The Brown Rudnick Charitable Foundation Awards Community Grant to BELL (Building Educated Leaders for Life)

In addition to grant dollars, Brown Rudnick provides pro bono and volunteer support to 

BELL to help improve inner-city education

Boston, MA, August 13, 2007 – The Brown Rudnick Charitable Foundation Corp., a nonprofit, tax-exempt entity established by attorneys from Brown Rudnick Berlack Israels LLP, today announced that it has awarded one of its Community Grants to BELL (Building Educated Leaders for Life). The grant provided funds for the painting of an outdoor mural at PS 36, a K-2 inner-city school in Harlem, New York. The mural was painted by a team of students from the school and volunteer attorneys and staff from Brown Rudnick’s New York office. The project was part of a community service activity organized by the Brown Rudnick Center for the Public Interest through its all volunteer committee in New York called BRAVO (Brown Rudnick All Volunteer Organizers).

Brown Rudnick is an ongoing supporter of BELL In early 2007, for the second consecutive year, the Foundation awarded BELL one of its annual Relationship Grants. The grant was used to help fund summer and after-school programs in New York in conjunction with BELL’s efforts to expand the geographic scope of its services. The firm also provides pro bono legal representation to BELL

According to Albert W. Wallis, Executive Director of the Brown Rudnick Charitable Foundation Corp., “BELL is a great organization doing important, effective work, and we are pleased to support them through a combination of grant dollars, pro bono legal counsel and volunteerism. Providing support on multiple fronts to educators and non-profit organizations energizes our firm and is central to our Foundation’s mission to help improve inner-city education. 

“For the mural project,” continues Mr. Wallis, “we gathered together a team of firm volunteers and Summer Associates from our New York office to be the painting crew along with an artist, who helped us create the mural. The teachers and students were delighted with the finished product but it was more than a semi-permanent mural that we produced, it was also a learning process for everyone involved.”

Brown Rudnick’s Center for the Public Interest is the umbrella entity encompassing the Firm's pro bono legal work, charitable giving, community involvement and public interest efforts. The Center encourages and coordinates community service volunteer activities in each of Brown Rudnick’s offices, especially activities associated with recipients of Brown Rudnick  Charitable Foundation grants. Under the auspices of the Center, BRAVO is dedicated to planning community service activities for attorneys and staff in the New York office.

Created to support front-line educators who often do not have a voice in funding decisions, the Community Grants subsidize small, concrete projects, which will improve inner-city education in Boston, Hartford, Providence or New York within the coming year. The Foundation will generally consider grant applications monthly and award grants in an amount totaling not more than $2000 in any one month. The grant applications and an explanation of the program can be found at http://www.brownrudnickcenter.com/foundation/communitygrant.asp.

About BELL

BELL (Building Educated Leaders for Life) is a community-based, non-profit organization founded by Black Harvard Law School students in 1992. BELL is designed to increase educational opportunities and achievements of children living in low-income communities.

BELL serves underperforming elementary school children, grades K-6. For more information, please visit www.bellnational.org/locations/NY.htm.

About Brown Rudnick Berlack Israels LLP

Brown Rudnick is an international law firm with offices in the United States and Europe. The firm represents clients from around the world, providing business-focused solutions that address today’s ever-changing, ever-demanding competitive marketplace. With an entrepreneurial and collaborative mindset, Brown Rudnick offers a broad slate of capabilities and talents in areas that include: Bankruptcy & Corporate Restructuring, Complex Litigation, Corporate & Securities, Energy, Finance, Government Law & Strategies, Health Law, Intellectual Property and Real Estate. For more information, please visit www.brownrudnick.com.

The Brown Rudnick Center for the Public Interest is a measure of the Firm’s strong commitment to the community and serves as an umbrella entity encompassing the Firm's pro bono legal work, charitable giving, community involvement and public interest efforts. For more information, please visit www.brownrudnickcenter.com.