Diversity News

Sign Up for MCCA’s Unique Mentoring Program!

So you have a Facebook account, take online classes, and even order pizza online. Now, thanks to MCCA and the generosity of donors to its 10x10x10 fund raising campaign, you will be able to use a new online mentoring program to offer professional guidance.

 

MCCA brings you KAN-Do! Mentoring, an online tool that connects lawyers and law students to establish mentoring relationships, with MCCA emailing newsletter tips designed to jump-start discussion. It’s like a match.com^® for mentoring.

Our system offers lots of flexibility. Unlike traditional mentoring programs, our program poses no restrictions limiting you to people within your own organization, or in physical proximity or similar time zone. Further, mentors can have as many mentees as they wish, although each mentee may have only one mentor at a given time. Since much of the discussion unfolds via email, the mentoring pair decides the type of “meeting schedule” or pace that works best for them. Mentors also have the option to deactivate their profiles should they go through a busy period at work, or otherwise need to take a break. In addition, both mentor and mentee can update their profiles at any time to reflect new knowledge or experiences. Another unique aspect of the KAN-Do! Mentoring program is that individuals can be both a mentor and a mentee. What better way to “pay it forward” by mentoring a lawyer or law student more junior than yourself?

In fact, we have only one requirement, which is that the program will not be used to solicit job offers or business. Right now, MCCA has a big push underway to get lots of potential mentors signed up to help before we open the program to mentees. The program is free for everyone, and the time commitment averages to about two hours a month—which is not a lot of time to devote in order to make a positive difference in a mentee’s career.

Lots of experienced lawyers have already answered the call to help. MCCA is excited to announce that, under the leadership of MCCA Board Chairman Don Liu, senior vice president and general counsel of Xerox Corporation, the Xerox law department diversity committee became the first organization to “adopt” the KAN-Do! Mentoring Program as one of the official diversity initiatives it encourages all of its lawyers to support. We’re hopeful that the Xerox approach will encourage other corporate counsel and law firms to make KAN-Do! Mentoring a part of their official diversity initiatives.

 

MCCA Scholarship Class of 2009 Graduates

Every year, another group of MCCA scholars join the workforce. This fall, seventeen new hires will join America’s top firms, clerk for established legal minds, or serve the country in the JAG corps. Some students are still looking for employment. Others are putting the law on hold, like Ami Parekh, who will pursue a medical residency in Boston.

Whatever their next steps may be, these students represent some of the brightest diverse minds of the next generation.

Established in 2005, the Lloyd M. Johnson, Jr. Scholarship Program was founded to expose students to leaders who would serve as mentors and role models, and ultimately increase the number of diverse attorneys and to address pipeline challenges. The program was named after Lloyd M. Johnson, Jr., the visionary leader and founder of the Minority Corporate Counsel Association.

The program helps law students meet basic needs, such as tuition, books, and fees. Fellows receive $10,000 per year for three years to help defray the cost of law school. Scholars receive a one-time award of $10,000 to assist with their first-year expenses. Students also receive professional development support, such as career counseling, cover letter and resume review, interview tips, and assistance securing paid summer-internship opportunities.

As the new graduates adjust to their careers, MCCA is looking for its next class of talented legal minds. The application deadline for the next class is June 1, 2009. For information regarding the application process, including eligibility requirements, please contact Alice M. Sykes, Program Manager, Scholarships & Grants Administration, UNCF, at 703-205-3514, or by email at alice.sykes@uncf.org.     DB

From the May/June 2009 issue of Diversity & The Bar^®