More than 120 attorneys and judicial officers gathered at the BASH venue in Carmel on June 24 to celebrate the Indiana Bar Foundation’s civic education milestones and civil legal assistance during its inaugural Annual Meeting and Awards Luncheon.
The Indiana Bar Foundation, long a champion of civics education, is preparing materials and programs to help teachers now that the Indiana State Board of Education has approved the academic standards for the new middle school civics course.
Heritage Christian School in Indianapolis is the 2022 Indiana High School Mock Trial Champion and will represent Indiana in the National High School Mock Trial Championship in May.
The Indiana Supreme Court is requesting public comment on proposed rule amendments that, if approved, could provide additional legal aid funds to the Indiana Bar Foundation.
After the pro bono filing fee bill failed to get even a hearing last year, two bills extending the life of the $1 surcharge have passed through their respective chambers this year as the 2022 session of the Indiana General Assembly gets to the midway mark.
Two years after undertaking specific steps to improve Hoosiers’ civic engagement, the Indiana Bar Foundation and its partners are celebrating advancements in the education arena but are also continuing to find challenges in getting voters to the polls.
After offering recommendations to improve the state’s civic health in 2019, the Indiana Bar Foundation and its partners recently took an assessment and found Hoosiers are excelling at improving civic education but continuing to stumble at increasing voter turnout.
With a big boost from what is possibly the largest influx of financial support it has ever received, the Indiana Bar Foundation is preparing to use a $13.1 million grant from the Indiana Housing and Community Development Authority to launch a series of initiatives to help guide Hoosiers facing housing problems through the civil legal system.
With a name that easily gets confused with other Hoosier legal organizations, the Indiana Bar Foundation realized it needed to make a change. But after stakeholders said they wanted to keep the moniker, the nonprofit opted to refresh its logo.
The We the People 2021 Middle School Regional Championship hosted by the Indiana Bar Foundation has concluded, with the top three champions from 2020 again being among the 14 teams advancing to the state championship.
Fishers bested its rival Hamilton Southeastern to capture a first place in the high school regional round of the Indiana Bar Foundation’s We the People competition held Nov. 2 and Nov. 4.
Indiana Sen. Ron Grooms, R-Jeffersonville, a retired pharmacist who championed legal aid, announced Thursday he will be stepping down from public office Nov. 2.
Indiana’s new civic education law will be showcased during the second day of a national civic education policy summit hosted by CivXNow, which is bringing legislators, educators and civic leaders from across the country together to discuss ways to improve children’s understanding of democracy.
The Indiana Bar Foundation is making a final call for volunteers to serve as judges during the 2021 National High School Mock Trial Championship in mid-May.
The Indiana Bar Foundation, with the support of several major law firms, has launched a diversity initiative designed to remove financial barriers that can prevent high school students from participating in mock trial programs.
A bill incorporating civics education into Hoosier students’ middle school curriculum is headed to Gov. Eric Holcomb’s desk after House lawmakers voted Thursday to pass the measure.
Although the Indiana General Assembly has unanimously supported a $1 pro bono surcharge tacked onto the state’s filing fee for civil cases since 2012, a bill that would have increased the amount to $3 did not get a committee hearing this session, raising alarm that the key funding stream for legal aid could run dry just as the need is growing.
Saying the rights provided in the Constitution come with obligations, the Indiana Bar Foundation has issued a statement condemning Wednesday’s attack on the U.S. Capitol Building.
Looming evictions with so many Americans unable to pay their rent have been at the forefront of concerns, but legal aid offices and pro bono attorneys see other issues on the horizon. They expect more filings for bankruptcy and guardianships, and they believe more people will reach out for legal assistance with problems connected with consumer debt and domestic violence. Underpinning their ability to help is the need for money.
The 2019 Indiana Civic Health Index called attention to the issue of community participation and recommended the appointment of a committee to examine civic education. As a result, the Indiana Bar Foundation Civic Education Task Force was formed. At a Nov. 18 press conference, officials presented a final report urging a series of recommendations to improve civic education in Indiana.