The Justice Policy Project builds upon prior research conducted by Dartmouth faculty and students on and in partnership with the judicial systems of New Hampshire and Vermont as well as the U.S. federal and international judiciaries. We invite you to review selected information about these initiatives and projects at the links below:

Judicial Fellowship Program

The Rockefeller Center’s Judicial Fellowship program is a nationwide opportunity for Dartmouth undergraduates. Unique in the Ivy League, the program matches successful student applicants with Dartmouth's large network of alumni/ae jurists to mentor and expose students to the inner workings of a judge’s chambers and court. 

Students have conducted research fieldwork during their time as fellows with this program, including producing reports for the federal judiciary. 

Policy Research Shop

The Class of 1964 Policy Research Shop (PRS) is a student-staffed, faculty-mentored research enterprise that allows students to engage directly in the public policymaking processes in Vermont and New Hampshire by providing valuable, non-partisan research to state legislative committees, statewide commissions, and executive agencies on critical issues facing each state.

Reports in recent years related to justice policy have included:

New Hampshire Supreme Court

Court Navigator Program Evaluation (2024)

• Project evaluating a program through which court personnel provide legal information (not advice) to self-represented litigants in the Circuit court system, including for misdemeanor/violation criminal offenses and civil matters. The New Hampshire Access to Justice Commission formally adopted the PRS brief’s recommendations.
• Commission report
• Public news story (Rockefeller Center)

Guardians ad Litem & Pilot Program (2025 & 2026)

• Unique collaboration across two years to evaluate the state of guardians ad litem in parenting cases in New Hampshire and the results of a pilot program for state-funded expansion.
• Public news story (The Keene Sentinel)

Vermont House Committee on Judiciary

Competency Restoration Programs (2025)

• Project evaluating whether and how to establish a formal or informal program to restore competency for those involved with the Vermont criminal justice system.

Legal Deserts/Rural Lawyer Recruitment (2026)

• Project investigating methods of recruiting lawyers and incentivizing practice of all forms of law in Vermont’s rural communities. 

Vermont Department of Corrections

Medication for Opioid Use Disorder (2026)

• Project investigating the use of medication for opioid use disorder for individuals incarcerated in Vermont.