| Bar Bulletin |
June,
2003 |
| MSBA News |
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Law Links’ Success Showcased With New Grants
~MSBA’s Student/Law Firm Summer Internship in Baltimore City
Recipient of 2 Grants to Support Local Youth~
By Janet Stidman Eveleth
Law Links, MSBA’s
unique student/law firm summer internship program, has been recognized as
a valuable educational and employment opportunity for high school students
since its inception in 1994. Through Law Links, high school students work
as interns in local law firms and law-related agencies and are paid for
seven weeks of summer employment, including time off to participate in an
educational component of the internship. This summer, close to 60 young
people will take advantage of the Law Links experience, and, in addition
to MSBA, they will be supported by several key philanthropic foundations.
This MSBA public
service program is an excellent working, educational and career-developing
experience for young people. It is one of the few youth summer jobs
programs in the area that provides a professional setting for youth
employment. It offers interns a well-rounded, professional experience.
Over the years, Law Links’ success has gained widespread recognition in
the community and this is evident in its newest supporters.
This summer, Law
Links is the proud recipient of two outstanding grants for its Baltimore
City 2003 program: the Will and Jada Smith Family Foundation is supporting
the City’s Law Links program this summer with a $30,000 grant; and the
Mayor’s Office of Employment Development is contributing $30,000. In
addition to MSBA’s annual $20,000 funding, the Maryland Department of
Labor, Licensing and Regulation is giving a $10,000 grant to Law Links.
The Monumental City Bar Foundation and the J. Franklyn Bourne Scholarship
Fund hosted a Celebrity Golf Tournament on June 16, donating the proceeds
to the Law Links program. Other support is forthcoming.
Law Links’ enhanced
2003 financial support in the legal community and beyond reflects the
tremendous impact the internship has had across the state of Maryland.
“The funding increase shows people in the community realize the value of
Law Links,” reports Ellery “Rick” Miller, Executive Director of the
Citizenship Law-Related Education Program (CLREP) and administrator of the
internship. “It is really transformative for the young people who
participate in it, and [it] gives them the opportunity of a lifetime.”
“Law Links gives
young people academic, career and life skills,” continues Miller. In
addition to paid summer employment, this comprehensive learning experience
prepares young people for college and teaches them about the professional
business world. “Many of the young people have gone on to college and some
have even advanced to law school.”
The 2003 Law Links
internship will welcome 30 high school students in Baltimore City, 20 in
Prince George’s County and six on Maryland’s lower Eastern Shore. Through
this internship, the students in each jurisdiction will be paid for seven
weeks of summer employment by the respective law firm or law-related
agency. The firms give the students time off with pay each week to attend
the Law and Leadership Institute, the educational element of the
internship.
The Law and
Leadership Institute, which is presented by CLREP, MSBA’s educational arm
in the schools, supplements the interns’ professional work experience with
educational and training skills. It focuses on everything from workplace
issues, career goals and cultural diversity to communication skills and
business etiquette. Essentially, it introduces students to the
professional world of work.
On June 20, Law
Links will commence on the lower Eastern Shore of Maryland, and it will be
kicked off simultaneously in Baltimore City and Prince George’s County on
June 30. To date, well over 450 high school students have participated in
Law Links.
A very hard working
MSBA Law Links Committee, chaired by the Honorable Wanda Heard,
coordinates and implements this annual summer event. “This Committee
diligently generates funding for the internship every year,” notes Miller.
“The Committee and MSBA thank all Law Links supporters.”
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