CVLC is excited to welcome our Summer 2021 interns!

Grace Craven

Grace Craven is an undergraduate at the University of Connecticut majoring in political science and human rights. Her primary focus of study is policy and law reform, in addition to the intersectionalities of non-able bodiedness and mental health in relation to the current legal system in the United States. She hopes to attend law school in the near future.

Grace loves going on hikes and spending time outdoors in her free time. She is so excited to have the opportunity to volunteer and be an intern at CVLC this summer.

Brett Jennings

Brett Jennings is a rising senior Political Science major at Yale University with a Certificate in Programming. At Yale, Brett has been involved with the Yale Scientific Magazine as both a section editor and writer, Code Haven as a mentor teaching computer science to New Haven students, and legislative advocacy through the Yale College Democrats. She has volunteered for CVLC for the past two school years as a part of the Yale Undergraduate Legal Aid Association and is excited to continue working with CVLC to support veterans over the summer. After graduating, she plans to attend law school and to continue dedicating her free time to legal advocacy. Outside of school and the CVLC, you can find Brett playing with her new kitten, going to spin classes, or trying her hand at learning a new language.

Rachel Lynch

Rachel is from Ridgefield, Connecticut and is a rising junior at the University of Wisconsin-Madison studying History, Political Science, and Classical Humanities with a focus on political and military relations.

She is both excited and honored to learn more about legal issues concerning veterans, particularly VA benefits cases. After college, she hopes to attend law school and work in civil rights.

Sebastian Mendieta

Having finished his second year of undergraduate studies at Wesleyan University, Sebastian will be transferring to Yale University in Fall 2021.

Originally from Bogotá, Colombia, Sebastian is a student-veteran having served in Naval Special Operations for six years. He has been volunteering at CVLC since November 2020.

Outside of classes and activities you can find Sebastian spending time with his wife, Kaitlyn, and son, Santiago. Sebastian has a passion for helping out the veteran community, hiking, salsa dancing and soccer.

Forrest Noirot

Justin Yamamura

Justin Yamamura is a junior at Yale College from San Francisco majoring in Political Science with an Advanced Language Certificate in Spanish. He has been working at CVLC since February 2019 through Dwight Hall at Yale’s Urban Fellows Program and is excited to return this summer as a Dwight Hall Summer Fellow. During his time at CVLC, he has worked closely with the Director of Development, conducting data analysis, research, outreach, and social media and website maintenance.

At Yale, Justin serves as the Co-President of the Japanese American Students Union, works as a residential college aide for Grace Hopper College, and has served as a Student Liaison for the World Fellows Program. He was selected to conduct original research related to Japanese American incarceration during World War II through the Asian American Cultural Center at Yale’s Satoda Scholars Program.

Outside of classes and activities you can find Justin running to the top of East Rock or playing and watching basketball. He also has a passion for learning languages: he is learning Portuguese and French.

In the future, he hopes to attend law school and get involved in politics or diplomacy.