Grants

The seven grants are made possible through the Foundation’s annual Raise the Bar appeal, launched each year at the Law Day Luncheon. Donations made to this appeal support programs and projects, like those below. Based on recommendations by the Grants Committee, chaired by Audrey P. Peartree, the Foundation’s Board of Directors approved grants for the following projects:

Rochester Legal Diversity Clerkship Program

A grant of $11,026 will be used toward the Rochester Legal Diversity Clerkship Program, a program of the Monroe County Bar Association. The funds will be used to support a first year law student with one of the legal service providers for a 10‑week summer internship in 2012 and to help defray costs of educational and social program held for the students throughout the summer.

Rochester Teen Court

This grant in the amount of $10,000 will be used to help fund the Rochester Teen Court under the umbrella of The Center for Youth. Teen Court is a diversion program operated through the City Court of Rochester for young adults who have committed first-time, non-violent crimes.  Defendants whose cases are transferred to Teen Court have a disposition of their criminal charges by teen peers acting as prosecutors, defense counsel, court personnel and jurors. A Rochester City Court judge presides over the proceedings, and teen jurors recommend sentencing.

A.C.T.* For the Children (*Assisting Children through Transition)

A grant in the amount of $3,000 will be used to continue the A.C.T. For the Children program, which helps children whose parents divorce or separate by providing information and strategies to parents on ways to interact that engender less stress and conflict. The program also makes parents more knowledgeable participants in the legal process by providing an overview of the legal process and various options to resolve their differences. This program was previously funded by the courts, but lost funding due to 2011-12 judiciary budget cuts, and was temporarily suspended. With the grant awarded by the Foundation, the Monroe County Bar Center for Education has assumed administration of the program.

Lawyers for Learning’s Peace Camp

A grant in the amount of $2,000 will be used toward funding Lawyers for Learning’s Peace Camp. As part of the Lawyers for Learning partnership with the Monroe County Center for Education, Peace Camp is designed to give underprivileged children the opportunity to learn the importance of appropriate behavior and working together with civility through team building events at a camp facility.

Deaf Equal Access Fund of the Monroe County Bar Association (MCBA)

A grant in the amount of $1,500 will help provide association member attorneys with partial reimbursement for the costs of interpreters hired through a collaborative partnership with Lifespan. The MCBA is committed to promoting equal access for the Greater Rochester Area’s 50,000 deaf and hard of hearing citizens and assisting local attorneys in fulfilling their obligations to this unique community according to the requirements of the American with Disabilities Act.

Sydney R. Rubin High School Mock Trial Competition

A grant in the amount of $1,000 will be used to help fund this annual high school mock trial competition. The competition provides an opportunity for high school students to learn about the law and its protocol and procedures, as students from different schools throughout Monroe County compete against each other in trial competitions. Each year, the tournament hosts 200 to 250 students representing 18-22 high schools, along with a number of volunteer teacher coaches, attorney team advisors, judges and court personnel.

Judicial Process Commission’s Legal Action Project

A $1,000 grant will be used to help fund an AmeriCorps member who will assist more than 400 men and women with criminal convictions to reduce the barriers they face when seeking employment. The Judicial Process Commission’s Legal Action Project, in partnership with Monroe County Legal Assistance Center’s Re-entry Project, provides significant legal services which help maintain the level of representation.