Washington Lawyers' Committee

In accord with its longstanding belief that the provision of a high quality public education for all children in our city is a fundamental civil right, the Committee administers two related programs – the DC Public School Partnership Program and the DC Public Education Reform Program.

The DC Public School Partnership Program links more than 25 area law firms and corporate legal departments with individual DC public schools throughout the city, in the process bringing tutoring, mentoring and other enrichment services to thousands of children.

New law firms are actively sought to join in this effort and interested firms should contact the Committee for more information.

The Committee’s Public Education Reform Program has historically involved both direct representation of parent organizations and school system leaders, and the publication of policy papers related to issues such as building conditions, school governance, student health services, extracurricular and athletic programs, and overall levels of school funding.

Firms and individuals interested in supporting the Committee’s education policy research and advocacy work are also encouraged to contact Project staff.

Project Activities

Each partnership between a law firm and a school has its own unique attributes and activities, which depend on the age of the students (elementary, middle or high school), the priorities of the school’s principal, and the strengths of the law firm employees. Tutoring, mentoring, drives for back-to-school supplies, peer mediation sessions, and providing meals and childcare for PTA meetings are among the most common, though the list is long.

There are several activities that many of the participating law firms take part in to collectively support our DC Public Schools – the GeoPlunge Tournament, Cooking for Kids Bake Sale & Taste-Off, and Coordinator Luncheons three times each year.

GeoPlunge Tournament

One of the most exciting activities related to the DCPS Partnership Program is the annual GeoPlunge Tournament, presented by the Committee and Arent Fox LLP.  Every fall, teams of fifth and sixth grade students from District schools are invited to participate in a spirited geography competition.  The contest is waged via a card game that teaches the students information about each of the states, including their capitals, location and neighboring states, birds and flags, as well as populations, rankings (in size and year entering the Union) and their largest cities.

The 7^th Annual GeoPlunge Tournament was held on November 15, 2011 at the National Portrait Gallery.

For more information, Elinor Hart.

Cooking for Kids Bake Sale & Taste-Off

For over 10 years, law firms have competed for the honor of being named “Best Baker” in the Committee’s “Annual Cooking for Kids Bake Sale & Taste-Off”, a fundraising event for partner schools.

Each participating firm’s employees enter home-baked goods in an in-house competition and bake sale.  A Best Cookie, Cake and Pie are selected to represent the firm at the Taste-Off held later that day at the Committee, where a panel of illustrious local culinary experts selects the winning entries in each category.   All other submissions are sold to raise funds for the firm’s partner school.

Each year, Cooking for Kids generates a spirit of friendly competition at and among the law firms, and more importantly, raises several thousand dollars to support enrichment activities for the partner schools.

The Cooking for Kids Bake Sale and Taste-Off was held on March 19, 2012.

For more information, contact Elinor Hart.