Martin and Laurie Tankleff Scholarship Established at Touro Law
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Martin and Laurie Tankleff Scholarship Established at Touro Law
August 7, 2014Touro Law Dean Patricia Salkin is pleased to announce the newly established Martin and Laurie Tankleff Scholarship. The endowed scholarship, established with a gift of $25,000, will be awarded annually to a Touro Law student who is interested in appealing wrongful convictions and, more generally, pursuing criminal defense work.
“Martin was an active student and continues to be an important member of the Touro Law community,” said Dean Salkin. “Martin and his wife Laurie’s decision to continue to invest in our law school and our students is greatly appreciated and we are thankful for their generosity.”
Martin Tankleff, a 2014 Touro Law graduate, began his law studies in 2010. He was driven pursue the study of law after being wrongfully convicted of murdering his parents when he was 17 years old. Marty spent more than 17 years in prison before his conviction was overturned. He worked at a Barket Marion Epstein & Kearon, LLP while attending Touro Law as a part-time evening student, and was active in student organizations including the Criminal Law Society. He is passionate about criminal defense work and plans on becoming the Executive Director of a new not-for-profit to help free wrongly convicted prisoners; that will utilize law students in the effort to exoneration.
Touro Criminal Law Professor Richard Klein commented, “Marty appears determined to dedicate his career to helping others avoid the horrid situation of being convicted for a crime one had not committed.”
Touro Law offers various scholarships and fellowships to both incoming and current students. Touro Law has raised more than $1 million in new scholarships in the past fiscal year, including 18 new named scholarships to benefit students.
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Touro College Jacob D. Fuchsberg Law Center’s 185,000-square-foot, state-of-the-art facility is located adjacent to both a state and a federal courthouse in Central Islip, New York. Touro Law’s proximity to the courthouses, coupled with the innovative new Portals to Practice curriculum provide all students with immersive, hands-on learning opportunities in diverse fields of legal practice. Touro Law, which has a student body of approximately 650 and an alumni base of nearly 6,000, offers full- and part-time J.D. programs, several dual degree programs and graduate law programs for US and foreign law graduates. Touro Law Center is part of the Touro College system.
About the Touro College and University System
Touro is a system of non-profit institutions of higher and professional education. Touro College was chartered in 1970 primarily to enrich the Jewish heritage, and to serve the larger American and global community. Approximately 19,000 students are currently enrolled in its various schools and divisions. Touro College has branch campuses, locations and instructional sites in the New York area, as well as branch campuses and programs in Berlin, Jerusalem, Moscow, Paris and Florida. New York Medical College, Touro University California and its Nevada branch campus, as well as Touro University Worldwide and its Touro College Los Angeles division are separately accredited institutions within the Touro College and University System. For further information on Touro College, please go to: http://www.touro.edu/media/.
Patti Desrochers
Director of Communications
pattid@tourolaw.edu
(631) 761-7062