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9 Ohio Law. 8 (1995)
Ohio Center for Law-Related Education: Educating Young Citizens

handle is hein.journals/ohiolawr9 and id is 46 raw text is: Ohio Center for Law-Related Education: Educating young citizens by Cheryl Pentella It all began at the urging of his teenage daughter, then a sophomore at Archbishop Hoban High School. A slight arm twisting and Vincent R. Modugno found himself serving as volunteer legal advisor in the school's Ohio Mock Trial, a student-cen- tered experience that brings the judicial system to life through a simulated trial. Five years later, despite the fact that his daughter has gone on to college, Modugno, who led his team to the Ohio Mock Trial Championship in 1994, remains actively involved and certainly doesn't understate the rewards. To see these young high school stu- dents take such a serious interest in the judicial system and ideas of justice is, in many ways, more satisfying to me than many of the lucrative cases I have won, says the partner in the Akron-area law firm, McKenna and Modugno. Their understanding of the legal system, their sportsmanship and collegiality are truly amazing. Modugno's comments underscore the goals of the Ohio Center for Law-Related Education (OCLRE) located in Columbus, at the OSBA headquarters building. Ac- cording to its mission statement, the cen- ter, founded in 1983, is a nonprofit, non- partisan organization that helps prepare young people to become better informed, active and responsible citizens by provid- ing educational opportunities that promote learning about citizenship and the place of law in our society. OCLRE creates hands-on interactive learning experiences that help youths de- velop critical thinking, conflict resolution, speaking and leadership skills while build- ing self-esteem, encouraging community involvement and providing a comprehen- sive knowledge of the judicial system, explains Nicholas J. Topougis, executive director of OCLRE. What initially began as the Ohio Mock Trial Program 12 years ago has evolved to embrace a wide variety of law-related edu- cational strategies that include teachercon- ferences, workshops and summer insti- tutes, student summer camps, and pro- grams that expose students and teachers alike to the intricacies of the legal system from the executive branch and the legisla- ture to courts. The interactive strategies really make this program effective, Topougis adds. The students don'tjust sit back and listen. They are actually involved in the process. That is what makes it so powerful. Last year, OCLRE registered 912 par- ticipants in programs developed for teach- ers including the popular, annual Law and Citizenship Conference, workshops for teachers of at-risk students, Ohio Govern- ment in Action's insider' s view of the three branches of government and in the Mock Trial Competition. At the same time, the program directly touched the lives of 1,864 students who participated in the mock trials, summer camps and academies. Additionally, thousands of other Ohio students benefit from programs and re- sources that teachers bring back to the classroom from OCLRE workshops, says Topougis. A total of 187 teams, with an estimated 1,683, students participated in OCLRE's 1994 Ohio Mock Trial, with an increase of 30 percent in participation anticipated this year. Those numbers reflect the popularity and statewide appeal of the program, which began in 1983 with only eight teams coin- peting. The Ohio Mock Trial Program, the pre- decessor to OCLRE, was established as a result of an informal dialogue among sev- eral organizations including the Ohio State Bar Association, former Ohio Attorney General Anthony J. Celebrezze Jr., the Ohio chapter of the American Civil Liber- ties Union and Cleveland State University. Debra Hallock Phillips, PhD, was the first executive director of the program and served in that capacity for 11 years. In 1988. when the program's name was changed to the Ohio Center for Law-Re- lated Education, the Supreme Court of Ohiojoined the OSBA, the Attorney Gen- eral and the American Civil Liberties Union of Ohio Foundation as sponsors. Continued on page 11 MARCH/APRIL 1995

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