Volume 2 | Number 1 |
July-August 2019
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Justice in the Classroom
Brings Innovation, Expansion to 2018-19 School Year
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This school year, the
John Marshall Foundation (JMF)
continued its free professional development workshops for middle and high school teachers across Virginia, completing coverage of the last segment of the Commonwealth previously not reached with the program, through generous funding of the
Virginia Law Foundation (VLF)
. The VLF, which promotes through philanthropy the rule of law, access to justice, and law-related education, just awarded the Foundation a $25,000 grant to further expand JIC to all Virginia teachers. The
Windsor Foundation
provided generous support for workshops in central Virginia.
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The JIC curriculum is based upon required Virginia and national standards and uses current headlines, case examples, and creative teaching tools to illustrate the meaning of civics, history and social studies concepts, with Chief Justice John Marshall's life and legacy as guide. Teachers this year commented on how relevant and easy the JIC lessons are for their students to understand.
Over the summer, the JIC team will create ten new lesson plans including resources on what is and what isn’t impeachment, a student hot topic in 2018-19. Look for curricular updates and new resources in September.
Thank you to generous JMF partners who make JIC possible!
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“What a powerful, practical session with a current educator.
I love the up-to-date information.”
Lynchburg Public Schools teacher workshop evaluation of the
segment presented by Powhatan social studies teacher and JMF educational consultant Greg Ownby, August 10, 2018.
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Lawyer/Judge
Justice in the Classroom
Launched
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The Foundation partnered with the
John Marshall American Inn of Court
to pilot a program to bring lawyers and judges into metropolitan Richmond middle and high schools.
The program was introduced on October 9, 2018, to forty-five members of the Inn as an approved CLE program, with more than thirty judges and lawyers volunteering to participate in the public service program. Inn members including trial and appellate judges, attorneys from diverse private and government practices, and small, medium and large firms, volunteered.
Twenty-two teachers applied for a lawyer/judge visit. The teachers and lawyers/judges collaborated to tailor the classroom visit to best suit the interests, academic needs, and levels of the students. To date, fifteen school visits have been made to fourteen different middle and high schools in Henrico, Chesterfield, and Powhatan Counties and Richmond City Schools. Lawyers/judges visited middle school civics classes, senior government and Advanced Placement classes, and even helped coach a mock trial team. It is estimated the program served 375-550 students in the Richmond metro area.
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“We covered everything from what it takes to become a lawyer
to how the courts interpret the Constitution when applied to modern concerns that were far beyond the understanding of the founders,” Alisa Padden, Staff Attorney, Department of Legal Research, Supreme Court of Virginia
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The lawyer/judge materials, available free at
www.justiceintheclassroom.net
, coordinate with
Justice in the Classroom
teaching materials and address specific Virginia Standards of Learning for Civics, History and Social Studies.
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International Reach Through
justiceintheclassroom.net
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The John Marshall Foundation’s educational website for middle and high school teachers and students,
www.justiceintheclassroom.net
, welcomed more than 2,474
new
users during the 2018-19 school year, an increase of 325% over the prior school year.
Seven of the top ten user locations in Virginia were from areas where JMF offered its 2018-19 workshops, including Staunton, Richmond and Charlottesville. Alexandria, Bristol and Chesterfield, three other top ten user locations, hosted JIC workshops 2017-18. Teachers continue to access the website to use its lessons and tools to teach the rule of law under the U.S. Constitution, civics, and history.
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“I enjoyed previewing the video clips. This is an easy to use, teacher-friendly website. Nice and different activities such as quizlets, fun games, etc … I really appreciate the current event connections to the government. This is how I teach my class daily!” teacher, Winchester, VA
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John Marshall Foundation Receives Richmond Bar Association’s Liberty Bell Award
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The
Richmond Bar Association
awarded its
Liberty Bell Award
to the
John Marshall Foundation
at their 2019 annual Law Day Luncheon, May 1, at the Richmond Omni Hotel.
The Liberty Bell Award honors persons and organizations outside the legal profession who have served to (1) Promote a better understanding of our form of government, especially the Bill of Rights; (2) Encourage a greater respect for law and the courts; (3) Stimulate a deeper sense of individual responsibility to the end that citizens recognize their duties as well as their rights; (4) Contribute to the effective functioning of our institutions of government.
John Marshall Foundation President and University of Richmond Law Professor Kevin C. Walsh
accepted the Liberty Bell Award on behalf of the Foundation.
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Left
photo:
Richmond Bar Association President
Terrence Graves
, left, with
Kevin Walsh
, JMF President.
Right photo:
The Richmond Bar Association's Liberty Bell Award presented to the John Marshall Foundation May 1, 2019, for outstanding efforts in promoting a better understanding of US government.
Photos by
Laura Frayser
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Teachers Honored with
John Marshall Foundation Teacher Awards
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Left to righ
t are
Barbara Schneider
, JMF Education Director;
Kevin Walsh
, JMF President; Sponsor
George Martin
, McGuireWoods Managing Partner, Richmond; high school JMF Teacher Award recipient
Scott McGraw
; middle school JMF Teacher Award recipient
Justin Stocker
; Sponsor
Rob Kaplan Jr.
, Kaplan Voekler Cunningham & Frank Partner; JMF Education Consultant
Greg Ownby
; Education Committee member
Tom Kennedy
; and
Debra Prillaman
, JMF Education Committee Co-chair.
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The John Marshall Foundation honored two Virginia teachers with John Marshall Foundation Teacher Awards
, presented May 1, at the Richmond Bar Association’s annual Law Day Luncheon.
Thomas Scott McGraw
, who has been teaching in both public and private Virginia schools for the past fifteen years, is currently the eleventh- and twelfth-grade AP Government and AP Comparative Government and Politics teacher at Cape Henry Collegiate in Virginia Beach, where he embeds into his instruction John Marshall’s legacy and the importance of the Court in the formation of public policy.
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McGraw holds a B.A. in History from Emory University and a J.D. from the University of Virginia. After spending the first six years of his career practicing law, he answered a different calling: that of the classroom. McGraw’s signature “mock Supreme Court” converts the school auditorium into the Supreme Court, where students become the lawyers and Virginia Beach-area attorneys serve as the nine Supreme Court Justices. McGraw selects a current Supreme Court case, and the students argue it in front of the mock court. Later, they travel to Washington, DC, to see the case argued in person.
Powhatan Middle School Integrated US History teacher
Justin Stocker
is an eighteen-year teaching veteran who has made it his mission to teach the fundamental principles of government by relating them to the legacy of Chief Justice John Marshall. Stocker, who earned a B.A. from Radford University and whose license plate reads CVCSNRD, created a class he calls “The Pocket Constitution is Mightier than the Textbook.” In this class, students use their pocket Constitutions to learn about historical events such as the 19th Amendment granting women’s suffrage or constitutional principles such as checks and balances and federalism. He is also known for marking Constitution Day each year with fanfare equal to a season opener and models civic participation for his students on the national, state and local level.
Since 1989, the John Marshall Foundation (JMF) has recognized outstanding middle- and high-school classroom teachers who demonstrate knowledge of and enthusiasm for the US Constitution as evidenced through activities inside and outside of the classroom. Nominees are selected from public and private schools and must have been teaching for a minimum of five years.
This year’s Teacher Award winners received a certificate and a cash prize of $2500.
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Left to right, Rob Kaplan Jr.
, Partner with
Kaplan Voekler Cunningham & Frank
, awards the middle school John Marshall Foundation Teacher Award to
Justin Stocker
, and
George Martin
, Managing Partner,
McGuireWoods
, Richmond, presents the high school John Marshall Foundation Teacher Award to
Scott McGraw
.
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John Marshall Federal Courts Program
The John Marshall Foundation is pleased to announce a partnership with
William & Mary Law School
and
Omohundro Institute of Early American History & Culture (OI)
to guide the formation of the
John Marshall Federal Courts Program
.
Dean Davison Douglas
, W&M Law School;
Dr. Karin Wulf
, Executive Director, OI; and
Kevin Walsh
, President, John Marshall Foundation and University of Richmond Law Professor; formalized an agreement July 2, to pool the clear expertise and energy of the partnering institutions to study aspects of history, culture, and the federal courts system, historically, currently, and for the future.
The partnership will serve to promote scholarship and programming related to the three organization’s overlapping interests: the federal courts, early American history and law, and John Marshall.
Programming and scholarly activities are planned for Fall 2019.
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Red Carpet Night
for
The King of Crimes
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More than 200 guests enjoyed
The King of Crimes
on the big screen at the Virginia Museum of History & Culture (VMHC) April 9, presented in partnership with WCVE-TV and VMHC. The film adaptation of the stage play by
David L. Robbins
and directed by
Michael Duni
, aired on Central Virginia’s Community Idea Stations in Richmond, Charlottesville, and Harrisonburg April 18. Stay tuned for future broadcast dates.
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Mrs.
Cynthia A. Marshall and guests on the red carpet.
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JMF board member
Cheryl Ragsdale congratulates actor
Shawn Durham, who plays Thomas Jefferson in
The King of Crimes.
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Front row, left to right are cast members
Marcel Ames (Robin Spurlock),
Jasmine Shea ( Polly Marshall); and back row, left to right
Shawn Durham (Jefferson),
Bill Blair (Gen. Wilkinson), writer
David L. Robbins, and
Michael Duni (director).
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JMF educational consultant
Greg Ownby, left, and
Ma'asehyahu
Isra-Ul
, RPS instructional specialist.
Photos by
Joe Ring
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Question and answer after the show.
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JMF board member
Tad Thompson with
Mr. and
Mrs. Hatley Mason.
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Preservation Virginia
, owners and operators of the John Marshall House, and the
John Marshall Foundation
have partnered to “Save the Robe,” a $150,000 campaign to conserve the only surviving judicial robe of Chief Justice John Marshall. The campaign will officially launch in September in honor of Constitution Day, the 17th, and Marshall's birthday, the 24th.
John Marshall’s robe has deteriorated to a fragile state due to acid hydrolysis from the dye and iron mordant used to achieve its deep shade of black. Without immediate stabilization and documentation, this important artifact could be lost forever.
Howard Sutcliffe
, principal conservator and director of
River Region Costume and Textile Conservation
has agreed to perform the conservation. Sutcliffe’s previous projects include conserving Tiraz fragments from Medieval Egypt, Tzar Nicholas II’s parade uniform, and the original Kermit the Frog puppet.
John Marshall first standardized the black robe for Supreme Court justices. When he was sworn in as the fourth chief justice of the United States (February 4, 1801), Marshall chose to wear a plain, black robe. Since then, Supreme Court justices and most other state and federal judges throughout the United States have worn black robes, signaling impartiality and equal justice for all.
John Marshall’s robe is the single-most significant artifact from his 34-year tenure as chief justice and his defining legacy of establishing the federal judiciary as a constitutional equal of the President and Congress.
“Save the Robe” will ensure that John Marshall’s robe is stabilized, conserved, documented, stored, and duplicated for future generations. Visit
savetherobe.org to learn more and join the campaign effort.
Once restored, the robe will remain in the permanent collection of Preservation Virginia’s John Marshall House, the home Marshall built in Richmond’s historic Court End neighborhood in 1790 and where he lived for forty-five years until his death. The House holds the largest collection of original Marshall Family pieces.
Preservation Virginia’s mission is to make Virginia’s communities and historic places of memory stronger, more vital and economically sustainable through preservation, education and advocacy. The John Marshall Foundation exists to educate the public about the rule of law under the Constitution through the life, character, and services of America’s great chief justice.
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The Marshall Family, The Descendants of Chief Justice
John Marshall and Mary (Willis) Ambler Marshall
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The Marshall Family, The Descendants of Chief Justice
John Marshall and Mary (Willis) Ambler Marshall
,
a
genealogical reference containing information about John and Polly Marshall's descendants alongside family and historical background culled from primary and secondary sources, is now available through the John Marshall Foundation (donation
of $100).
The genealogy begins with John Marshall as the first entry and his wife, Polly, as the second, and follows their descendants to the current generation. Despite Polly’s various health issues that plagued
most of her adult life, she had ten
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children with six surviving to adulthood. All six left descendants, and a great many "cousins" followed in the subsequent generations. Unlike William Paxton's book,
The Marshall Family
, first printed in 1885, which includes many additional branches of the Marshall family tree, this particular genealogy, due to space constraints, focuses only on those directly descended from John and Polly.
The John Marshall Foundation thanks
Marshall L. Smith
,
T.
Cary Gresham
and the Descendants Committee for their hard work and dedication on this multi-year project. Current committee members are:
Hilaire E. Beck
,
Ralph Higgins
,
Edward C. deButts
,
Thomas deButts
,
Marshall L. Smith
,
Robert Bushnell
,
Caroline Smith Parkinson
, and
William Marshall "Bee" Stribling
.
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Fourth-grade “Wax Museum” Welcomes the Great Chief
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Near the end of this school year, fourth-grade students at St. Agnes, a Catholic PK-8 school in Arlington, VA, were asked to report on and portray a famous Virginian as if they were that figure in a wax museum.
Ben Blake
, from a family of John Marshall fans, wanted to portray the Great Chief.
To his chagrin, John Marshall was not found on the list of suggested famous Virginians. This didn’t stop the young historian from continuing with his top choice. The project on Marshall ended up giving Ben an incredible opportunity to learn more about our nation’s founding principles of checks and balances, the judiciary system, and the Constitution.
As a gift of gratitude for spreading the word about Marshall and his role in the early Republic, the John Marshall Foundation donated books about John Marshall to the Blake family, which they are donating to the St. Agnes school library.
Send us your snapshots showing young minds learning about John Marshall and why he matters.
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Ben Blake
, left, dressed as Chief Justice Marshall, with friend,
Bobby Cogar
,
who chose George Washington, one of Marshall’s heroes, as his famous Virginian. (printed with permission of the Blake and Cogar families)
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August 12, noon to 1:30 p.m.
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Descendant’s Luncheon & Lecture
VMHC
Join JMF President and Exhibit Co-Curator
Kevin Walsh
at the VMHC for
John Marshall: Hidden Hero of National Union
tour and talk.
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September 12, 6 to 8 p.m.
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One for the History Books!
Exhibit Closing Party
VMHC
Say farewell to
John Marshall: Hidden Hero of National Union,
closing
September 15. Don’t miss your chance to see Marshall’s writing desk, Polly’s locket, and, yes, the Great Chief’s bladder stones. Hosted by the
JMF Junior Board
.
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November 6, 5:30 to 7:30 p.m.
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Madeira Society Reception
Place TBD
A reception at a historically significant location for members of the John Marshall Foundation Madeira Society, a group of individuals who contribute $1200 or more each year to the JMF annual fund.
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The John Marshall Foundation exists to educate the public
about the rule of law under the Constitution through the life,
character and service of America's Great Chief Justice.
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The John Marshall Foundation
200 South Third Street
Richmond, Virginia 23219
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