The Best Part of this Semester

By Yungmoon, 3E

During my first year, I recall seeing groups of high school students on campus.  Since our campus is a law school only campus, naturally I was curious as to why they were there.  I found out that they are participants in our Young Lawyers Program, where local high school students come to Loyola's campus to prepare for a full mock trial.  

This January, I finally had the availability to participate in Young Lawyers.  The students come to campus once a week for twelve weeks, and the program will culminate in a trial that they will present before an actual judge.  Every week, they complete homework assignments, like writing opening and closing statements, developing themes, and learning objections.  Parents, friends, and the community attend the final trial to support the students and give them an opportunity to show off all their hard work.  

Besides giving the students a chance to learn more about trial advocacy as high school students, the program also provides a mentoring aspect.  We are broken up into smaller teams, where we work with the same students every week, developing relationships and providing one on one feedback.

I recently heard that there is a 1L student currently at Loyola who was a past program participant.  With the continued efforts of our wonderful faculty, volunteering practitioners, and students, hopefully she is just the start.