Texas Appleseed – Spreading the Seeds of Justice

Texas Appleseed Chair Emeritus Chris Dougherty and 2006 Good Apple Honoree Charles Matthews,VP & General Counsel, Exxon Mobil Corporation

"It takes a noble man to plant

a seed for the tree that will someday give shade to people he may never meet."

--Dr. David Trueblood

        Philosopher & Writer

Mission

Planting the Seed - A Shared Vision

A little over 10 years ago, a shared vision motivated a small group of Texas attorneys to plant a seed for change. Inspired to give back to their communities, they saw the untapped potential in marshalling the talents and pro bono resources of Texas' legal community to overcome systemic barriers to social and economic justice for the most vulnerable - our children, persons with mental disabilities, the indigent, and recent immigrants.

The goal: A thriving state in which all Texans - irrespective of race, ethnicity, income, or ability - have access to high quality education, economic security and a fair justice system.

Texas Appleseed - A Unique Approach

That "seed of change" has grown into Texas Appleseed - a public interest law organization that has successfully worked for justice by addressing the root causes of important legal and social issues through research, advocacy, protection of rights and public awareness. At a time when there are a shrinking number of voices speaking out on behalf of the disenfranchised, Texas Appleseed is uniquely positioned to make their needs heard.

Unlike other organizations, Texas Appleseed works on behalf of a wide range of constituents and focuses on systemic change that affects thousands of lives at the local, state and national level. By matching our in-house legal and policy team with pro bono legal talent from some of the state's largest firms, corporations and law schools, Texas Appleseed can:

• Maximize resources, high-level contacts, and experience to achieve justice gains;

• Respond quickly and effectively to emerging issues; and

• Utilize Appleseed Centers in 16 other states and Mexico City to find innovative policy solutions and replicate Texas' successes in other parts of the country.

• Texas Appleseed was instrumental in drafting and passing what one national expert described as the most important indigent defense legislation in 25 years — the Texas Fair Defense Act of 2001.
  
  
• The State Bar of Texas presented Texas Appleseed with the W. Frank Newton Award in 2002 for our efforts to improve access to legal services to the poor.
  
  
• Texas Appleseed received the Ring of Honor Award from the Mental Health Association of Texas for our work with attorneys and others to address the legal needs of defendants with mental illness or mental retardation.
  
  
• Texas Appleseed is a national leader in helping immigrants gain greater access and fairness in the financial services industry — providing bilingual financial services, launching a Fair Exchange Pilot to promote greater transparency in pricing money transfer services, and working with banks and credit unions on ways to better serve immigrant consumers and offer competitive remittance services.
  
  
• Our Diversity Legal Scholars program has helped more than 200 low-income students prepare for law school. DLS scholars have attended prestigious law schools across the country, including Duke University and Howard University, as well as all nine law schools in the State of Texas.
  
  
• Houston Lawyer named Texas Appleseed a Houston Hero in 1999 for our commitment to promoting racial diversity.
  
  
• Texas Appleseed has pursued legal action to secure housing and other benefits for the 250,000 evacuees from Hurricanes Katrina and Rita in Texas—and is promoting systemic changes to improve the disaster relief response in the future.
  
  
• Texas Appleseed produced first of its kind research in 2007 on the link between school discipline programs and gateways to a School-to-Prison Pipeline marked by high dropout rates, juvenile justice involvement, and incarceration in adult prison. Over the next two years, we will expand this research and advocate for change at the state and local level.
  
  
• Texas Appleseed joined with Advocacy Inc. to successfully pursue legal action against the Texas Youth Commission to stop the overuse of pepper spray in youth prisons.
  
  
• Texas Appleseed testified before the Texas Supreme Court in 2007 on the ongoing need for reforms in Texas' foster care system—submitting its report identifying the critical need for more funding and additional foster care caseworkers.