Committee Meetings and Minutes

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Paralegal Advisory Committee

Meeting Minutes

Current Status of Minutes: Final
Date	September 12, 2018
Time	12:30 PM - 2:15 PM
Location	Rio Grande Campus

Members Present
No member attendance has been recorded.
Guests Present
No guest attendance has been recorded.

Item # 1:	Contact department at sslack@austincc.edu to receive a signed pdf copy of minutes.
Presenter	Shawn Slack
Discussion	Members Present: o President, Nova Coker, Certified Legal Assistant, Case Manager at Sharp & Cobos, Attorneys-at-Law, and ACC Paralegal Program Advanced Technical Certificate Graduate; o Vice President, E. Hazen Woods, Jr., Retired Assistant Attorney General, Senior Attorney, Transportation Division; o Judge Woodie Jones, Retired Justice, Court of Appeals; Of Counsel, Alexander Dubose Jefferson & Townsend o Megan Becker, Paralegal, Attorney General, Bankruptcy Division; o Cullen McMorrow, Staff Attorney, Texas Commission on Environmental Quality o Mario Aguilar, Austin Community College Faculty, Paralegal Department o Secretary, Shawn Slack, Austin Community College Department Chair, Paralegal Department Not Present: o Enrique Varela, Assistant Attorney General, Senior Attorney, General Litigation Division. Old Business: • Paralegal Program Expansion Initiative o Status of Expansion into Daytime at Northridge Campus (NRG)  Aguilar and Slack provided updates.  Committee expressed concern over significant drop in enrollment from spring 18 to fall 18. Recommended changing back to old system where primary contact for program inquires on Paralegal website is department, not Student Services, which was changed in March 2018.  Committee agreed with idea of trying daytime courses at Round Rock Campus, instead of NRG. o Status of Expansion into Distance Learning  Aguilar and Slack provided updates.  Committee agreed that opportunity for a blended curriculum is ideal for paralegal students, since the majority have significant other demands such as full-time job and childcare. The Committee also warned against allowing students to complete too many course online in this program due to need to develop interpersonal skills, communication skills, and develop legal reasoning skills though face to face discussion of legal standards and concepts. New Business: • ABA Approval o Aguilar and Slack presented reasons program should consider seeking ABA approval. The committee discussed potential advantages to students seeking employment if program was ABA approved. Committee voted unanimously to begin process of seeking ABA approval. • Curriculum o Committee reviewed course catalog and discussed need to eliminate Constitutional Law from catalog to comply with ABA guidelines. Committee recommended adding Intellectual Property and Bankruptcy courses to schedule when possible. • Job Market o Committee discussed observations regarding current job market for paralegals. Consensus was that the market remains very good for paralegals entering the profession. • Graduate Performance o Dept Chair gave overview on student learning outcomes and how intern evaluation results are used to assess program effectiveness. • Topics from Committee o Committee emphasized importance of continuing to require internships with private employers be paid. o Committee discussed childcare needs for ACC paralegal students and current options, as well as recent decisions by the Board of Trustees to expand these options. • Adjourn

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