"STUDENTS LOVE IT."
The WV Supreme Court's civic education program for middle school and high school students – West Virginia Law Adventure — allows participating classes to write their own scripts based on one of three criminal case scenarios in the West Virginia Law Adventure rules book, unlike other mock trial programs in which students act out scripts written by adults.
Students from Roane-Jackson Technical School's legal studies class visited the Supreme Court, recently, to watch oral arguments and receive an award as the 2017 winners of the West Virginia Law Adventure competition. Pictured above, Supreme Court Chief Justice Allen H. Loughry II welcomed the students at the opening of court and presented the winning students with a plaque.
Roane-Jackson teacher Melissa Wilkinson said both her morning and afternoon legal studies classes – made up of juniors and seniors in high school – participated, and the morning class won.
"We also participated in the program two years ago. It meets a lot of the standards that I have to teach them in the criminal justice field," Ms. Wilkinson said. "This program really makes them think outside of the box. Students love it."
Several schools have participated in the program since it began more than ten years ago. The Bar Foundation gave a grant … in 2008 to support the program. In 2014, the Court informed the Bar Foundation that all the money had been used and another grant … was given to the Court for the program.
It is YOUR donations for Bar Foundation grants that make these fulfilling student civic education programs possible.
Thank you for your valuable assistance!
GIVING TUESDAY-NOVEMBER 28
$168 million raised online.
1.56 million total gifts.
$107.69 mean gift size.
This is what happened last year on Giving Tuesday, the nationally recognized date to make donations to charitable organizations.
Please plan on making a tax deductible donation to the Bar Foundation's Justice Fund on Tuesday, November 28.
Every dollar you contribute is used solely to make grants to charitable WV organizations which work to improve the administration of justice and the provision of legal services to the state's men, women and children.
It's easy—- Do it online by using your credit/debit card, through the simple PayPal donation process on the Bar Foundation's website—-wvbarfound.org
Or donations can be made by check to the Justice Fund (WV Bar Foundation, P.O. Box 4845, Charleston, WV 25364).
RUDY DITRAPANO
One of West Virginia's best known lawyers, Rudy DiTrapano of Charleston, passed away on October 25.
As reported in the news media, he was "larger than life" and an "iconic lawyer", as well as having been involved in more than 100 published legal opinions, including one of the few WV attorneys to successfully argue an appeal before the U. S. Supreme Court.
Rudy was a WV Bar Foundation Fellow and holds the unofficial record of having four years pass between being selected as a Fellow and being able to be present at an annual Fellows dinner for his formal induction as a Fellow! His hectic schedule of legal work and traveling caused the delay.
Rudy DiTrapano-all honor to his name.