Xiwen Chen, who just completed fifth grade at Prairie Point Elementary School in Oswego, partnered with his father to showcase his passion for animals in a unique way this past school year.

Xiwen’s father, Abhi Chakrabarti, is a third-year law student at Northwestern University. Chakrabarti and Xiwen collaborated to submit a poster to be considered for Northwestern’s Annual Animal Law Symposium.

Xiwen was involved with this project from the very beginning, his father said. The work they completed centered around the question “Should animals have standing in court?”

Their research covered how different countries have handled this issue, as well as how this issue has evolved over time in the United States, a news release from Oswego School District 308 said.

Xiwen and Chakrabarti’s poster idea was one of six selected to be displayed at the symposium.

“It was genuinely one of the more memorable experiences I’ve had,” Chakrabarti said in the release. “It was really satisfying to see Xiwen come up with an idea and work alongside me for close to four weeks in designing the poster, and later take the lead to present the contents of the poster to the audience who stopped by.”

This experience as a whole served as an opportunity for Xiwen to grow in a variety of ways, his father said.

Xiwen’s said getting to create this poster and participate in the symposium was a chance to practice his public speaking skills—something he plans to continue working on in the coming years.

“It was a really wonderful experience to stand in front of others, present the poster, and answer questions from the audience.” Xiwen said in the release.

“It’s not often you get to collaborate with your son on something intellectually serious and yet emotionally resonant,” Mr. Chakrabarti said. “I’m grateful we had this chance.”