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About The Child Advocacy Program
The Child Advocacy Program (CAP) was founded in 2004 by Prof. Elizabeth, who served as its Faculty Director until 2021 when she retired from the HLS Faculty. CAP’s mission was to advance children’s interests through facilitating productive interaction between academia and the world of policy and practice, and through training generations of students to contribute in their future careers to law reform and social change. It was committed to a broad vision of advocacy, working both in and outside of the courtroom, as well as across disciplinary lines. CAP elevated child rights and child welfare to a respected academic discipline at Harvard Law School. Among its accomplishments, CAP created a flagship course called the Art of Social Change: Child Welfare, Education & Juvenile Justice, and an innovative clinic teaching students about the pros and cons of different forms of doing child advocacy work, the Child Advocacy Clinic. CAP had an active law reform program, hosted many important conferences and workshops, and served as a center for students interested in child rights. Prof. Bartholet continues to work actively on domestic and international child welfare issues, and in other professional arenas. Learn more about Prof. Bartholet’s past and present work, and about CAP’s activities 2004-2021, by visiting her website.
Youth Advocacy & Policy Lab (Y-Lab)
Some aspects of CAP’s academic program will continue under the auspices of the Youth Advocacy & Policy Lab (Y-Lab). Y-Lab, launched in 2022, is a multi-disciplinary program with a mission of advocating for the creation of child-serving systems that are trauma-sensitive, healing-centered, and antiracist.