On the morning of October 8, Gorham High School (GHS) students quietly shuffled into the school’s auditorium. The room had an air of seriousness unfamiliar to a large group of teenagers. Students had left backpacks and cell phones in classrooms, yet few opted to talk despite having no other distraction. Two desks sat below the stage, and lawyers sat reviewing notes. The students, all seated, scanned the seven empty seats on the stage.
A bailiff banged his gavel and declared, “All rise.” Students promptly rose in unison as the Maine Supreme Judicial Court filed onto the GHS stage to hear their first of three cases at GHS that day.
The Court has been scheduling visits to Maine high schools via invitation from local legislators since 2005. Gorham’s Jobs for Maine Graduates coordinator, Eliza Kenigsburg, began the planning process for the visit.
Kenigsburg stated that she has seen “a ton of interest in law” among GHS students. Whether it is law enforcement, social justice work, or practicing law, it is clear that a large portion of the student body is curious about various aspects of the law.
Photo credit Grace FlynnThe Maine Supreme Judicial Court Justices recently held a trial in the Gorham High School auditorium with students getting a first-hand look at the justice system.
In the spring of 2019, Kenigsburg reached out to Gorham’s State Representative Maureen Terry and Senator Linda Sanborn to coordinate a Court visit to GHS for the coming fall. They in turn extended an invitation which was accepted.
High school visit coordinator for the Court, Julia Finn, conducted meetings with GHS’ administration and social studies department to begin organizing the fall visit. The department was given outlines of each case to share and discuss with students prior to the visit.
Brian Jandreau, GHS principal, stated that when Finn contacted the school to accept the invitation, it was a “no-brainer” to secure the visit.
“Any time students, or really anybody, can sit in on a court case and see democracy in action is a meaningful and powerful experience,” he said.
The Gorham School District as a whole has been encouraging career exploration for the past few years through events such as Future Story Day, field trips, and visiting career-professionals.
Kenigsburg has been at the helm of coordinating many of these events, and believes that the Court visit was an especially valuable experience for students.
“It isn’t people reporting on their experience in roles; it’s them actually performing those roles and us getting to witness it,” said Kenigsburg.
After each session, students were given the chance to ask the lawyers questions. Junior Leah James was one of several students who had an opportunity to have lunch with the Justices.
“I feel very lucky to have been chosen. It felt equal, and they genuinely cared about our opinions and futures,” said James.
Social Studies teacher Darren Panagakos, who facilitated the communications with the social studies department, believes the visit had a great impact on students.
“Experience can be like velcro. Now, new classroom material has something to stick to,” said Panagakos.