Judicial Youth Corps helps youth in Worcester and Boston

Giving urban high school students the opportunity to learn about the legal system

Since 1991, the Judicial Youth Corps Program, administered by the Supreme Judicial Court, has offered high school students from urban communities the opportunity to learn about the court system and the law.

For many years, this opportunity was made available to high school students in Boston, Worcester and Springfield, but recently, it has been limited to Boston as a result of lack of adequate financial resources to provide it in all communities. In 2007, the MBA, in cooperation with the Supreme Judicial Court, expanded the highly successful Judicial Youth Corps Program to the city of Worcester.

Program details

For 14 weeks, students work a four-day work week and are assigned various paid internships throughout different court departments. This provides an invaluable opportunity for students to participate in hands-on learning in a paid internship setting. During this same time period, students attend weekly educational sessions that orient them on the court system and the law. Judges, court staff and attorneys volunteered as instructors, supervisors and mentors to these students, covering such topics as juvenile justice, landlord/tenant issues, family law, mediation and the appellate process. During these weekly educational sessions, students also participated in mock trials and court hearings with visits to courts, jails and law firms.

During the program's successful 19-year history, feedback from both students and court personnel has always been positive. Students see their participation in this worthwhile program not only as educational, but more importantly, as a way to connect with possible future mentors and to see how laws and rules can have a positive effect on the community.

For more information about how to get involved, contact the Community Services Department at (617) 338-0695, or [e-mail communityservices].

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