The University of Connecticut Mock Trial Society set up a GoFundMe page and raised over $4,000 for their teams to attend the Open Round Championship at Iona College last weekend.
Two of UConn’s teams succeeded at the regional competition in February at Brown University and earned spots in the Opening Round Championship for the first time in six years.
Laura Mensh, president of the UConn Mock Trial Society, explained that they needed funding after the Undergraduate Student Government funding office was unable to pay for their trip.
“We knew we have to go to the open round championships if we get a spot because there’s a national ranking of teams, and we want to keep our ranking up. Also, we have been working for this; it’s something we had to go to,” Mensh said.
Mensh said she set up the GoFundMe page and posted it on social media, where family and friends could donate. She added that they also fundraise throughout the year, such as doing a Fried Oreo fundraiser to get money into their bank account.
As for future competitions, Mensh said funding seems like it is going to be an ongoing issue.
“We have a plan going into next year that we request the money as early as possible. It is just tough because we don’t know exactly where we are going to be early enough,” Mensh said.
There are eight Open Round Championships that happen around the country, and 24 schools attended their championship at Iona College last weekend. Mensh said UConn’s teams unfortunately didn’t move on, but went seven out of 12, which got them an honorable mention.
“We were very close to moving on. They ended up being a tiebreaker between five teams. It is the closest we’ve ever gotten in our program’s history,” Mensh said.
Schools from around the country are a part of the American Mock Trial Association, which hosts 32 regional tournaments, eight open-round championship tournaments, and a national championship each year. Approximately 700 teams from over 400 universities and colleges will compete, creating a total of over 7,300 undergraduate students each year.
Mensh explained that each group goes to compete with other schools that are working on the same case, which is released every year by the American Mock Trial Association.
“There are six people on prosecution, six people on defense, three witnesses, three attorneys. So, it is a good combination of law but also acting,” Mensh said.
To prepare for competitions, UConn’s Mock Trial Society has regular practices on Tuesdays and Thursdays from 7 p.m. to 9 p.m. Mensh said they have 24 members, which are divided into three teams of eight members, with different commitment levels.
Mensh explained that the A and B teams tend to put a lot of work into outside practice to familiarize themselves with the material, while the C team is a place for individuals who may not be able to delegate time outside of practice.
“This year, we have had a very committed group of everyone who wants to do really well. So most people have been doing stuff outside of practice, but especially in the fall, there’s a way to do it during practice,” Mensh said.
Mensh, who joined her freshman year, is a math major looking to go into law but noted that students can get involved even if they do not wish to pursue the law track as a career.
“We have people who don’t even necessarily want to go into law who do mock trial because they like the acting part of it,” Mensh said. “It ends up being a performance type thing, but it is also helpful if you’re trying to figure out how to do legal arguments and things like that.”
Every fall, the group holds tryouts to establish the teams for the year. Anyone interested in getting involved next year can email mocktrialuconn@gmail.com for more information.