Dos Pueblos Mock Trial team will compete in National tournament

Eleven students from the Dos Pueblos High School Mock Trial team will be making their way to New York City in October to compete in one of the most distinguished mock trial tournaments in the nation ? The Empire Mock Trial World Championship Invitational.

The team, which took second place in the California Mock Trial Championship this year, will be competing against 36 other schools from different countries around the world including the United States, New Zealand and the United Kingdom. Nearly 200 schools in the United States? are invited to attend?the event but only 36 teams are chosen to compete.

?It?s huge for these kids,? said Bill Woodard, assistant principal of Dos Pueblos and the advisor of the mock trial team. ?[The Empire Mock Trial only] invite the top four teams in each state to apply, and then from those they pick only 36 to go to the tournament. . . and that includes the [international] schools. . . so, um. . . it really shows that we have one of the top programs in the world.?

The Empire Mock Trial is not an easy tournament to qualify for. In order for the Dos Pueblos Mock Trial team to even be considered as a participant in the competition, they needed to become one of the top teams in the state. Once the team was invited to the event, they had to apply for a spot in the competition, and their acceptance was dependent on how well the team depicted their ethics, sportsmanship and motivation in essay format.

The reason why this team is so good at what they do is because of their drive to win and have fun while they?re at it.

?The thing that most people don?t understand is the kids are. . . insanely competitive, in a good way. They are hungry to win and to do well,? Woodard said.

The team consists of 10 girls and 1 boy and range from sophomores to seniors. Nimisha Shinday, who will be a senior this coming school year and is one of the captains of the Dos Pueblos Mock Trial team, expressed her excitement to compete in the Empire Mock Trial.

?Well, I think it?s going to be a really great experience for our team to be able to bond more and work more cohesively. . . we?re all super stoked to be able to compete in it,? Shinday said.

During the next few months leading up to the tournament, the students will be devoting their time to preparing for the trial by understanding the laws of the United States government that relate to their case and practicing being in character. The students will also be fundraising to help pay for airfare and any other costs that will go along with being a part of the tournament.

?These kids deserve this kind of recognition because they?re super smart and just as committed as any athletic team that you?ll see at a high school, and these are skills that they?re going to be able to use their whole life,? Woodard said.

Source: http://thedailysound.com/2012/07/dos-pueblos-mock-trial-team-will-compete-in-national-tournament/

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