For Cathy Dowd, Dobbs was the last straw and the spark. Furious at what she saw as a fundamental blow to women’s equality, she left behind a 15-year career as a high school teacher, mostly teaching AP government, and enrolled in law school. “I felt that the Dobbs decision made women fundamentally not equal, not just unable to exercise their reproductive rights but also not seen as whole people who could determine their own path in life. I ruminated on this for a month, and then I decided to apply to law school,” she recalls.

Armed with an MBA from Wharton and years of civic engagement — including her current seat on the Needham Select Board — she arrived at Northeastern ready to put her convictions to work. “I’m part of a team that’s doing something important to try to preserve our rights and the rule of law,” says Dowd, describing her co-op with the ACLU of Massachusetts. Her previous co-op employers include Judge Patti Saris at the US District Court for the District of Massachusetts and the Center for Reproductive Rights in New York.

In addition to sharpening her research and writing skills at the ACLU, Dowd is inspired by the team’s strategic discussions, including questions such as “When do we sue? In what venue do we sue? When do we not? Are we going to sue even if we may not get a favorable decision? If we sue, could we make things worse?”

What impresses her most is the ACLU’s culture. “It’s a happy warrior kind of atmosphere,” she says. “Despite all the challenges, the mood is positive in the office. We’ve got a job to do, and we’re going to do it.”

— Deborah Feldman

“M&A work is fast-paced and complex — there’s only so much you can absorb about taxation in school, so most of what I’m learning is on the job. My supervisor and I work closely together on complex issues, and he’s always available to provide feedback on my legal analysis. The intellectual stimulation of M&A combined with the fulfillment of client advising has deepened my excitement about joining EY full time after graduation.”

— Kani Kim ’26

“At Dana-Farber, I expected operational and transactional healthcare work but not the broad scope of intellectual property matters conducted in-house, with an entire team dedicated to supporting new and innovative oncology care. Cancer has touched several people in my life, and pursuing a co-op that directly supports the mission of eradicating cancer and improving the lives of cancer survivors is both meaningful and rewarding.”

— Joshua Lovejoy ’26