Academy Legacy
Paul Laurence Dunbar High School has a history of academic innovation and educational rigor that has groomed its students to be college graduates and career professionals who make meaningful change in our community. This can be seen in the litany of Dunbar graduates who have made an imprint on DC including the programs namesake, Eleanor Holmes-Norton.
Mission
Our academy nurtures students who are actively involved in their community, using their voice to affect change. We promote problem solving and communication skills through classwork and other experiences with the goal of producing socially aware citizens who achieve success in law, criminal justice, public service, or public policy related fields or college degree programs.
Vision
All students in our academy will have connected their educational experience to a career opportunity in a law and/or social justice career path of his or her choice.
We want students who want:
to know more about the law
to be prepared for postsecondary education
to collaborate with others on service projects and competitions
to participate in job shadowing, internships, and field trips to law-related places
to explore a career path in law, criminal justice, public service, or public policy
Our Academy Promise
In partnership with local law schools, businesses, law firms, public and private organizations, government agencies, and other entities, academy students receive a comprehensive program of specialized courses in law and policy and a variety of real world experiences ranging from mock trial preparation and presentation, internships, job shadowing, and college tours. Upon graduation, our scholars will be fully prepared for skilled entry-level jobs and/or entrance into post-secondary institutions.
Partners:
Paul, Weiss, Rifkind, Wharton & Garrison LLP (Law Firm)
Mikva Challenge DC
Georgetown University Law School
Street Law, Inc.
American University’s Washington College of Law
iCivics
Youth Justice, Inc.
The Community Enrichment Project DC
Judge Robert R. Rigsby
The Urban League