2005-2006 Board of Directors
President: Ellen Lockwood,
CLAS, RP
Ellen Lockwood, CLAS, RP, received her Bachelor of Music (BM) degree from Southwestern University and her paralegal certificate from Southwestern Professional Institute in Houston.
She previously served on the Board of Directors of the Division from 1995 to 1997 and 2001 to the present. She served as Treasurer of the Division from 1996 to 1997 and again from 2002 to 2004. Ellen also served as the Chair of the Professional Ethics Committee of the Division from 1997 to 2004, as well as serving on various other Division committees. She is a past president of the Alamo Area Professional Legal Assistants and a frequent speaker on paralegal ethics and intellectual property.
Ellen has thirteen years of paralegal experience in intellectual property and civil litigation. She is currently employed as the Intellectual Property Specialist for Clear Channel Communications, Inc.
President-Elect: Javan Johnson, CLAS
Javan Johnson, CLAS, is a freelance paralegal who began her own business in Longview in February 1999, specializing in civil trial work, after working for 20 years with Ken Ross. She has a bachelor’s degree in Business Administration and Education from Baylor University. Javan obtained her CLA in 1990, earned the NALA civil litigation specialty designation in 1993, and became certified in Civil Trial Law by the Texas Board of Legal Specialization in 1996. Javan has served the Paralegal Division of the State Bar of Texas (PD) for many years as subchair and chair on various committees, served on the Board of Directors, served as President in 2000-2001, and will again serve as President in 2006-2007. She was the recipient of the Award of Excellent in 2004. In addition to being a charter member of PD, Javan is also a charter member of the Northeast Texas Association of Legal Assistants, Inc. (NTALA), in Longview, and has served that organization since its inception in 1988, in a number of different capacities, including President, as well as chair of a number of committees. Javan participated in the start-up of the Legal Assistant program at Kilgore College in 1988, and has been a part time instructor in that program since that time. Of all of these professional accomplishments, Javan is most proud of her family - husband of 20 years, Brett, and son, Cameron, age 17.
Treasurer: Cecile
Wiginton, CLA
Cel serves as District 11 Director and Treasurer. She is serving her second term as Director of the Paralegal Division and has previously served on its Membership Committee, Public Relations Committee and Elections Committee as subchair for her district. A charter member of the Division, Cel earned her certification from the National Association of Legal Assistants (NALA) in 1985. She has served as President, Vice President, Secretary, Education Chairman, Program Chairman, Pro Bono Chairman and currently is the NALA Liaison for her local association, Legal Assistants Association/Permian Basin, and was honored as Legal Assistant of the Year for 2003. She received a degree in Fine Art from Angelo State University. Cel has over 20 years experience as a paralegal, a slight detour from her goal of teaching art. Cel works with the law firm of Cotton, Bledsoe, Tighe & Dawson, P.C. in the Business/Corporate Section.
Cel volunteers with Casa de Amigos Pro Bono Clinic and Teen Court. Cel teaches a kindergarten class at First Baptist Church on Sundays. Cel and husband Eddie live in Midland and have two sons. Chad is a mechanical engineer in Houston where he and wife Kelley and daughter Lauren live. Jeff and his wife, Christine, are teachers and they live in Midland.
Secretary: Mona Hart Chandler, CP
Mona serves as the District 14 Director. She is a NALA Certified Paralegal and earned her bachelors degree from East Texas Baptist University in Marshall. She has worked at Hill & Calk, P.C., in Longview, for a year and a half under the direction of Jimmy Calk, TBLS Board Certified Attorney in Commercial and Residential Real Estate Law. Mona has worked in the area of real estate law for most of the 24 years she has been in the legal profession. She plans to sit for the TBLS exam in Real Estate Law in October 2005.
In 2004, she was elected as Director of District 14 of the Paralegal Division. In just a little over a year of her service on the Division Board of Directors, Mona has seen some exciting things happening. She has made it her goal during her term in office to exert every effort to make CLE readily available to the members of District 14 by organizing as many CLE events in the district as possible.
She is currently President of the Northeast Texas Association of Legal Assistants (NTALA). Although not a large group, NTALA is making a difference in the professional lives of paralegals in the area.
Mona has four daughters, who all live near by. She also has 14 grandchildren, 11 boys and 3 girls; and yes, they are really grand. Her mother and step-dad live just around the bend, and they all have a very close relationship. In her spare time, Mona enjoys reading, doing genealogy, and a little
scrapbooking.
Parliamentarian: Debbie
Skolaski, CP
Debbie Skolaski is the current District 1 Director for the Legal Assistants Division and is a NALA Certified Paralegal with over 15 years experience. She received a B.S. in Business Administration and a Masters of Business Administration from LeTourneau University. She has practiced as an intellectual property paralegal in the law firm environment and in corporate law departments. She has served as the District 1 Director since June 2003. Additionally, Debbie was the 2004-2005 Parliamentarian for the Division. Prior to serving as the District 1 Director, she served at the local level as the 2001-2002 President Elect, 2002-2003 President, and 2003-2004 Secretary of her local association, Houston Corporate Paralegal Association (formerly known as ACLAA). At the international level, Debbie has served since 1997 on various committees for the International Trademark Association (INTA) including appearing as a guest lecturer at several CLE forums located in Houston, San Francisco and Washington D.C. She has co-authored a published trademark textbook (2005 Edition of the Trademark Administrator’s Handbook) and is currently co-authoring the companion workbook which will be used in a trademark paralegal course sponsored by INTA. She has also written several articles for Legal Assistant Today.
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