wfn.org | Church-Related Law Program for Teens

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"UNITED METHODIST DAILY NEWS 97" by SUSAN PEEK on April 15, 1997 at 14:24
Eastern, about DAILY NEWS RELEASES FROM UNITED METHODIST NEWS SERVICE (263
notes).

Note 263 by UMNS on Aug. 6, 1997 at 16:05 Eastern (2979 characters).

Produced by United Methodist News Service, official news agency of
the United Methodist Church, with offices in Nashville, Tenn., New
York, and Washington.

Contact:  Joretta Purdue                      451(10-30-71BP){263}
          Washington, D.C.  (202) 546-8722            Aug. 6, 1997

United Methodist Lawyer's Guild holds
first Summer Law College for Teens

     WASHINGTON (UMNS) -- The Summer Law College for Teens,
thought to be a first by the sponsoring United Methodist Lawyer's
Guild, climaxed for the 21 area student participants with two days
of mock hearings and trial in the nearby Prince George's County
courthouse.
     The final event of the six-week experience, conducted
primarily at the United Methodist Building in Washington, was
graduation on July 30.
     During the summer law college, high school students were
trained in legal research, writing and elements of trial
preparation. They worked under the direction of mentoring
attorneys and Sirina Suklal, a third-year law student at Howard
University who coordinated the teen college program.
     Lectures and work sessions were interspersed with a visit to
the U.S. Supreme Court and observing proceedings in a District of
Columbia Superior Court.
     "In this program I have gained more self-confidence, and I
have met new people. I have learned so much about the law," said
Yvonne Veintidos, a 16-year-old participant from Silver Spring,
Md.
     Students prepared for their mock trial divided into two law
firms representing the plaintiff and the defense, prepared their
cases, recruited and prepared witnesses, and played their parts in
the courtroom drama for a jury of parents, attorneys and others.
     Bishop Felton E. May of the Washington Area praised the
attorneys' work with disadvantaged students. He said, "The effort
on the part of these attorneys demonstrates more than lip service
from the church."
     The Lawyer's Guild is part of the church's attitude of Holy
Boldness, which May has fostered in the 11 months he has been
presiding bishop of the area. The United Methodist Church
underwrote the Summer Law College for Teens. A $600 stipend was
provided for students because many are dependent on summer income.
     Attorney James Hulme, Lawyer's Guild co-chairman, commented,
"Perhaps 10 years from now we will hear that these students have
passed the bar exam and have begun litigating their first cases in
D.C. courts." Hulme served as presiding judge for the mock trial.
     His co-chairman, Marc Loud, observed that every attorney in
the guild has been the recipient of mentoring during their
education and career development and has tried to pass that on to
the students.
     "We believe every child, including those designated 'at
risk,' has the potential to succeed and overcome obstacles. Each
of these students excelled, and all show great promise as
attorneys," Loud said.
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