Can you talk a little about your career path? Where did you get started in terms of goals and training?
I started out as a teacher. After my BA from UC Berkeley, I went on to get a Masters in Theatre, and initially taught Drama. Then I got my paralegal certificate at the University of West Los Angeles, and went on to work as a paralegal for a while and eventually began working as a placement counselor for University of West Los Angeles, placing paralegal students and alumni into law firms. In the mid 1980's, when the economy was booming for law firms, I worked for one of the first paralegal placement agencies in Los Angeles, which was quite successful. When the recession of the late 80's - early 90's hit and law firms stopped using recruiting firms, I continued working on career placement with a non-profit. Now I work in Human Resources with the Anti-Defamation League in Los Angeles. I taught at various paralegal schools for 10 years, and was one of the charter members of the CACPS, the Commission for Advanced CA Paralegal Specialization. We started through the California Alliance of Paralegal Association; our mission was to test experienced paralegals so they can get advanced specialization and certification. This was an advanced certified legal assistant examination; a paralegal would need around three years of experience and to have successfully passed the CLA (certified legal assistant) examinations sponsored by NALA (National Association of Legal Assistants) to become certified.