District 5 Panel Presentation at
San Antonio College
On the evening of March 19, 2007,
District 5 held a panel presentation
at San Antonio College to discuss
what it is like working as a paralegal, and
to talk about the Division. The presentation
was held in the Visual Arts
Technology Center of San Antonio
College. San Antonio College opened up
the presentation to all current and former
students, and three of the faculty of the
Paralegal Program made attendance to the
presentation mandatory for their classes.
Kristy Ritchie, District 5 Director,
served as moderator, asking various questions
to the panel members. Kristy is
employed by Bracewell & Giuliani, and
works in water law, real estate, and
telecommunications law. The six panel
members consisted of the Division’s
President-Elect, Patti Giuliano, of Cox
Smith Matthews Incorporated, who works
in intellectual property; Susi Boss of
Higdon, Hardy & Zuflacht, who works in
family law, and is a Division member;
Melanie Langford, CP, of Akin Gump
Strauss Hauer & Feld, who works in litigation,
and currently serves as the Elections
Subcommittee Chair of District 5; Jodye
Kasher, NALA CP, TBLS Board Certified
Paralegal, of Fulbright & Jaworski L.L.P.,
who works in litigation, and currently
serves as Public Relations Committee
Chair of the Division; Susan Wilen, Senior
Nurse Paralegal of Fulbright & Jaworski
L.L.P., who serves as the San Antonio Joint
Paralegal Day Celebration Chair; and
Charlene B. Carroll, NALA CP, and
President of South Texas Organization of
Paralegals, Inc., who currently serves as
both Professional Development
Subcommittee Chair of District 5, and Co-
Chair of the Annual Meeting for the
Paralegal Division. Charlene specializes in
criminal law, and also works with civil litigation
and appellate cases, and has been
employed by attorney Samnuel H. Bayless
for the past 18 years.
Our President-Elect, Patti Giuliano,
began the presentation by talking about
the Division, and the benefits and opportunities
for joining the Division. The panelists
each provided their viewpoints of
what it is like working as a paralegal in
their practice areas; explained some of the
benefits and drawbacks of different job
paths; and discussed some non-traditional
jobs for paralegals. They also covered basic
questions, from explaining about the general
process of timekeeping, to general
advice regarding interviews and various
things entry-level paralegals can do to be
successful in their careers, and everything
in-between. After concluding an hour of
questions and viewpoints, the panel then
opened up the floor to answer individual
questions from the students.
Tandy Schoolcraft, the San Antonio
College Paralegal Studies Program
Coordinator, stated, “The students and
faculty members who attended the presentation
really enjoyed it, and found the
information to be very practical.” She also
stated, “The students were paying close
attention and taking the panel’s words to
heart.”
One piece of advice echoed by many of
the panelists had to do with mentors.
Many of the panel members had a mentor
when they were starting out in their
careers. If you are new in the field, it is
often helpful to find someone professional,
with experience, to be a mentor to you.
Likewise, for those that have given many
years to their careers, it is good to always
remember what it is like to start out new
in the field as a paralegal, somewhat
unsure of yourself or your surroundings,
and give back. Be active in the Division, so
that you can be a part of the movement to
work hard for our profession to continue
to move forward. And, if you can, try to
remember to make time to reach out to
new or struggling paralegals, and offer to
be a mentor for them.
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