Recently, the University of Virginia’s Law School announced that one of it’s classes was responsible for excluding a man of a 1978 rape on the basis of DNA evidence. This unique program called the Innocence Project Clinic allows students to evaluate the evidence against three people who were convicted of a crime but may be innocent.
Dierdre Enright, the Clinic’s director, says that this is a dream class for law students because it not only has a practical application but involves research into topical legal issues as well. The students get to see what happens when the legal system doesn’t work and then they have the opportunity to make it right.
This is the essence of Do it Well, Make it Fun in higher education. Not only are these students getting in-depth legal training, the process is more enjoyable because it’s real. And in a situation when the are able to reverse a decision for someone who has been wrongly convicted, it is quite rewarding as well.