Training

America 250: FREE Virtual Training Sessions

You are invited to attend law-related and civic education programming in anticipation of America 250 through a series of six one-hour CLE and Act 48 virtual sessions that LEAP 50, the Pennsylvania Council for the Social Studies, and the Pennsylvania Bar Association's Pro Bono Office will run from 9 a.m. until 3 p.m. on Friday, April 25, 2025.

Don’t know about America 250? The United States Semiquincentennial, also called the Bisesquicentennial, the Sestercentennial, or the Quarter Millennial, will be the 250th anniversary of the United States Declaration of Independence. Festivities will mark various events leading up to the Declaration's anniversary on Independence Day, July 4, 2026. The cool kids in the civics world are calling this the Semiquin! Note https://www.whitehouse.gov/presidential-actions/2025/01/celebrating-americas-250th-birthday/

The designers of this educational event believe there have been multiple revolutions throughout our nation’s history, with the first American revolution starting on April 19, 1775, when the first shots of the Revolutionary War were fired at Lexington and Concord in Massachusetts. Thus, we are beginning our celebration of the Semiquin earlier than others, kicking things off with this program. We believe the first revolution doesn't end until the ratification of the Bill of Rights in 1791, meaning our Semiquin will last until 2041. For those keeping score at home, Revolution #2 was from the Dred Scott decision to the end of Reconstruction in 1875, and Revolution #3 went from the Supreme Court decision in Brown in 1954 to the shooting of Martin Luther King in 1968. We believe we are in the 4th American Revolution, which started with the election of President Barack Obama and is still going on during the second term of President Donald Trump.

Since the law has played a huge role throughout America’s four revolutions, the April 25th event will focus heavily on courts and the law.

Read Alouds to Mock Trial

The Rendell Center for Civics and Civic Engagement will start the day by reviewing their read-aloud and mock trial programs. Rendell Center staff, volunteer lawyers, and judges will share children's stories highlighting civics themes and explore mock trials based on literature and history for students in grades K-8. Secondary-level appellate arguments will be shared.

Deliberative Democracy Town Hall

Professor Kathy Smith of Chestnut Hill College will provide us with an understanding of the Deliberative Democracy model of civil discourse and its uses. She will then lead us in a "mini" thought-provoking Deliberative Democracy Town Hall exploring the challenges and responsibilities of free speech on college campuses, showcasing a model for exploring diverse perspectives and complex social issues. How do universities balance the principles of open expression with inclusivity and respect? This interactive discussion model brings together students, educators, legal experts, and community members to engage in civil discourse and critical thinking about free speech, academic freedom, and the role of universities in fostering democratic dialogue.

High School Mock Trials

The third session of the day is a program highlighting the Statewide Pennsylvania High School Mock Trial Program, which just crowned Philadelphia’s Central High School as its 40th State Champion. As we showcase mock trial, the Central students will be preparing for the National Competition in Arizona (Pennsylvania’s champion from 2024, Abington Heights High School, won the national title last year, a first for a Pennsylvania school).

50 Years in the Making: Discussion About LEAP

Temple-Law, Education and Participation Program (Temple-LEAP) Executive Director David Keller Trevaskis, the longtime Director of Pro Bono Services at the Pennsylvania Bar Association, will then moderate a discussion among some past LEAPers about the responsibility of lawyers to give back to the community through school and community education programs and the opportunities such programs provide for all in our society.

Black History in the Philadelphia Landscape

Black History in the Philadelphia Landscape author Amy Cohen follows with a discussion of her book. Cohen will recount notable aspects of the Black experience in Philadelphia from the late 1600s to the 1960s and explore how this history is marked in the contemporary city.

Restorative Justice: Trauma-Sensitive Youth Court

Youth Courts, an alternative mode of handling school discipline matters in a restorative fashion, will be featured in the final session of the day. The session includes a look at trauma-sensitive education and underscores time banking and other innovations of the late Edgar Cahn, perhaps the greatest champion of justice among lawyers of the past 60 years.

CLE Credit Information

• A Pennsylvania lawyer attending all six sessions will get four substantive CLE credits and two ethics CLE credits; if you attend fewer than all of the sessions, you will earn substantive credits only.
• A Pennsylvania teacher earns Act 48 hours for every hour attended.
• All credits, both CLE and Act 48, will be submitted within 30 days.
• We do not report out-of-state CLEs but will give attendees a certificate of completion upon request for those who need to report out-of-state CLEs credits themselves or just need proof of attendance for any reason.

Registration is FREE but is required for credit. Donations are welcome.