Law Student FAQ

Street Law allows law students to develop necessary skills that will enable them to become better lawyers. Throughout the program, law students learn the intricacies of negotiations, criminal law and procedure, human rights law, advocacy, and court procedure by preparing and teaching lessons focusing on these subjects. Street law allows law students to work on their public speaking, research and writing, and creativity skills multiple times a week while developing critical communication and management skills. Law students develop the ability to teach complex legal information succinctly yet comprehensively, allowing students of varying backgrounds to understand and retain the information.

Additionally, Street Law is a great way to reach beyond the law school bubble to connect with others and understand how the law affects the surrounding community.

Enrollment for the Street Law Program occurs on the regular Georgetown Law Center enrollment timeline in the spring and fall semesters. No statement of interest or other formal application is required; however, all registered students must attend an information interview with the faculty. Preference will be given to students applying for both fall and spring courses. Please consult the curriculum guide for more information.

A single semester of enrollment in Street Law: Criminal Justice and Human Rights (fall) or Street Law: Mock Trial Advocacy (spring) is worth four credits. An additional credit is awarded for participation in a required one-week orientation for a total of 5 credits. If a student takes both the fall and spring courses, students will receive five credits for the first semester and four credits for the second semester for a total of 9 credits.

Street Law participation is not dependent on access to a car, and every effort is made to accommodate students without a car. Accordingly, we place law students with a car at high schools that are not easily accessible by public transportation.

While Street Law has no exam or paper requirement, substantial research and preparation for teaching will be necessary. Grades are based on faculty observations of law students, quality of lesson plans, law student participation in a weekly seminar, reflective journals, in-seminar demonstration teaching, and submission of an end-of-semester reflection. The grading scheme values and encourages creativity, flexibility, and collaboration.

Collaboration with peers and building positive professional relationships are staples of Street Law. Therefore, attendance and participation in the multi-day orientation the week before the start of the semester, as well as at the two-hour weekly seminar, is mandatory.

Law students are assigned a D.C. public high school class or a community placement (evening students only) that they create the lessons for, teach, and grade. Substantial planning and preparation is required to teach. Each law student will teach between 2 to 3 classes per week, with most classes lasting between 60-90 minutes in a D.C. high school or community placement (evening students only). It is important to understand that the law student is the primary teacher for their class. This means that law students are responsible for recording student work, attendance, grades, and lesson plans, including all materials needed for each class.

While textbooks and model lessons are provided, law students must adapt these materials to their own classes and individual styles. Since the law is always changing, law students may need to update and modify materials. Law students typically create unique lessons, as well as assessments, evaluations (e.g., exams, quizzes, and group projects), and homework assignments.

As part of the seminar, law students must submit monthly reflection journals recording their growth and insights and complete monthly reports documenting lessons, experiences, and student work. Law students are observed at least three times per semester, participate in periodic consultations and review course submissions with faculty.

Although there is no standard final exam, law students must submit a self-assessment at the end of the semester. Law students must also comply with the Law Center’s Culture of Care for working with minors and obtain a substitute teaching or other certification from DCPS. Street Law course requirements are outlined in more detail in the Street Law Student Handbook.

Law students typically teach between 2-3 classes each week at a D.C. high school or community placement for a total of approximately three to four hours of actual classroom time each week. Each class requires preparation time, which varies depending on the lesson plan you are creating and your experience in the classroom (as the semester unfolds, planning takes less time).

Students also must attend a weekly two-hour seminar that covers methodology, lesson planning, and substantive exposure to legal topics.

Street Law classes at D.C. high schools occur between 8:45 AM and 3:15 PM. Evening placements are scheduled between 5:30 p.m. and 8:30 p.m. The primary consideration for placements is what D.C. high school or evening placement fits into a student’s class schedule. In scheduling Georgetown classes in preparation for Street Law, the key is to leave large blocks of time available in the mornings, afternoons, or evenings (for evening division students) and to keep this block available for all the semesters of participation in Street Law.