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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.
LLI began in 2008 as a summer initiative of the Supreme
Court of Ohio with just 40 students in the cities of
Cleveland and Columbus. One year later, the program expanded
to include the law schools in the cities of Akron,
Cincinnati, Dayton and Toledo. Today, LLI provides
legally-based academic instruction and leadership training
to approximately 225 high school students across the state
of Ohio due to the support of all nine Ohio law schools,
generous grants from the Ohio State Bar Foundation and the
Law School Admission Council, as well as continued support
from the Supreme Court of Ohio, the Ohio federal courts, the
metropolitan bar associations and corporate and individual
stewards of the communities who recognize the value of the
work LLI performs.
The LLI’s summer program is offered in Ohio’s six largest
cities – Cleveland, Columbus, Cincinnati, Toledo, Dayton and
Akron – with a special emphasis on reaching out to minority
students.
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.
“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.
Heather Creed is the executive director. The organization is
overseen by a board of directors. One of the local directors
is Neema Bell, a partner with Shumaker, Loop & Kendrick,
LLP. Each of the cities has a site administrator.
The Toledo LLI began 10 years ago with a single ninth-grade
class. Every year another ninth-grade class of students
enter the Toledo LLI.
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.
Applications are being accepted now by LLI for the 2019
Summer Institute. To apply for the 2019 Summer Institute, go
to the Law & Leadership Institute website and visit the
Apply section.
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