Welcome to CAPA’s new term! I’m excited to step into my presidency for CAPA with a supportive and strong Board of Directors, and I can’t wait to walk through this journey with you.

For those of you that I haven’t had an opportunity to meet, I wanted to give you a peek into who I am and my journey with CAPA. I have been exactly where you are. I joined CAPA as a member in 2012 not knowing anyone and wondering what CAPA could do for me as a paralegal. I got involved immediately and begin attending the monthly CLE luncheons and meetings regularly, just to learn more about the profession. I connected with the Mentor Program and was paired with a mentor who helped me navigate the world of litigation and what CAPA had to offer. Fast forward a few years, I learned what CAPA could do for me, but I also learned what I could give back to CAPA. Shortly after, I joined the leadership as the Committee Chair for the Mentor and Internship Program and worked toward serving the membership for two terms as Secretary and as Parliamentarian of the Board, later leading our Student Membership as their School and Student Liaison. After taking a short break, I returned to the leadership as your President-Elect and here we are.

Did you know that CAPA is a completely volunteer-run organization? CAPA is run completely by paralegals like you who give their time, energy, and expertise to furthering the footprint of Austin area paralegals. Every aspect of CAPA that you have come to know and love is put together by a group of leaders who want to share and create a useful experience for their fellow CAPA members, and I’m honored to work side by side with these individuals.

If you are like I was in the beginning and wonder “what does the Board of Directors do” and “what does each of the committees handle,” I’m committed to giving all of our members a “peek behind the curtain”. TRANSPARENCY is going to be the theme of my presidency and the Board and Committee Chairs will be devoted to giving you insight into what it takes to keep this organization running and growing.
I’m going to be open and honest about what the Board intends to accomplish within the first few weeks of this new term, and I invite you to be apart of it, engage, and give your valuable feedback. As a member of CAPA, whether a Voting, Associate, Student, or Sustaining Member, you have the opportunity to connect with your leadership about what you want to get out of your membership and you have an open door to participate. Each and every member of our leadership has been in your shoes and they would be excited to see you step into a leadership role in your CAPA journey. All of the Board members and Committee Chairs would love the opportunity to show you what they do and train up a new group of leaders.

I’m challenging every member of this organization to find a place where you can receive growth and support, and a place where you can return that growth and support.

Over the next few weeks, I will work the Board to accomplish the following measures of growth:

1. Revamping the Sustaining Membership Program and finding ways to further support our Sustaining Members through advertising and connection with the membership;
2. Making necessary adjustments to CAPA’s governing documents to reflect the continued growth of the organization;

3. Solicit feedback from the membership about membership benefits, CLE opportunities, and areas for opportunity;

4. Finding new ways to support new paralegals through the Mentor Program and connection with the School and Student Liaison;
5. Fostering a deep relationship with the Austin Bar Association and other local legal organizations;

6. Adjusting CAPA’s annual budget to reflect growth and cost-efficient resources available; and
7. Expanding CAPA’s reach into Community Services and Pro Bono activities.

The Board is a group of leaders dedicated to making your CAPA experience memorable and useful, and we can’t do that without your help and your input. Will you join me in these efforts? I encourage each of you to attend a Board meeting, in-person or via telephone, or a Committee meeting to see all of the moving parts of this organization.

Leaders can only be as effective as the team they’re leading. CAPA has a strong and solid membership, and we intend to build and stretch the muscles of our group to be a strong hold in Austin.

How can you get involved? Reach out to us and let us know how you want to get engaged. You can always reach the entire Board and you can reach me directly.
 
On behalf of myself and the incoming leadership, we’re looking forward to what CAPA does this year!

Cheers ~ Brittany Posadas, Incoming President 2019-2020