Posted on 12/14/2004 1:50:01 PM PST by truthandlife
A small Christian college in Virginia, known for its outreach to home-schooled students, has defeated Oxford University in an international competition, arguing British law in a mock contract case.
A team of law students from Patrick Henry College won the weekend exhibition against England's University of Oxford in the American school's first international moot court competition. Two teams from Patrick Henry College (PHC) competed against two undergraduate teams from Balliol College, one of the 39 colleges that make up the premier British university and the official hosts of the competition.
Founded in 2000, PHC is a classical Christian liberal arts college dedicated to training men and women who will lead their nation and shape their culture according to timeless biblical values and American ideals. Patrick Henry students Matt du Mee and Rayel Papke were declared the winners of the moot court competition based on several criteria, including presentation, argumentation, and courtroom demeanor. Also competing for PHC were David Shaw and Kyle Pousson.
The mock legal cases argued in the tournament at Balliol College were conducted according to the precedent-based British legal system and the complex principles of British contract law, which the PHC teams had to learn prior to their trip. The final round of the tournament was judged by two law lords of Britain's highest court.
PHC president Mike Farris says the hard-earned victory over the Balliol teams is a meaningful triumph. "Just being able to be there and go head to head with them says that we're able to compete against the best in the world, even when the territory's a little bit strange to us," he points out. "We were there in a different country using a different legal system on a contract law issue. As undergraduates, we never study contract law -- we do constitutional law."
Farris commends PHC's teams for a win that he says was the result of a great deal of hard work and preparation. "The adaptability of the students, the ability to learn new material, really says good things," he notes. "We take nothing away from Oxford; it's obviously a high, high academic quality place, but we were able to compete, and on this occasion we competed successfully."
During their visit to England, the PHC students attended a formal dinner as guests of the Younger Society, an organization of past and present Balliol lawyers. Next spring, Oxford teams will visit the United States to compete with Patrick Henry again, this time arguing cases using American law.
Unheard of....congrats to all of them...and to Mike Farris, esq. for these scholars. PH College is well on its way!
you'll like this.
We're gonna need these kids in the future.....
How fantastic!
I would absolutely love to send my jedis to PHC!
I have heard so many great things about Patrick Henry College. I read an article that this is a wonderful school for homeschoolers, especially. The school really caters to the homeschoolers.
The $100 annual HSLDA fee we used to pay now goes to support PHC. Good investment!
(You mean those redneck, inbred, gun-totin', mean-spirited, illiterate, Bible-thumpin' conservatives have some brains in their tent too? Oh dear!)
On another note, they are not the most organized college around.
I tried to participate in an online auction they held and that was a mess too.
I have great hopes for them in the future, but they have some bugs to work out.
Must have been a mistake. Jesusland is filled with ignorant buffoons who can't read or write. Barbara Streisand told me so.
/sarcasm
booked for later
People from Virginia have been beating the British for over 200 years. Everyone should be use to it by now.
Happy to hear that these Patrick Henry students will lead America in the future!
That kind of stuff always happens in the beginning of any school. It is a rare thing to NOT have those kind of things happen. I have been involved in five start up private schools. Only one of them did not have similar problems by the end of the first year.
Just like software: you buy and use "version 1.0" at your own risk. I'm a "late adopter" of tech and usually wait for 2.0 or even 3.0 before spending the time and money. Your mileage may vary.
Bump for potential future college for three smart, hard-working children related to me.
Oh I agree. I think PHC will be a great school. IS a great school now for the most part. Those things were disappointing to me, however, and have colored my son's opinion against them.
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