WASHINGTON, DC – June 19, 2012 – Arent Fox LLP is pleased to announce that the Washington Lawyers’ Committee honored Alan G. Fishel, a partner in the firm’s Telecommunications group, by presenting him with the 2012 Vincent E. Reed Award. Alan received the award at the 2012 Wiley A. Branton Annual Awards on Tuesday, June 19, at the JW Marriott Hotel in Washington, DC.

Alan Fishel was recognized for his considerable commitment to public education in the District of Columbia. In addition to his efforts on behalf of Randle Highlands Elementary School with respect to a host of activities, Alan created an award-winning geography game called GeoPlunge that has been a tremendous success in the DC public schools. For the past seven years, Alan and a number of his colleagues at Arent Fox, along with the DC Public School System and the Washington Lawyers Committee, have run a city-wide GeoPlunge tournament involving hundreds of students competing in teams each year. Students, working closely with teachers and community leaders, often play GeoPlunge several times a week for approximately two months in preparation for this exciting tournament, and the students’ knowledge of geography skyrockets as a result. This tournament has drawn such rave reviews from principals, teachers, students, and coaches from the community that last year the District of Columbia Mayor Vincent Gray officially proclaimed November 15, 2011 “GeoPlunge Day.” The Eighth Annual DC GeoPlunge Challenge Tournament will be held on December 5, 2012 at the Smithsonian National Portrait Gallery.

“It is great to see Alan use his creativity for multiple purposes: both to achieve extraordinary results for so many clients with respect to legal matters, and to benefit school children throughout DC with regard to GeoPlunge,” said Arent Fox managing partner Matt Clark. “This award is unquestionably well-deserved. Through his innovative and highly successful work in connection with the GeoPlunge tournament and his activities with Randle Highlands, Alan has demonstrated an unwavering dedication to improving education and helping our neighborhood schools.”

This prestigious award is named in honor of Vincent E. Reed, a distinguished educator and former DC Schools Superintendent who encouraged public education support programs throughout the District of Columbia.