Norfolk’s Academy of International Studies Wins Law Firm’s Vote for a School Contest

NORFOLK, VA — November 1, 2022: More than 4,700 people submitted nominations and votes to Cooper Hurley Injury Lawyers’ Vote for a School contest, resulting in a victory for the Academy of International Studies at Rosemont in Norfolk.

The middle school on Branch Road won $5,000 from the Norfolk-based personal injury law firm. The Academy of International Studies is a Norfolk public school, stating its mission as: “The mission of The Academy of International Studies at Rosemont, a cornerstone of a proudly diverse community, is to educate each student to be a successful, productive contributor to society by providing powerful teaching and learning opportunities.”

Blessed Christian Homeschool in Portsmouth won the second prize of $3,000 in the contest and Pembroke Elementary School in Virginia Beach won the third prize of $2,000.

Vote for a School, the firm’s most popular community event, is in its second year. The first contest was won by Larrymore Elementary School in Norfolk. The runner up was St Pius X Elementary School, a private school in Norfolk.

Any public or private school located in Hampton Roads or the Eastern Shore of Virginia was eligible to enter the competition from August 25, 2022 to October 14, 2022. The school that received the most votes from the community won $5,000. The winning schools may use the funds at their discretion.

Vote for a School is one of several initiatives that Cooper Hurley Injury Lawyers has launched in the community to support students and educators under Cooper Hurley Injury Lawyers Cares.

Schools and students need more support than ever before due to the ongoing effects of COVID-19. Data from the Virginia Department of Education found that Hampton Roads school enrollment fell by more than 4.5% in 2020. Although numbers have stabilized in many districts, students continue to feel the impacts of so-called “COVID-slide” and struggle in the classroom.

Cooper Hurley Injury Lawyers has made numerous donations to schools and students over the last few years. The firm recently awarded $2,500 to a graduating Indian River High School student via the Bill O’Mara, Jr. Scholarship as well as $10,000 in scholarships to winners of its Focused Driver Scholarship program.

The firm also donated $1,000 to 2022 Virginia teacher of the year Daphne Fulson for her Chesapeake school, Portlock Primary School.

Similar to its Vote for a School initiative each fall, Cooper Hurley Injury Lawyers also organizes the Vote for a Cause contest each spring which honors nonprofits and other great organizations in Hampton Roads. Evelyn’s Wildlife Refuge in Suffolk won the 2022 Vote for a Cause contest.

Vote for a School, Vote for a Cause, and the firm’s other generous donations are all part of its commitment to donate $100,000 to Hampton Roads in 2022. They recently surpassed that goal.