A social studies teacher from Western New York and a defense attorney from Albany were honored by the New York State Bar Association for their voluntary commitment to law-related education at the 29th annual Statewide Conference on Law-Related and Civic Education in Albany a few weeks ago. The event is sponsored by the New York State Bar Association's Law, Youth & Citizenship Program. Leah Peterson, a social studies teacher in the Churchville-Chili School District in Monroe County, received the Emil Zullo Award for her outstanding contributions to law-related education (LRE). The award is named in memory of "Butch" Zullo, a teacher at Kingston High School and a past Law Youth & Citizenship (LYC) Program assistant director. Ray Kelly, a criminal defense attorney in Albany for more than 30 years, received the Distinguished Service Award in recognition of his outstanding voluntary contributions to law-related education at Columbia High School where, for more than a decade, he has lectured on the criminal justice system and coached the school's Mock Trial Team, among other activities. Peterson has been recognized locally as "Teacher of the Year" and as an educator who cares deeply about students. She made her start in law-related education at a very early age by helping her father coordinate the oldest countywide mock trial competition in the state. As a high school student, she organized a student-run mock trial team after her district eliminated the team in a budget cutback. While in college, Peterson participated in several community and juvenile justice outreach programs. She also served as a U.S. Congressional intern. A dedicated and resourceful teacher, she has revitalized the mock trial program at Churchville-Chili and has provided leadership at numerous local and regional LRE activities including a regional mock trial competition and four statewide summer teacher training institutes. October 30, 2005 |
