WESTERN REGION OF THE NATIONAL BLACK LAW STUDENTS ASSOCIATION

2014-2015 Western Regional BoardApplication

Per Article III, Section 7 of the National Constitution, NBLSA election procedures are designed to help secure the opportunity for as many members of the Association as

possible to participate in governance of the Association.

POSITIONS AVAILABLE1

Regional Chair Regional Vice Chair Regional Treasurer Regional Secretary Regional Attorney General Regional Director of Community Service Regional Director of Programing Pacific Northwest Sub-Region Director Northern California Sub-Region Director/Co-Directors Southern California Sub-Region Director/Co-Directors Regional Director of the Thurgood Marshall Mock Trial Competition Regional Director of the Frederick Douglass Moot Court Competition

1Please refer to the WRBLSA Constitution and Bylaws for a detailed description of each position. 2

REGIONAL OFFICER CANDIDATE CHECKLIST

1 Signed acknowledgement of the duties and obligations of the position that you are applying for.

2 Letter certifying enrollment and good academic standing from your law school registrar or dean.

3 Statement of understanding of financial and travel obligations associated with regional board service.

4 Statement of intent including specific, measureable, attainable, and timely goals and your intended methodology and timeline for achievement of those goals for inclusion in the delegate packets.

5 Résumé for inclusion in the delegate packets.6 Professional head shot for inclusion in the delegate’s packet, attached to

statement of intent. (snap shots will not be accepted)

* Refer to the 2014-2015 Western Regional Convention Election Rules and Procedures Packet for all relevant deadline and procedural information.

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APPLICATIONAPPLICATION

1225 11th Street. N.W., Washington, DC 200012012 WRBLSA Election Application

All materials must be submitted on or before January 17, 2014 at 07:30AM PST.

Please submit application in person or via email to wrblsa.vicechair@nblsa.org

Name: ________________________________________________________________________________School: _____________________________________________________ Year: ________________Phone: _____________________________________ Email: ______________________________________

Position applying for2: ____________________________________________________________________

What other leadership positions will you hold, apply, or run for election in any organization for 2014-2015?____________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

Have you ever run for or held an office within NBLSA on the local, regional or national level? If so, which position(s)?______________________________________________________________________________________

What are your plans for the summer of 2014? Be sure to include all work and travel commitments including tentative arrangements.____________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

Mandatory Attachments and Forms3

Acknowledgement form

Certification of enrollment and good academic standing from your law school registrar or dean. 4

2 In addition to the position applied for, please list any other positions of interest (2 additional positions maximum).3 These materials must be attached and completed for consideration for pre-certification.4 If you will be an LLM student for the 2014-2015 academic year please attach a letter of acceptance to an LLM program. You will be required to verify matriculation at the start of the fall semester.

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Please attach a letter certifying enrollment and good academic standing from your law school registrar or dean.

Please attach a statement of intent and résumé. Please do not include any sensitive information such as grades or class ranking.5

5 However, candidates may include academic honors.5

REGIONAL OFFICER CANDIDATE ACKNOWLEDGEMENT AND PLEDGE FORM

NAME POSITION APPLYING FOR

Email Address: YOUR SCHOOL:YEAR IN SCHOOL:

I, _________________, hereby acknowledge that I have read and understood the duties and obligations of an elected official of the WRBLSA Executive Board of the National Black Law Students Association (NBLSA) as set forth in the Western Regional Constitution and Bylaws.6 _______Please initial.

I hereby acknowledge that I have read and understood the duties and obligations of an elected official of the National Black Law Students Association (NBLSA) as set forth in the NBLSA Constitution and Bylaws. _______Please initial.

I pledge that if elected/appointed I will undertake any further preparation necessary to serve competently as a member of the WRBLSA Executive Board. _______Please initial.

I pledge that if I am elected/appointed I will serve diligently and to the best of my ability at all times.

I acknowledge that the requirements of this position may conflict with my academic or personal schedules from time to time. I agree to prioritize and deconflict my schedule in order to ensure that none of the duties prescribed to my position, assigned by the regional chair, or assigned by the national director of my position are neglected. _______Please initial.

Signing or e-signing your name below indicates that you have read and understood these acknowledgements and pledges and that you will honor and uphold them to the best of your ability.

Signature Date

6 NOTE – Candidate must attach an initialed copy of the job description that he is applying for to this application. Job Descriptions can be found at the end of this application or online at http://nblsa.org/index.php?pID=411&PHPSESSID=9c747fd1485f9f51fea1117f0536203b

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REGIONAL OFFICE STATEMENT OF INTENT FORMNAME POSITION APPLYING FOR

ADDRESS SCHOOL:

YEAR IN SCHOOL: CITY STATE

ZIPPOSITION IN CHAPTER:

CELL PHONE #ALT PHONE #

AGE (OPTIONAL):

EMAIL ADDRESS-PRIVATE EMAIL ADDRESS-PUBLIC

1. Please write your name as you would like for it to appear on the ballot. (Whether you write your last name before your first name is irrelevant. Be sure to check for any misspellings.) The ballot will contain your name, school, current classification, and age, if provided.

2. Please submit a professional head shot electronically, in JPEG format attached to your statement of intent when submitting your materials.

4. Please type a statement of your goals and agendas for the position you are seeking on the next page. Please include answers to the following questions within your statement of intent: Why are you running for this position? What do you hope to accomplish during your tenure in this position? What practical steps will you take to accomplish these goals? How do you envision taking WRBLSA to the next level? How will you hold other board members accountable? You may include any experience that may be related to the position that you deem necessary.

Handwritten statements will not be accepted.Statement of intent must be limited to 1,000 words.

Submit application in person or via email to wrblsa.vicechair@nblsa.orgSigning or e-signing your name below affirms that you have read all the election rules and that you will abide by such rules to the best of your ability. Commission of any act that is improper or detrimental to the image of the organization will be grounds for immediate disqualification from the election/appointment process.

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Signature Date

Job Descriptions as stated in the current WRBLSA Constitution and Bylaws

SECTION 2 – DUTIES OF THE WESTERN REGIONAL EXECUTIVE BOARD.

a. CHAIR: The Regional Chair shall be responsible for:

(i) Disseminating national and regional information throughout the Region; (ii) Assisting the National Board with implementing projects on a regional level;(iii) Representing the Region at relevant conventions and meetings that occur within the Region, or outside of the Region if the conventions or meeting will benefit the Region; (iv) Attending the National Board meetings, and; (v) Exercising general executive authority over the business and activities of the Region.

b. VICE CHAIR: The Vice Chair shall be responsible for:

(i) Serving as Vice-Chair of the Region (ii) Assisting the Regional Chair in carrying out the management of the board and the Region;(iii) Assisting the rest of the Regional Executive Board members in carrying out their jobs, (iv) Maintaining a regional webpage to be updated as needed, and; (v) Publishing a regional newsletter concerning the activities of the Region two times per

semester: in the Fall Semester two before December; in the Spring Semester two before May.

c. SUB-REGIONAL DIRECTORS: The Sub-Regional Directors shall be responsible for:

(i) Coordinating Job Fairs and Recruitment programs in their Sub-Region; (ii) Maintaining contact with chapters in their Sub-Region; (iii) Carrying out any other assignments reasonably requested by the Regional Board, and (iv) Organizing Round Table meetings consisting of a representative of every chapter in the

Sub-Region. Such Round Table meetings shall be conducted at least twice per semester year, once in early Fall and once in early Spring;

(v) Organizing an annual statistical report of the Regional Job Faire inclusive of but not limited to:

a) The number of call backs received by participants;b) The number of job offers made by participating employers; c) The number of positions accepted by participants;d) The number of times firm/organizations have participated in BLSA job fairs

(vi) Disseminating the report to all Regional Chapters in the Region prior to the first job faire of the year;

d. TREASURER: The Treasurer shall be responsible for:

(i) Collecting the regional membership dues,

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(ii) Collecting the registration fees for the Regional Convention; (iii) Submitting annual regional budget at the first regularly scheduled Board meeting; (iv) Submitting a regional statement of account balances to the National Executive Board;(v) Submitting a regional statement of unpaid bills with explanation to the Regional Chair and Regional Executive Board;(vi) Submitting a Statement of transfers between accounts; (vii) Submitting a detailed account of how all funds were used, and; (viii) Submitting a detailed account of all anticipated expenses based on future program needs, history, and accounting for emergencies.

e. SECRETARY: The Secretary shall be responsible for:

(i) Maintaining a current list of chapter chairpersons in the Region; (ii) Maintaining a list of law schools in the Region; (iii) Taking minutes at the Business Meetings; (iv) Doing any correspondence reasonably requested by the Director, and; (v) Disseminating full and complete copy of the revised Constitution and By-Laws, including

an attachment of any and all proposed amendments and resolutions made during the Western Region convention, to all the Western Regional law schools no later than September 15 of the new academic year;

(vi) Disseminating a summary of business meeting minutes as approved by the Board to Sub- Regional Directors for further dissemination.

f. COMMUNITY SERVICE DIRECTOR: The Community Services Director shall be responsible for:

(i) Developing and implementing community projects consistent with Regional and National resolutions;(ii) Coordinating and executing the Regional Convention Community Service Project; (iii) Designating and coordinating one community service project in each sub-region each

academic year

g. FREDERICK DOUGLASS MOOT COURT COMPETITION COORDINATOR: The Moot Court Coordinator shall be responsible for:

(i) Administering the Regional level of the National Frederick Douglas Moot Court Competition;

(ii) Receiving team entry forms and forwarding to the National BLSA Vice-Chairperson entry fees;

(iii) Sending to teams confirmation of entry into the competition, the problem, team side assignment and FDMCC Rules and Procedures;

(iv) Preparing an Organizational Plan; (v) Coordinating with the on-site Moot Court Committee the acquisition of brief graders and

oral argument judges; (vi) Pai(ring of teams for the preliminary rounds, both on and off brief; (vii) Sending the opposing sides the corresponding briefs to the paired teams; (viii) Communicating with the National BLSA Vice Chairperson, Regional Director, on-site

Moot Court Committee and teams regarding moot court activities; (ix) The tabulation of brief scores and oral argument scores, posting of same;

(x) The handling of any and all grievances. If the director is unable to adequately settle a

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conflict, forward the conflict to the Grievance Committee; (xii) Presenting awards at the awards dinner; and (xiii) Handling any other matters pertaining to the competition.

h. THURGOOD MARSHALL MOCK TRIAL DIRECTOR: The Regional Thurgood Marshall Mock Trial Competition Director shall be responsible for:

(i) Administering the Regional level of the Thurgood Marshall Mock Trial Competition: (ii) Communicating with the National Thurgood Marshall Mock Trial Director with regards to each team’s entry fees; (iii) Sending to teams confirmation of entry into the competition, the problem, team side assignment and TMMTC Rules and Procedures; (iv) Preparing an Organizational Plan; (v) Coordinating with the on-site related mock trial competition judges regarding the scoring of the rounds;(vi) Pairing of teams for the preliminary rounds;(vii) Communicating with the National Thurgood Marshall Mock Trial Director, the Regional Chair, on-site Moot Court Committee and teams regarding moot court activities; (viii) The tabulation of scores;(ix) The presentation of awards at the Awards Gala; and (x) The handling of any other matters pertaining to the competition.

l. ATTORNEY GENERAL. The Attorney General shall be responsible for:

(i) Researching current legal issues facing the African-American Community;(ii) Preparing memoranda to increase WRBLSA awareness of legal issues;(iii) Preparing any Amicus Curiae briefs to support cases affecting the African-American Community;(iv) Coordinating with members of Congress to define issues affecting the African American community;(v) Preparing memoranda to be distributed region-wide regarding Congressional issues that affect the African -American community;(vi) Coordinating with WRBLSA members in order to foster participation with regards to such issues;(iv) Assisting the National Attorney General in the planning of NBLSA’s participation in the Congressional Black Caucus Annual Conference;(v) Making official statements on behalf of WRBLSA with the approval of the Regional Chair;(vi) Maintaining frequent communication with liaisons from each Region;(vii)Performing such other functions and exercise such further duties as the National Chair, Regional Chair, National Attorney General, the Board, or the Assembly may assign;(viii) Compiling a brief synopsis of his/her yearly activities for the WRBLSA Annual Report; and(ix) Producing an official transition report at the close of the term of office.

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