Dyas Completes Mentoring Project
for the Ohio State Bar Foundation

April 15, 2005

Kegler Brown Attorney Chuck Dyas recently helped produce a CD-based mentoring program as part of his participation with The Ohio State Bar Foundation's 2003 Fellows Class. The Foundation promotes public understanding of the law and improvements in the justice system throughout Ohio. Every year, a new group of lawyers and judges volunteer to help the Foundation further this mission by serving as Fellows and completing community service projects.

The 2003 Fellows Class, of which Dyas has been an active participant, joined the Foundation in March 2003. Class members also included law firm practitioners, in-house counsel, law school professors and court officials from across Ohio. During the last two years, the Class created the It's my life… CD-based mentoring program as its community service project.

Designed to be used with kids beginning in the 5th grade, It's my life… is built around interviews with teens who made decisions (shoplifting, driving without a license, running away from home, etc.) and faced a variety of life and legal consequences. These compelling stories are told by real kids who offer advice for those viewing the CD.

It's my life… is presented in a familiar website format. Because the 2003 Fellows Class designed It's my life… to be used by high school-aged mentors, tools to help the mentoring process were added to the CD. These tools include a video about mentoring relationships; a guide to begin discussions and a resource for additional materials; a note-taking feature to be used during mentoring sessions; and a certificate to print for mentees.

It's my life… was tested across the state in early 2005 and is being used in youth programs such as Big Brothers/Big Sisters, schools and juvenile court programs.

As the professional honorary of Ohio lawyers and judges, the Foundation awards more than $250,000 in grants each year to nonprofit organizations, government agencies and bar associations for projects that advance its mission. For more information about the Foundation and previous Class projects, visit www.osbf.net.