence in Service Award.