Two courses that introduced St. Vrain Valley School District students to a career in law launched in 2022 at the Career and Technical Education Center, or CETC. Since its beginning the program has doubled in size and now offers more courses.
“We are thrilled to see the growth and enthusiasm surrounding our pre-law program, Colorado’s first career and technical education pre-law pathway,” said ToniJo Niccoli, principal at New Meridian High School and CETC. “This initiative opens doors to the legal field for students, and also provides them with unmatched opportunities to excel academically and foster thoughtful discourse.”
When the program began it offered Introduction to Law and Criminal Law & Justice. It has expanded to offer Civil Rights and Law and Business Law courses. According to Evelyn Bonn, an experienced attorney and one of two teachers of the courses, the classes are based on what students learn in their first year of law school.
The district is looking at adding a capstone course for third year students that will allow them to participate in more specialized areas of law through internships, Niccoli said.
In 2022, the program drew the interest of 80 students, and three years later more than 150 students are enrolled. The courses are offered virtually, through the district’s AGILE program, which allows students from across the district and other school districts to engage in the program as they consider pursuing a career in a legal field.
Niccoli said the district is in the process of creating partnerships with nearby colleges that would allow students to earn college credit for the courses similar to the P-TECH and P-TEACH programs in the district.
Students in the courses are taught to analyze the readings and to think critically about what they are reading. The goal for the program is to teach students how to be thoughtful and to see all sides in a world with such diverse beliefs, Niccoli said.
“Our goal is to engage students meaningfully with the law, whether or not they pursue a legal career,” said David Elchoness, an experienced attorney and teacher.
During Friday’s lesson, the class was examining a statute law case that examined whether or not a fisherman knowing destroyed evidence by returning protected fish to the ocean in federal waters. The fish were too small to legally keep, however, returning them could have been construed as destroying federal evidence. Students were engaged in the lesson as they read the statute line by line to decipher what it was saying and creating arguments why they agreed or disagreed.
Elchoness builds fictitious cases for students to study based on the section he is teaching. For example, he will act out a scene of a murder case and include enough doubt that it forces the students to dig into the details to discern innocence based on the evidence provided. He said he also pulls from popular culture to keep the students engaged while teaching the same things first year law students encounter.
The program has been such a success that it has also formed a moch trial team. “This hands-on component, combined with classroom learning, helps students develop critical thinking, writing, and communication skills,” the district stated in a news release.
The team came together at the last minute last school year. The small team competed in a local tournament and placed in the top 10 even though they began practicing later than other teams.
This year the team has grown and are already working on learning how to compete at a higher level, Bonn said. The team’s hope is that they make it to the state competition this year.
Students from across SVVSD are invited to enroll in the pre-law courses and/or join the mock trial team.