Over nearly four decades of teaching in St. Charles, Jim Reed has always strived to bring the material to life.

When prepping seventh graders at St. Patrick Catholic School for an upcoming United States and Illinois Constitution test, he took transforming civics to life to a special new “bar.”

Students were provided the unique experience of engaging and asking questions with Illinois State Supreme Court Justice Elizabeth Rochford and Mayor Clint Hull, a retired judge and former prosecutor, during a Dec. 4 event.

“Discussing constitutional amendments, the students were asking questions of what happens in the actual court system, so I thought it would be great to hear from a judge’s perspective,” Reed, an English and social studies teacher, said. “I reached out to Hull and was so excited when he said Justice Rochford was interested, too. Our students loved preparing thoughtful questions ranging from ideas of constitutionality to pursuing law school. I hope it inspired some of them to publicly serve somehow in the future.”

Before teaching at St. Pats, Reed taught at St. Charles East High School for 36 years.

Reed said he hoped the conversations helped instill within the students the value of critical thinking and respectful discourse.

“Justice Rochford talked about the importance of hearing both sides, many of the kids were inspired by that message to be as objective as possible,” Reed said. “They were also inspired by Hull and his overall attitude of service for the court systems and the community. The students have been asking such fantastic questions. It really has re-awakened my passion for teaching.”

Rochford, of Lake County, was sworn in to the state’s highest court in December, 2022. From the seven-member bench, she represents the second district, comprised of Kane, McHenry, Kendall, DeKalb and Lake counties. In Illinois, the state supreme court is an elected body with justices serving 10-year terms.

Rochford also serves as the president of the Illinois Judges Association, representing more than 1,300 active and retired Illinois judges.

“They were an outstanding group of students, so respectful and smart, they asked really great questions,” Rochford said. “I wanted to provide insight into what it’s really like on the (state) Supreme Court and about the collegiality among us as justices. We talked about how important it is that we have differences of opinion in law. That’s what we’re there to do, in a professional and collegial way. We also discussed how we make decisions, the differences in our backgrounds, all to help open their eyes and minds.”

Rochford said she was so impressed with the students she invited them to visit the courthouse in Springfield this spring.

She said what always surprises people is finding out that when the seven justices are in term every other month for two weeks at a time, they live together in the courthouse like a dormitory. Inspired by a concept championed by U.S. Supreme Court Justice John Marshall back in the early 1800s, the notion holds if justices live together, eat meals together, they will be more collaborative.

Rochford said Illinois is the only state in the nation to uphold this practice. She said she believes it’s true in inspiring better work.

She said engaging with students and community members helps bring legitimacy and respect to the court. She is currently traveling to every circuit court in the state, asking judges through the Illinois Judges Association to step out into to community and have conversations with the people they serve.

“We go anywhere people gather so we can talk about the work we do and humanize being a judge,” Rochford said. “Once people know us and understand more about our process and what we do and don’t do, the transparency helps build confidence in the courts.”

Rochford said speaking with students always fills her with inspiration for the future. She said she hopes she lit some passions within the audience.

“In public service, it’s often challenging in term of dollars, but it’s extraordinarily fulfilling in what you’re able to achieve and the contributions you make to the community,” Rochford said. “Sometimes even the help you give one person or one family has collateral benefits that affect the entirety of the community and sometimes into future generations. There’s a wonderful sense of pride and satisfaction in doing public service work.”

The mayor said both he and Rochford were incredibly impressed with the passion and curiosity of the students.

“We were so honored to have a (state) Supreme Court justice come to St. Charles to speak with our students,” Hull said. “It was a great give-and-take with the students. It was fun for me to not only talk about my career as both a prosecutor and a judge, but also about what it’s been like being mayor, contrasting the differences between the judicial branch and being mayor.”

Hull said he loved hearing discussions about times when the Constitution needed to be interpreted or about if the Constitution evolves over time. He said that level of civic engagement strengthens the community.

“It’s so important to have face-to-face conversations and not shy away from talking about topics that are important to the nation, to Illinois and to St. Charles,” Hull said. “It’s a way we can build respect, especially with differences of opinion. With the students having the chance to talk to the justice and the mayor and have important conversations, my hope is it builds understanding.”