Alexandra Siek Senior Lecturer III | UNM School of Law Clinical Programs
A law student has been selected as a 2025 Peggy Browning Fellow, joining a group of 105 students chosen from nearly 3,500 applicants nationwide. The Peggy Browning Fund supports law students interested in workplace justice advocacy by providing stipends for ten weeks of employment with labor-related mentor organizations.
The Fund aims to cultivate future lawyers dedicated to workers and labor rights. Fellows are selected based on academic excellence and a commitment to workers' rights demonstrated through education, organizing efforts, work experience, volunteer service, or personal background.
Purcell, one of the fellows, holds a bachelor's degree in Economics and Latin American Studies from Wellesley College and a master's degree in Public Affairs from the University of Texas at Austin. Her personal experiences have shaped her understanding of workers' rights advocacy in New Mexico. As a teenager in the service industry, she experienced wage theft but was able to receive legal assistance. She noted that many undocumented co-workers did not have access to such support. Purcell is inspired by the New Mexico Center on Law and Poverty's work to protect low-wage and vulnerable workers and looks forward to joining their team this summer as part of her fellowship.
