Sacramento Superior Court Judge Alyson Lewis shares her journey to the bench with NP3 middle and high schoolers.
By Harshan Heer
Copy Editor | The Pacific Times
Judge Lewis presented NP3 Middle and High schools with 2025 Civic Learning Awards of Excellence after her talk.
Sacramento Superior Court Judge Alyson Lewis presented NP3 with the state 2025 Civic Learning Awards of Excellence on Oct. 20, 2025 during an intimate ceremony. This is the second year in a row NP3 High School has received the top honor.
The award recognizes and celebrates public K-12 schools that demonstrate a commitment to rich civic learning opportunities for students.
There are four levels for Civic Learning recognitions: Awards of Excellence, Distinction, Merit, and Honorable Mentions. According to the California Department of Education, honorees are selected by a panel of experts based on the depth and breadth of their civic learning classes, clubs, and programs, including the Education Commission of the States’ Six Proven Practices for Effective Civic Learning.
The Education Commission of The States Guidebook: “Six Proven Practices for Effective Civic Learning,” adds that the Awards program criteria requires a thorough demonstration of quality civic education and promotion of student civic knowledge through classroom instruction, discussion of current events and controversial issues, service learning, extracurricular activities, school governance, and simulations of democratic processes. NP3 has received the award for successfully completing this criteria.
Recipients of the award are determined by a panel of 12 judicial officers, educators, and civic learning experts. According to the California Courts Newsroom article, “2025 Civic Learning Awards: Public Schools Honored for Excellence in Civic Learning”: Three schools are recipients of the Awards of Emeritus for continuing their 2024 achievement of excellence, Madera Elementary School in Ventura County, and Natomas Pathways Prep Middle School and High School in Sacramento County. South Junior High School in Orange County earned the Award of Emeritus at the Merit level.
Lewis is a former business lawyer and democratic member of the California State Assembly. She is now a judge for the Superior Court of California, County of Sacramento. Lewis presented the civic awards of excellence to NP3 Middle and High School.
“NP3 has received the top honor this year and two more times before,” said NP3 High School principal Melissa Mori.
According to the California Department of Education, the Civic Learning Awards were first presented in 2012 and have recognized more than 350 public schools of all grade levels across California. The awards are co-sponsored by the State Superintendent of Public Instruction, Tony Thurmond, and California Chief Justice Patricia Guerrero.
Schools that receive the highest honor, the Award of Excellence, traditionally receive a visit by the Chief Justice in the fall, and are invited to the California Department of Education (CDE) California School Recognition Program in the spring. The chief justice presented the award to NP3 High last school year.
Lewis presented the award on Oct. 20, 2025. She began the presentation with her background, studying at Cornell in college and going to law school at the University of California, San Francisco. Lewis then asked the audience what their verdict would be for a variety of cases involving vehicular manslaughter. She ended her talk by presenting the awards to Mori and Middle School Principal Taniia Edwards, then answered students’ questions.
Students who are a part of student government and mock trial were invited to sit in at the meeting and provide their verdicts on the given scenarios.
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