Catherine Ruffing - 2018 Teacher of the Year
Catherine Ruffing- 2018 Teacher of the Year
Centreville High School ~ Clifton, Virginia
ALA 2018 High School Teacher of the Year Cathy Ruffing and Richard Garriott
President-Elect of the Virginia Bar Association
For 27 years, Catherine Ruffing has taught AP Government courses in Fairfax County, Virginia high schools. Each year her students, with the help of Virginia Senator George Barker, draft and testify in support of legislation in the Virginia Senate. Most recently, a bill requiring Virginia 911 call centers in all localities to accept emergency text messages was signed into law by Governor Ralph Northam. This is tangible proof that students can make a difference even before they are eligible to vote.
In addition, Ms. Ruffing created and teaches a Law in Action course which is now taught in most Fairfax County high schools. Students in a Law in Action course participate in mock trials, most current Supreme Court cases, and conduct jury voir dire. She also started the extracurricular Model Judiciary team for Centreville High School. This Team, sponsored by the Virginia Bar Association Young Lawyers Division, competes with other Virginia high schools in mock trials and moot courts. Her team has been in the finals before justices of the Virginia Supreme Court every year since 2007.
“I am truly honored to receive the American Lawyers Alliance Teacher of the Year award! I am very appreciative that an organization such as the ALA makes an effort to seek out and recognize high school teachers of law-related courses in such a special and generous way. Your application requirements give teachers a chance to fully explain their approach to teaching law and provide evidence of their accomplishment. The awards breakfast in Chicago was a beautiful and inspiring affair. I was honored to be in the same room with so many dedicated people who have made outstanding contributions to further law-related education at all levels. Teaching is not a profession that one enters into for recognition, but that makes it even more special when it is bestowed. Thank you for this great honor.”
Because Ms. Ruffing teaches in a suburb of Washington, D.C., she can take her students to the Supreme Court to hear oral arguments. They have had a private tour and met with Justice Sonia Sotomayor. She has had guest speakers including U.S. Secret Service agents, intelligence officials from the FBI, as well as defense and prosecuting attorneys. Mary Beth Tinker of "Tinker v. Des Moines" has been a guest in her classroom. As Ms. Tinker states, "Her students don't just study the law, they make it."
Ms. Ruffing states that, "one of my most important jobs is to help students learn to exercise their rights and fulfill their responsibilities...to actively participate in government." She co-authored a book of lessons, "The Bill of Rights and You: Rights and Responsibilities," which is now being used in classrooms across the country.
She is a graduate of the University of Pennsylvania. In 2016, she received the "John Marshall Foundation Teacher of the Year Award for Teaching the U.S. Constitution." In 2007, she was honored as "Street Law National Educator of the Year."