Expanding its portfolio of public service programs aimed at providing
educational enrichment opportunities for the racially and culturally diverse
population of students attending Boston's Public High Schools, the Boston Bar
Association (BBA) today announced that it has entered into a partnership with
the Boston Debate League (BDL). The BDL is a non-profit organization that works
in partnership with the Boston Public Schools (BPS) to support academic debate
teams in local high schools and train BPS teachers to use debate as a regular
part of their classroom practice. BBA members are now being recruited for the
school year that begins in September 2012.
"Our partnership with the Boston Debate League meets three important
goals: helping the young people of our community enhance their academic skills,
expanding the pipeline of racially and ethnically diverse students who may
choose to become lawyers, and providing lawyers with the sense of fulfillment
that comes from performing meaningful public service," said BBA President Lisa
C. Goodheart. "The power of debate is a great tool for engaging both students
and lawyers."
According to the BDL, debaters are three times less likely to drop out of
school than non-debaters, and African-American males who debate, in particular,
are 70 per more likely to graduate from high school than those who don't. Debate
prepares students to get into college but, more importantly, it gives them the
necessary skills to succeed and thrive once they get there.
The BDL also reports that urban debaters improved both their Reading and
English ACT scores by 15 percent and are 34 percent (English) and 74 percent
(Reading) more likely to achieve the college readiness benchmarks after just two
years in debate.
BBA members will have the opportunity to donate their time to the BDL in
any of three ways:
- They can volunteer to judge debates (each shift is
just a four hour commitment);
- They can volunteer to be debate mentors (this is a
higher level of commitment, requiring two hours per week); and
- They can provide general support to the BDL, including legal and
other-in-kind support, event support and hosting, and volunteer outreach and
shepherding.
Training is provided for all volunteers.
The BBA takes a lead role in three other programs directed at Boston
youth: the BBA Summer Jobs Program, conducted in partnership with the Private
Industry Council Boston and the Boston Public Schools; the M. Ellen Carpenter
Financial Literacy Program, conducted in partnership with the U.S. Bankruptcy
Court for the District of Massachusetts; and Law Day in the Schools, which
teaches students in grades K-12 about the rule of law in a constitutional
democracy.
If you are interested in volunteering, please contact Stephanie Lee at slee@bostonbar.org or
617-778-1914.