Chester Teacher Returns Home From Prestigious Supreme Court Program

CHESTER, NJ — A history and social science teacher from West Morris Central High School traveled to Washington, D.C. earlier this month to attend the prestigious Supreme Court Summer Institute, and she is now ready to share everything she learned with her classroom.

Victoria Ade traveled to Washington to research recent Supreme Court decisions and learn new ways to teach about government, law, and the court's operations. After an extensive application process, she was chosen as one of 60 teachers in law-related and civic education fields from across the country.

"As educators from all around the country, many of whom teach totally different courses, we were all given loads of resources and ideas to bring home to our individual classrooms and students," Ade said.

Ade is already planning on how to update her classroom materials in order to, "bring modern and contemporary law into my American Legal Systems class elective by teaching about interpretation, the SCOTUS process, and will absolutely hold a Moot Court of my own."

Then in the fall, Ade will lead a professional development session with her colleagues where she can, "share all of these wonderful resources, materials, and the breadth of knowledge about the Supreme Court, its importance in our daily lives, and the meaning it can and should have to our students," Ade said.

According to a recent evaluation of the Supreme Court Summer Institute, teachers who attended left with more knowledge to handle classroom discussions about controversial issues and Supreme Court cases.

Ade hopes that the additional training will help her US History students understand the significance of the Constitution and its amendments, as well as the various interpretations of the Constitution and its amendments.

"It is often a difficult task to have students connect with a history from so long ago that it often seems to be a fairy tale, but with contemporary connections, history can be made more real, more tangible, and of course, more important," Ade said.

The teachers met with experts on current Supreme Court cases and learned about the Supreme Court's history, inner workings, and how to teach and examine cases on this year's docket that have yet to be decided.

"We also broke down cases by fully understanding the role of the Court, and what types of interpretations of law exist that help guide their decisions, and lead to such stark disagreements among the sitting judges, guided by experts in the field-some of which worked alongside the judges directly," Ade said.

Meeting and talking with the United States Solicitor General, Elizabeth Prolegar, who told the group personal stories about her clerkship with Ruth Bader Ginsburg, was one of the highlights of the week, according to Ade.

"I cannot say enough positive things about my time in Washington DC at the Supreme Court Summer Institute. It was truly the experience of a lifetime and one I will never forget," Ade said.