LINCOLN, Neb. (AP) — The American Bar Association is helping Nebraska steer law students to rural communities.

The national group has awarded the Nebraska State Bar Association a $15,000 grant to pay some of the costs of placing 10 law students as law clerks in rural towns for five weeks in 2015.

The state bar association hopes a summer clerkship will encourage law students to live and work in small towns, researching cases and preparing documents for law firms. The state bar association started the clerkship program in 2013 as part of its Rural Practice Initiative to help increase the number of small-town lawyers. Iowa has a similar program.

Of Nebraska’s 93 counties, 22 have three or fewer lawyers. Twelve have none.