After moving away as a child, Nicole Lukens ‘25 never expected to return to Houston.
But now Lukens, one of 17 students in the Civic Scholars Class of 2025, has found herself back in her childhood hometown for her Civic Summer.
The Civic Summer is a key part of the Civic Scholars Program during which, between their junior and senior year, students receive a summer stipend of $6,500 or more to support a substantial civic project or internship.
For her Civic Summer, Lukens—whose hometown is Jacksonville, Florida—is serving as an undergraduate legal intern with Houston’s branch of Kids in Need of Defense (KIND), a nonprofit that provides both legal and psychosocial support to unaccompanied children.
“I’m there to help with the legal assistance that KIND offers,” Lukens said. “Part of that is learning how to do client intakes, which are interviews with prospective clients. All the clients are kids; some are even a couple months old. I interview them, get to know their story and why they came to the US, and help decided if we can help them based on their story. I also help out with paper work, go to court, and talk with the legal aids.”
According to Sarah Balderas, a paralegal with KIND’s Detained Program and Lukens’ mentor, the unaccompanied children that KIND works with often arrive in the United States in need of legal services and carrying deep trauma caused by the violence and fear experienced during forced migration.
“KIND works to ensure pro bono representation and holistic support to migrant children. The organization’s work supports unaccompanied children as they adjust to a new country, a new language, and a new home,” said Balderas.
Founded in 2008, KIND aims to address the gap in legal services for unaccompanied children, and has offices and staff across the United States, Mexico, and Europe. Through their network of private sector pro bono and nongovernmental (NGO) partners, KIND works to provide unaccompanied children with innovative, holistic care that includes legal representation and psychosocial support.
“Lukens has been supporting our legal team,” Balderas continued. “Although it has only been a few weeks since she started her internship with KIND, she has assisted with legal screenings of unaccompanied children and certified translations; she has put together USCIS benefit relief packets and has helped keep track of immigration court dates for many of our current clients.”
Lukens is also working on a research project that will help KIND’s Houston Office complete outreach with other unaccompanied children assistance programs in the city with the goal of greater partnership growth within the community.
“I appreciate the trust that KIND places in me, they give me a lot of opportunities to do actually meaningful work,” Lukens said. “The attorneys and paralegals have been very generous with their time. They’ve explained all of the forms and legal assistance that you can receive as an immigrant. They’ve let me go to court with them and sit in on their meetings with clients.”
“I’ve also had the chance to practice my Spanish,” Lukens added. “I’m a native Spanish speaker, but I grew up in a place where no one spoke Spanish. Whenever I’m speaking with a client, it’s in Spanish. That practice has been great.”
Through her time as an undergraduate legal intern, Lukens has seen how KIND’s support has been essential to the everyday lives of children and their sponsors, and how the organization is integral for the Houston community. She has been able to help them further their mission, while simultaneously exploring her own passions for immigration law and community.
“I’d like to thank the Civic Scholars. If it weren’t for them and the stipend they provide, I wouldn’t ever have considered going back to Houston,” said Lukens. “I’m also thankful for KIND, and the opportunity they’ve given me to grow and learn. It’s been great to work in immigration law and to help out kids.”
The Civic Scholars Program is offered annually to select WashU undergraduates and are made possible by generous donations to the Gephardt Institute. Learn more here. If you are interested in applying or nominating a student for Civic Scholars, applications will be available online starting in early November. If you would like to make a gift to support this program, please contact Rasheen Coleman at rasheen.coleman@wustl.edu.