CLE – Ronald McDonald House – Committees – Mobile Meals – The Liaison – Executive Committee Positions – Website and Renewals
This is a long one so stay with me! Thanks!
CLE
Obviously, we will not be meeting together. Stay tuned for an announcement later in the month.
Ronald McDonald House
I have attached a copy of the thank you card we received from RMH. Many thanks to all who were able to participate.
Committees
In the past, we have had sign up sheets for our different committees at the annual meeting. I come to you now asking for your help. Will you help me?
SMPA works best when we are all participating. When only a few volunteer, we can get stuck in a rut and appear cliquish. This is the last thing I want, but you have to help me. Please look over the description of the Committees below and reply to RSVP@smparalegal.org if you are willing to step up and help us. We are going to need to get really creative this year in order to overcome the social effects of this pandemic. I miss our socials. I miss getting together and seeing everyone and feeling the energy in the room when we come together.
Please help us make SMPA a thriving organization ready to face what 2021 might throw at us.
Below is an overview of each Committees responsibilities.
Community Outreach Chairperson appointed by the President:
Members of this Committee work to promote volunteer opportunities within the community that SMPA and its members can participate in to encourage community involvement. Every quarter a written report is provided to the Executive Committee prior to the Executive Committee meetings.
Educational Programs Committee chaired by the First Vice President:
This Committee works on the planning and presentations for the Annual Seminar. They also work to provide speakers for the monthly CLE meetings. They also assist in planning and coordinating all SMPA sponsored events and notify KBA and Knoxville News Sentinel of monthly meetings.
Membership Committee chaired by the Second Vice President:
Shall be responsible for membership drives, recruitment of new members, promotion of SMPA to paralegals and others in the legal community, assist in advertising SMPA, and other tasks involving membership as may be assigned by the President.
Publication Committee chaired by appointment of the President:
Shall be responsible for publishing and circulating the quarterly publication and any other publication of SMPA as may become necessary. This committee should consist of at least three members with the President serving in an advisory capacity. Committee members work with the Chair to obtain information to be published in the quarterly publication. This Committee also maintains and updates all SMPA brochures and ensures that adequate brochures, applications, letterhead and other SMPA literature is available.
Certified Paralegal Review Committee chaired by appointment of the President:
This Committee is responsible for the coordinating the CP Review Class, securing the physical location, and, if applicable, coordinate video teleconferencing with remote locations. This Committee also ensures that class materials are updated, kept current, and provided to the class participants in a timely manner.
Mobile Meals
SMPA participates in Mobile Meals in association with the Knoxville Bar. Last year brought many challenges to Mobile Meals and SMPA was there to assist. Below are SMPA’s assigned dates for food delivery. Please reply to RSVP@SMParalegal.org to sign up for a date. If you are new to Mobile Meals, and need more information please let me know. All dates are Fridays unless noted. We like to have two volunteers for each delivery date. Grab a buddy and join in this rewarding endeavor!
January 22
February 26
March 26
March 30 (Tues)
April 23
May 28
June 25
June 29 (Tues)
July 23
August 27
August 31
September 24
October 22
November 26 (holiday schedule/no deliveries)
November 30
December 24 (holiday schedule/no deliveries)
The Liaison
Our illustrious Editor-in-Chief, Bill Minks, put out a call for submissions last month. Over the Christmas holiday did you stay home and read a book about a court case, judge, political theme, recent law change, social science, etc., or maybe another subject of interest to the legal support community? If so, please share your thoughts with us via an article for The Liaison. We are also looking of any articles that may help us get through the coming months. I’ve met most of you and you have opinions. You like to voice those opinions. We want to hear from you, really!
Please forward your submissions by email to William.Minks@usdoj.gov. Thanks!
Executive Committee Positions
No one committed to the Second Vice-President position at the Annual Meeting. The Second Vice-President is responsible for maintaining the membership roster and overseeing the Membership Committee. We are also in need of an Academic Outreach Coordinator/Director. These position are VITAL to the growth of SMPA. We could roll these positions into another officer’s responsibilities, but then we are down to only 5 people on the Executive Committee. We need more members in leadership positions. We need more member’s input in guiding us through this next year. We need YOU!
If you are new to the paralegal field and would like to have some leadership experience to put on your resume, please come join our Executive Committee. If you have been in SMPA for a while and just have not thought about stepping into a leadership position, what is stopping you? Fear? I don’t bite. Politics? We do our best not to do that. Time? We all have time pressures. You really can make this work.
If you have questions about the requirements and amount of time involved for these positions, email me at Karen@FoxLawTN.com. You may also email President@smparalegal.org. I look forward to hearing from you!
Website Update and Renewals
We are almost ready to roll out the refreshed website. It has been a long road that started in November of 2019. Stay tuned for updates. Hold off on renewals until we get everything up and running. Thanks!
Stay safe and stay well until we can be together again! ~~Karen