Rising 2L Mark Dela Peña has been named one of Catholic Law's 2022 recipients of the Squire Patton Boggs Public Policy Fellowship. Each year, the Squire Patton Boggs Foundation awards several Public Policy Fellowships to exceptional law students who demonstrate a steadfast commitment to public service and a developed interest in public policy. These law students commit their summers to advancing public policy issues through non-profit institutions, government agencies, and domestic or international organizations.

This summer, Dela Peña will be interning at the Office of the Fairfax Commonwealth's Attorney, which prosecutes crimes that occur in Fairfax County and felonies that occur in Fairfax City and the Towns of Herndon and Vienna. The office has policy objectives aimed at mitigating racial and socioeconomic disparities and countering mass incarceration in Fairfax County’s Justice System. Dela Peña will be assisting attorneys with legal research, drafting memorandums, gathering documents, discovery, and trial.

About the opportunity, Dela Peña shared, “I am honored to be selected as a Public Policy Fellow. Previous Fellows have gone on to do great work in advancing public policy issues and I am fortunate to be connected with such an amazing group of law students and legal professionals.”