MEET THE AMTSI INSTRUCTORS
Tala Shammas - Summer Camp Chair
Tala Shammas is a freshman at the University of Arizona, double majoring in Law and Arabic.
During this last year, Tala was awarded an All-Regional Attorney Award at the UCSD Regional Tournament. At this tournament, she served as captain our D Team, leading her team to earn a winning record, and honorable mention at that regional level. Additionally, Tala traveled to Northeastern University where her team placed 1st at their conference, becoming inaugural champions on the East Coast!
All of this goes to say, she loves mock trial very much, and would love to meet and teach anyone interested in our program. Tala is excited to teach the ins and outs of collegiate level mock trial! BEAR DOWN!
CORDELIA ELLSWORTH
Cordelia is a rising sophomore at the U of A and is currently studying political science with minors in both Spanish and art history. She is also a member of the W.A. Franke Honors College. This spring, Cordelia captained our C team through multiple regional and invitational tournaments, leading them to a winning record. With experience as both a defense opener and closer, Cordelia is well equipped to help high school students in delivering compelling speeches, responsive cross examinations, and engaging direct examinations. She is so excited to be instructing at AMTSI this summer and can’t wait for it it be an amazing week!
NATALIA VELIZ
Natalia is a rising senior at the U of A currently majoring in Law with a minor in Psychology. While competing with UAMT she has earned 14 ranks as both a plaintiff and defense witness. Natalia has competed at AMTA regionals, where her team received an honorable mention. She would say that being double-sided has helped her to develop strong critical thinking and public speaking skills. Mock trial has allowed Natalia to apply the things she’s learned about the law during her studies in a competitive and collaborative format. She’s very excited to be a part of this year’s AMTSI committee and is looking forward to sharing her experience and helping others develop their skills this summer!
Maya Williams
Tyrah Davis
Tyrah Davis is entering her junior year and third year of Arizona Mock Trial! She is studying Political Science and Business Management with a minor in Psychology. She has received a first place team award at UNLV’s Rebel-Trojan tournament and a 3rd place team award at UW’s Emerald City Open, as well as captaining a team in Fall 2024.
Kiana Koehler
Jason Ojoye
Jason Ojoye is a Sophomore at the University of Arizona. He is double majoring in Law and Business Economics and is pursuing a career as a lawyer. He has have been a part of the University of Arizona Mock Trial Team for 2 years now, and during his time, he has won 4 outstanding witness awards and 1 outstanding attorney award. He’s also been a part of the school’s equestrian club for about a year, and is the co-community service chair of SPURS sophomore honorary. Outside of school and extracurriculars, he likes to read, work out, play and watch sports, and just have fun with his friends. Looking forward to a fun and educational week!