The
COUNCIL ON DIVERSITY AND INCLUSION
SCBA Pipeline / Mentor program and the Booker Law Academy
By LISA KLEINBERG , Esq . Tannenbaum , Scro , Lemole and Kleinberg
The Sarasota County Bar Association ( SCBA ) Pipeline / Mentor program is seeking members of the SCBA to volunteer to mentor students who are enrolled in the Law Academy magnet program at Booker High School ( BHS ). For those who are not familiar with the BHS Law Academy , it is a rigorous academic program structured for students who are interested in a career in the legal field , either as a future attorney , paralegal or in law enforcement . The goal of the SCBA Pipeline / Mentorship program is to encourage a diverse population of students to successfully complete their education and then come back and practice law , and become the future leaders of our community .
While the mentors of students in other schools or other programs may focus on engaging and encouraging the student to stay in school , to graduate or guiding them toward a trade or craft to earn a living , mentoring a student enrolled in the Law Academy is different .
The Law Academy students are already focused on their future . The students have been screened and vetted prior to being admitted into the program , and every student admitted into the program is already viewed as an exceptional and hardworking student . Ryan Kelly , the Faculty Director of the Law Academy , will survey the students at the beginning of the school year to determine who would like to be paired with a mentor . If a student requests a mentor , the parents are required to sign a document giving the mentor access to the student on campus and access to their grades and teachers .
We , the Sarasota County Bar Association , have stepped up to provide more meaningful and focused attention to the students in the Law Academy . Dr . Rachel Shelly , the principal at Booker
Lisa Kleinberg , Esq . Tannenbaum , Scro , Lemole and Kleinberg Firm
High School , has negotiated an agreement that students who graduate with a 3.0 GPA from the Law Academy have a direct and automatic admission into University of South Florida , and when they graduate from USF they have an automatic admission into Stetson Law School . In short , when the students graduate from BHS Law Academy , they are already admitted into law school , if they so choose to follow that path . What an amazing opportunity they have been given !
Some of these students come from underprivileged backgrounds and families . Many come from broken families . Others have no person in their family that has graduated from college . Some do not have an adult available to them to properly guide them through the tasks , choices and hurdles that are ahead of them . The mentors serve to counsel students regarding school and testing issues , applying for scholarships , navigating financial aid , giving life advice if needed , and being available as an additional avenue of support .
Here are comments from a few students who participated in the Mentor Program :
Lisa Kleinberg and her mentee , Marian in Judge Erica Quartermaine ’ s courtroom
Mentee : Asiyah Hadley Mentor : Beth Loeffler
“ I
am a rising senior at Booker High School . I participate in the Law Academy and AICE Program , both of which I have been in since my freshman year . Over the course of the years at Booker , I have encountered many individuals , some of whom were able to help guide on my journey for success . My mentor , Elizabeth Loeffler , has helped mold me into the young lady I am today . She is a family friend , and we stay in constant contact . We have shared many memorable experiences such as going on lunch dates , exchanging gifts , and sitting down to have heart to heart conversations . Through the pandemic she stayed in constant contact with me and made sure I stayed on top of my work and for that I am forever grateful . She also introduced me to people in the community that she knows , and I have made many lifelong connections because of that .”
Mentee : Sofia Santiago-Espinet Mentor : Jill Bowen
“
Law Academy mentorship program has benefited my peers and myself in extraordinary ways . The past three years of having a mentor have made me feel as if I have been ahead of the game with my career and have stayed on track . When most kids do not know what they want to do with their lives at my age , my mentor has guided me to stay focused on doing what I love and helping me not lose any interest while doing so . Mentorship has brought me to create new connections and amazing networking opportunities . It has given me the chance to meet extremely influential people in our society and build connections with them as well . Without the mentoring program , I would of most likely lost interest in law and would not know what I would want to do going into college or after that . The mentorship program has made me an
See BOOKER , Page 13
THE DOCKET · AUGUST 2021 11