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The Law and Leadership Institute –
Preparing High School Students for College Success
By Fletcher Word
Sojourner’s Truth Editor
The Law and
Leadership Institute (LLI) is a collaborative program for
high school students that is funded in part by the Ohio
State Bar Foundation and involves all of Ohio’s nine law
schools as well as the State Bar Association, the Ohio
Supreme Court and the Ohio Center for Law-Related Education.
“It’s the
best kept secret in education in the area,” says Pariss
Coleman, attorney, LLI board member and the program’s head
cheerleader in northwest Ohio.
The LLI’s
summer program is now being offered in Ohio’s six largest
cities – Cleveland, Columbus, Cincinnati, Toledo, Dayton and
Akron – with a special emphasis on reaching out to minority
students.
“We are
looking to improve diversity in the legal profession and
looking at under-served communities – that is our mission,”
said Marilyn Preston, site administrator of the Toledo LLI
and a professor of Legal Writing at The University of Toledo
College of Law.
LLI, a
four-year college preparatory program that starts with
instruction in criminal law and court procedures, is
intended as a vehicle to help high school students gain
critical academic skills in studying and test-taking. The
program focuses on developing students’ ability to write and
express themselves, thereby building self-confidence,
positive peer group relations and excitement about a
professional career.
Steve
Jemison, retired chief legal officer for Proctor & Gamble,
is the CEO and board president of the Ohio LLI and Heather
Creed is the chief operations officer. The organization is
overseen by a board of directors. Each of the cities has a
site administrator.
The Toledo
LLI began five years ago with a single ninth-grade class.
Every year another ninth-grade class of students enter the
Toledo LLI. Two graduations have been held thus far – 2013
and 2014 – and all of the graduates have entered colleges.
The students
undergo four rigorous weeks during the summer and then
commit to spending 12 weekends a year during the school year
during their first year.
As students
advance through the program, they will experience
law-related seminars and field trips, a four-day paid summer
internship, and participation in a law debate (moot court)
program while paired with an attorney or law student.
“My goal is
to graduate with a degree in political science, go on to law
school, eventually become a government official and an
advocate for students in urban areas with high poverty,”
said one 2014 Toledo LLI graduate.
For more information, visit the LI web site
at lawandleadership.org or contact Marilyn Preston at
419-530-2863
Judge Singer with Toledo Class of 2018 |
