was born . The Atlanta Bar Foundation continues to administer the funds through which scholarships are awarded to the children of slain or disabled police officers in the metro Atlanta area . And those funds get supplemented each year through the Legal Runaround , a fun 5k run and walk that occurs each September .
launches special fundraising initiatives so it can continue all its great work . It did so to celebrate its twenty-fifth anniversary , and we will do so again this year and next to celebrate our fortieth anniversary . Stay tuned !
But the Bar Foundation does so much more than support this original initiative . The Foundation has had a hand in creating and maintaining two signature programs , the Minority and Diversity Clerkship Program ( MDCP ) and the Summer Law Internship Program ( SLIP ). MDCP , which was begun in 1985 , provides law students from minority and underrepresented backgrounds with paid summer clerkships at Atlanta law firms , corporations and judicial offices . SLIP , which is now in its 32nd year , provides internships at law firms , corporations and judicial offices to area high schoolers interested in the practice of law .
The Foundation has also been a leader in responding to events or trends that impact Atlanta and its legal community . For example , to help deal with expanding truancy issues at Atlanta-area high schools , the Foundation raised $ 1 million for the Truancy Intervention Project , which is one of several nonprofit organizations that had its start as an Atlanta Bar program . After the horrific shootings at the Fulton County Courthouse which resulted in the tragic deaths of a beloved judge and several other court personnel , the Foundation donated $ 100,000 to Emory University School of Law to establish the Roland W . Barnes Memorial Scholarship . Finally , when the economy tanked following the 2009 financial crisis , and a number of our critical pro bono organizations were struggling to stay afloat , the Foundation established an annual grants program along with the LRIS . Altogether , the Foundation and LRIS have awarded more than $ 2 million to these organizations !
Supporting all these efforts takes money , which is why the Foundation puts on a number of fundraising events . Among these events are a series we like to call our “ Summer of Fun ,” which includes evenings of wine tasting , bourbon tasting and a trivia night . The Foundation , along with the Atlanta Bar Association , produces the Bard Show , a variety show which simultaneously sends up the Atlanta legal community and spotlights the musical talents of many of those in the community . And from time to time the Foundation www . atlantabar . org THE ATLANTA LAWYER 11