We had great success at our Bring a Friend luncheon today and welcomed many prospective members. We hope to see many of you soon at future events. Anyone interested in joining SCUPA, may contact Marianna Ray at
membership@scupa.org.
On behalf of the pro bono committee, Dorothy Huskey announced that she will still accept last minute volunteers for the Let There Be Mom Seek and Snap. Those interested should contact her as soon as possible. In other pro bono news, Daysha Bonner announced that she has signed us up to work on a science garden for Welcome Elementary. We will be planting a garden, mulching some beds, and possibly assembling a picnic table. There will be something for everyone to do and it is a wonderful way to make a meaningful impact on our community. Those still interested in volunteering may do so by the end of this month.
Marianna Ray announced on behalf of Barbara Spearman that nominations for Paralegal of the Year are open as of today. Nomination forms can be found on the front page of
http://www.scupa.org/. Nominations will be accepted through October 15, 2012 and the winner will be announced at the next luncheon. Please submit your completed forms to Barbara Spearman.
Several members will be meeting with attorney John Bell of Greenville Tech on April 27, 2012 at 11:45 a.m. at City Range on Haywood Road to discuss ways to get SCUPA and the students in the paralegal program more involved. If you would like to attend and contribute, please let Barbara Spearman know so we can have a head count.
Gary Ramaeker of Greenville Tech provided a great presentation on the internship program at Tech. He emphasized the importance of the program because an internship is a great way for a student to get actual law office work experience. Prospective interns need to have a minimum B grade average and must be considered the 'cream of the crop.' Gary takes several factors into account in determining who should be included in the program: grades, helpfulness to others, reaction during crisis situations, willingness to mentor others, attention to detail, compassion, and interest in the community.
Once a student is accepted into the program, they are given a list of 25 participating law offices to which they may apply. Students are also allowed to apply to firms outside the program. There is no obligation for the firm to hire the student following the interview.
During the course of the internship, the student will work 135 hours per semester based on the needs of the firm. The program just asks that the firm allow the students to do typical paralegal work such as summarizing records, answering phones, filing, and attending trials.
At the end of the semester, the firm must simply fill out a one page evaluation outlining the student's strenghts, weaknesses, and any recommendations for the future.
Gary advised that those students not picked for the internship program will not be left out in the cold. They are investigating a program called Virtual Law Office which will have videos and projects to perform to show them what work in a real law office would be like.
Following his presentation, we learned that several of our members and guests were graduates of the internship program. If you or your firm is interested in learning more about the program or interviewing a paralegal intern, please contact Gary at (864) 250-8255 or
Gary.Ramaeker@gvltec.edu.
