More than 30 students at the School of Law–Camden are taking it to the streets to help at-risk youth in Camden and southern New Jersey.

Through the Street Law program launched this spring by the law school, future attorneys are meeting with Camden children and teens to advise them about legal matters that affect their everyday lives. Each week, law students discuss such varied topics as lease agreements, tenants’ rights, criminal law, workplace discrimination, and citizen advocacy.

The goal is to “heighten awareness of legal issues among Camden kids,” said Marissa Band, a third-year law student. “These kids largely think of the law as a suppressive force. They need to know how the law helps to protect them, too, so that if they have a problem they’ll know what to do.”

Band opted to launch a chapter of the national Street Law program after observing the tremendous legal challenges confronted by the youngest residents in Camden. A Michigan native, Band is no stranger to the issues confronting America’s inner-city youth. “Detroit and Camden both are cities struggling to rebound,” she said. “When I first came to Camden, I expected it to be similar to Detroit. I was surprised that Camden has fewer resources on which to draw for support.”

Determined to make a difference, Band worked with the law school to build the Street Law program. Supported by a $40,000 grant from the New Jersey State Bar Association, the program hit the streets this spring.

The reception has been enthusiastic, among both the community and the law students.  “The Rutgers student volunteers are overwhelmingly enthusiastic, and the Camden kids are having a good time, too,” reports Band.

Among the law students taking time to educate Camden kids are a few folks who know a thing or two about teaching. Kristen Lis served as a special education teacher at Glassboro High School before deciding to pursue a career in the law. The opportunity presented by Street Law to return to her teaching roots was an offer that she couldn’t refuse.

Lis’s first experience was with Urban Promise Academy, known to the nation after a recent 20/20 broadcast spotlighted the Camden school. “The students I worked with were high schoolers. They were eager to learn, and were extremely responsive and respectful. At the conclusion of the lesson they clapped, and I even got a few hugs! I can’t say that an afternoon of studying tax law leaves a lot of people with ear-to-ear grins,” she said.

Lynda Hinkle recounts a similar experience. Certified to teach grades 7 through 12, she taught at Camden County College immediately prior to enrolling at the law school.

At the Harborfields Detention Center in Egg Harbor, Hinkle found an audience hungry for her teaching skills. “The students were very animated as we discussed the subject of juvenile justice. They had very strong opinions. They had concerns, and shared that some of their experiences were ‘not the way it’s supposed to be.’

“Juveniles in the justice system are in need of many kinds of assistance,” Hinkle said.  “Studies show that programs aimed at rehabilitation of juveniles have a much higher success rate than the adult population in prison. We have a real opportunity to change the direction of many lives, those of potential criminals and potential victims.”

Minimum wage, job discrimination, and how to quit a job dominated Band’s discussion with a Camden youth group. “I thought that the teens might get a little bored with the subject matter, but they seemed to find it really helpful. They had great ideas about what they thought employee and employer rights and responsibilities are,” Hinkle said.

The law school offers a wide portfolio of pro bono and clinical programs in such topics as domestic violence, taxation, immigration, community dispute resolution, and children’s justice. Street Law’s mission of engaging community teens in a richer understanding about the law is needed greatly, said Eve Biskind Klothen, assistant dean for pro bono and public interest programs in Camden.

For the Rutgers students, Street Law is as much about the people as it is about the law.  “The amazing thing about these Camden youths is their ease at allowing new individuals into their lives,” said Lis. “They are eager to see you when you come back week after week.”