The Wisterian Clubs & Activities

The Newest Mock Trial Coach

On February 9th, La Salle’s Mock Trial team was able to achieve their second victory of the season, allowing them to move on to the quarterfinals of the county-level competition hosted by the Montgomery Bar Association In this competition, two teams were tasked with arguing a case for either the plaintiff or defense side of a civil trial, with the winner of the trial being decided by a jury, composed of practicing attorneys

This year in particular was special because this was the first time, since before the pandemic, students were able to argue their case in a courtroom rather than through a computer screen

To any spectator, the excitement of a mock trial can be easily perceived through the heated debates that emerge inside the courtroom However, before the students can even stand before the judge and jury to argue their case, months of tireless planning and practicing are required Normally, it would be absurd to expect high school students to formulate an entire case by themselves, but, luckily, La Salle has a bevy of teachers and lawyer alumni to coach the students

The newest coach of La Salle’s Mock Trial team is Mrs Christine Meko, who is both an English teacher and a former attorney Even though she is one of the newest teachers at our school, she is already well integrated in the La Salle community, with many of her family members, including her husband and children, being former students

Quite nobly, Mrs Meko decided to become a teacher because she saw writing as a dying art and thusly wanted to revive it through the younger generation In the classroom, she not only teaches students to write better, but also imparts them with reading and analytical skills necessary for future advanced classes and professions

When Mrs Meko became a teacher at La Salle, she immediately decided to join Mr Gerald Evans as a Mock Trial moderator With her experience as a former attorney, she was able to coach Mock Trial members on ways to formulate arguments to win over a jury and how to professionally conduct themselves in a courtroom

Ultimately, Mrs Meko time at La Salle has been a pleasant one In describing her experience teaching students, she said she admired the “attitude of students who are eager to embrace the educational opportunity they have been provided with ”

-Ethan Tran '24

Summer Service Trip Assignments

On January 18th, La Salle Juniors were notified of the locations they will be traveling to for their service trips this upcoming summer The process leading up to this exciting news was quite rigorous They submitted applications that listed their top choices as well as essays, teacher recommendations, and a list of their extracurriculars Mr Parisi, a member of the Mission & Ministry department, discussed the process of assigning the locations to each student “Each student got a grade from zero to ten on their past service Then, I read their essays and gave them a score from zero to ten Finally, I read their teacher recommendations and gave them a score from zero to ten I then added them all together to get a total score I try to give all those with the highest scores their top choices I also must make sure to be equitable, spreading people out to every trip," Mr Parisi said Students are traveling to many different places around the country for these trips, including Montana and California, and internationally to Puerto Rico and Naples Mr Parisi discussed a way that students can prepare for their upcoming trips

“It is important for students to do a little investigating on the places that they are going to, find out what they are like, learn about the area and the culture of these places, and understand that they will probably get more out of it than they give to the people,” Mr Parisi said Each trip does a unique type of service, providing help to different walks of life, as well as embarking on different excursions Colin Broderick ‘23, who went on the service trip to Coachella, California last summer, touched on the help he was able to provide

"Doing service in Coachella was a fantastic experience,” said Colin “We went to church with the predominantly Hispanic community in Coachella We also did landscape work there and cleaned up a boys and girls club, too One day, we worked at a food bank, packing bags of produce, and then handed them out at a food drive It was really cool helping such kindhearted people”

These service trips are a unique opportunity for students that many other schools do not offer Mr Parisi discussed how special these service trips can be for the Juniors

“It is an opportunity for students to be introduced to service away from home as well as get to know their classmates much better by living with them for a week These trips can serve as a steppingstone for future service ”

-Justin Muttreja '23

Introducing La Salle Super Fans

Mr Robert Forster ‘05, who works in Admissions, teaches physical education to La Salle freshmen, and is preparing to start his fourth year as the Explorers’ head lacrosse coach, is bringing a new club to the school

It is called La Salle Super Fans, and it will be available to the student body beginning in April La Salle Super Fans is “ a club designed to support not just athletics, but clubs, activities, the play, choral concerts, and to show overall support to the La Salle activities that aren ’ t as well attended as certain events, ” said Mr Forster

He mentioned that Super Fans will be a great way to support all La Salle activities and to give everyone the support they need from our student body The club will consist of students who are able and willing to travel to different La Salle events to show support Members of the Super Fans club will act as ambassadors to La Salle and represent the school This club will increase school spirit and allow every activity at La Salle to be seen

If you are interested in joining Super Fans, email ForsterR@lschs org for further information

-Jackson Trymbiski '25