Chloe Allen ‘25 has been named a George Barrett Social Justice Fellow for the Vanderbilt Law Class of 2025. The Barrett Fellowship will fund Allen’s work with the Southern Environmental Law Center (SELC).
Allen’s appointment as a George Barrett Social Justice Fellow was announced by Dean Chris Guthrie. The Barrett Social Justice Fellowship honors the legacy of renowned Nashville civil rights attorney George “The Citizen” Barrett ’57 by enabling a Vanderbilt Law graduate to carry out a one-year public interest project under the supervision and sponsorship of a host organization. The law school funds the fellow’s salary and health insurance at the host organization.
As a Barrett Fellow, Allen will partner with SELC to deliver pro bono legal services to community groups to address issues around air pollution, slaughterhouse sludge, and other industrial food waste in western Tennessee. SELC is a nonprofit, nonpartisan environmental legal advocacy organization that works to protect air, water, land, wildlife, and the people who live in the South.
“I decided to attend law school so that I could learn the skills necessary to make a difference in my community,” she explained. “I knew that I wanted to work in public interest environmental law, but I didn’t know what kinds of jobs would be available or if it was even possible.”
Allen pursued public interest and environmental law throughout her time at Vanderbilt Law. She served as student writing editor on the Vanderbilt Journal of Transnational Law and development editor on the Environmental Law and Policy Annual Review. She also researched energy infrastructure and policy as a fellow in the Energy, Environment, and Land Use Program.
Allen interned with the SELC last summer. She clerked for the USDA Office of the General Counsel in summer 2023, when she also volunteered at the Tennessee Justice Center’s Medical-Legal Partnership.
Allen earned a B.A. in English (Creative Writing) and Communication of Science and Technology from Vanderbilt.
