Jackie Grant '95 with her mother Cathey Grant and N.C. Supreme Court
Chief Justice Mark Martin '88. Photo courtesy of Russell Rawlings/NCBA.

Six UNC School of Law alumni were recognized at the North Carolina Bar Association’s 120th annual meeting in Wilmington, June 21-24, including this year's president of the organization.

Jacqueline D. Grant ’95 Sworn in as NCBA President

On June 23, Jacqueline D. “Jackie” Grant '95, partner and litigator at Roberts & Stevens in Asheville, N.C., was installed as the 124th president of the NCBA. She will also serve as president of the North Carolina Bar Foundation. Grant served on the NCBA Board of Governors from 2010-13 and is a former member of the Litigation Section Council. She has also served on numerous committees, including the Medico-Legal Liaison Committee and the Delivery of Legal Services Committee, which she has chaired, and the Awards and Recognitions Committee, on which she has served as co-chair the past two years. Grant is a 2016 recipient of the NCBA's Citizen Lawyer Award. She becomes the second African-American female and third African-American overall to serve as president of the NCBA.

Three Named as 2018 Citizen Lawyer Award Recipients

The North Carolina Bar Association announced three Carolina Law alumni as recipients of the 2018 Citizen Lawyer Award. The award was established in 2007 to recognize lawyers who provide exemplary public service to their communities.

• Dan Green ’79 operates Daniel R. Green Jr., Attorney at Law in Hickory. He is a registered volunteer for AFS Intercultural Programs – the oldest foreign exchange student program in the world – and has personally hosted 23 foreign exchange students since 1991 while serving as president of the Hickory/Catawba County AFS Chapter since 1996. He has also served as president of the Western Piedmont Symphony Board of Directors, as chairman of the Catawba County Democratic Party, and as vestry warden (twice) for St. Alban’s Episcopal Church.
• Nicholas Long Jr. ’81 of Raleigh serves as North Carolina State Counsel for Old Republic National Title Co. and is a past chair of the NCBA Real Property Section. Like his father and two sons, Long is an Eagle Scout. He currently represents the Occoneechee Boy Scout Council as the Council Commissioner, one of the Key Three – three key executives on the Occoneechee Boy Scout Council including 9,600 Scouts and 14,600 volunteers – and one of the six voting delegates to the National Convention.
• Robert B. Norris ’76 practices with Shumaker Loop & Kendrick in Charlotte. He was a founding partner of the Wishart Norris firm in Burlington, where he co-founded the Foundation Serving Alamance County (now Alamance Foundation) and co-founded and served as president of the Alamance Coalition Against Drug Abuse. In Charlotte, Norris has served as director of the Lynnwood Foundation, serving Duke Mansion and Lee Institute, and NPower Charlotte Region (now Apparo) which provides technology solutions to non-profit organizations.

Douglas Carmichael McIntyre II ’81 Receives the Chief Justice I. Beverly Lake Jr. Public Service Award

Douglas Carmichael “Mike” McIntyre II ’81 received the Chief Justice I. Beverly Lake Jr. Public Service Award. The award, which is not given every year, recognizes an outstanding lawyer in North Carolina who has performed exemplary public service. In presenting the award, Kearns Davis ’95, immediate past president of NCBA, said McIntyre had “inspired citizens, students, and his fellow attorneys through his professional, community, civic and personal activities, as well as through his exemplary public service.” McIntyre served 18 years (1997-2015) as a congressman in North Carolina’s seventh congressional district in the U.S. House of Representatives. Today, McIntyre is senior advisor and director of government relations at Poyner Spruill Law Firm in Raleigh.

LeAnn Nease Brown '84 Will Serve as NCBA President-Elect

LeAnn Nease Brown ’84 of Chapel Hill is the new president-elect of the North Carolina Bar Association. Brown is a member/manager of Brown & Bunch, PLLC, which has offices in Chapel Hill and Raleigh. She will serve as president of the North Carolina Bar Association and the North Carolina Bar Foundation in 2019-20. She will be installed as the 125th president of the NCBA at the 2019 Annual Meeting in Asheville. Brown has served as chair of three sections: Antitrust & Trade Regulation Law (now Antitrust & Complex Business Disputes), Zoning, Planning & Land Use, and Dispute Resolution. Brown has also served as chair of the Membership Committee, the CLE Committee, and as co-chair of the Legislative Advisory Committee. She served on the NCBA Board of Governors in 2010-13.

-June 27, 2018

Among North Carolina law schools, UNC School of Law had the highest-ranking bar passage rate for first time test takers for the July 2018 North Carolina Bar Exam. Eighty-six percent (86.79) of the 106 Carolina Law graduates who took the North Carolina bar exam for the first time in July 2018 passed, according to exam results released by the state’s Board of Law Examiners. Carolina Law’s passage rate exceeded the overall state passage rate of 72.5 percent for first time test takers by over 14 percent.

Excluding Duke, which had 15 total test takers sit for the exam, Carolina Law also ranked first in total bar passage. Combining the first time test takers and repeat test takers together, Carolina Law’s total bar passage rate was 81.90 percent (116 total takers; 95 passing). This overall passage rate was 24.51 percent above the overall state average (57.39 percent).

The school’s Academic Excellence Program (AEP) provides all students with resources to aid their legal study, including one-on-one bar preparation for 3L students. “This year we increased our summer bar support, instituted a series of summer bar essay workshops and increased enrollment in our restructured bar preparation courses,” says O.J. Salinas, AEP director and clinical associate professor of law. “I am pleased to see such great numbers for our Class of 2018, and I look forward to helping prepare the Class of 2019 for the upcoming Uniform Bar Examination.”

The Class of 2018 was the second class to graduate under a formalized academic success policy that empowers more students to receive individualized assistance during the final two years of law school. Carolina Law students also benefit from a rigorous first-year research and writing program in which full-time professors comment regularly on students’ written work in small, workshop-style classes and frequent individual conferences.

“Our rigorous writing curriculum and the extensive individual feedback that our professors provide to students on their legal analysis will continue to be an asset for our bar passage rate as North Carolina transitions to the Uniform Bar Examination,” says Salinas.

The law school’s Research, Reasoning, Writing and Advocacy (RRWA) program, now in its eighth year as a full-year, six-credit program, ranks No. 12 in legal writing by U.S. News & World Report’s 2019 edition of “America’s Best Graduate Schools.” During two intensive semesters in RRWA, first year students work in small sections taught by full-time faculty members to develop key skills for legal practice, including legal research, writing and analysis.

“I want to thank O.J. Salinas and our entire faculty and staff for this outstanding result. The support our students receive while they are here is inspiring,” says Martin H. Brinkley ’92, dean and Arch T. Allen Distinguished Professor of Law. “The wonderful classroom experiences this school brings to bear year after year, through our great teaching faculty, means our graduates leave here knowing how to think and write. The role those skills play in our students’ success on the bar exam and in their professional lives is clear.”

-September 7, 2018

On the 10th anniversary of the financial crisis, UNC School of Law’s Center for Banking and Finance is hosting an historic conference in Washington, D.C. The September 21 program will highlight the role attorneys played in crafting creative solutions to the legal and policy issues presented during September 2008.

“The 2008 Financial Crisis: A Legal Retrospective” will bring many of the lawyers who played leading roles in Congress, at the agencies, and in private law firms together to reflect on the events of that fateful month. Senator Chris Dodd, then-FDIC Chair Sheila Bair and H. Rodgin Cohen will speak.

Burton Craige Distinguished Professor Lissa Broome, the director of the Center for Banking and Finance, says this will be one of the most significant events the center has hosted in its 18-year existence. 

“The opportunity to hear from these attorneys about their experiences will help to capture an untold history,” says Broome. “Many of the principals in the agencies have written their own books, but we haven’t yet heard from their advisors about the novel and creative legal solutions that were crafted to deal with a financial crisis that was developing and growing each hour of September 2008. This may be the one and only time this group is assembled together to reflect on the events of September 2008. Anyone who is interested in history – and who doesn’t want to repeat it – will want to be there.” 

The program will be held at the offices of Arnold & Porter, 601 Massachusetts Ave NW, Washington, D.C. The early bird registration fee ends on August 10 ($175 through August 10; $250 afterwards).

A portion of the registration fees will fund travel grants for up to 25 UNC School of Law students wishing to attend the conference.

“It is important that our students appreciate this time in our nation’s economic history and hear the stories of how lawyers participated in the efforts to ensure our economy survived even as it teetered near the abyss,” says Broome.

The conference was planned with assistance from Eric Spitler ’85, with FINRA and previously the director of the Office of Legislative Affairs of the FDIC (co-director of the program), Dave Freeman with Arnold & Porter, Beth DeSimone with CenterState Bank, N.A., Gene Katz, retired from Wells Fargo & Co., and Michael Shumaker ’07 with SunTrust Banks, Inc.

Attendees may earn up to 6.5 hours of CLE credit. Learn more about the conference agenda, speakers and registration details.

-August 3, 2018

This article originally appeared in the August 2018 issue of Carolina Law.

Samantha Aparicio

Carolina Law 2L Samantha Aparicio has spent time in law school helping others through pro bono work.

She’s been involved in projects regarding special immigrant juvenile status proceedings within state court, case law related to the president’s executive orders concerning immigration, and domestic violence protective orders.

Aparicio’s efforts to benefit others have in turn been supported partly by the Johnston Allison & Hord Diversity Scholarship, awarded to a 2L student by the Charlotte-based firm known for commitment to pro bono work and community service. Recipients of the scholarship, awarded to a student “who enhances diversity within the law school community,” must demonstrate a commitment to such work and be interested in practicing law in Charlotte, the endowment agreement states.

“We believe it is of the utmost importance to have diversity in the legal profession because of its ability to cultivate innovation. Diverse thoughts, ideas and opinions on all sides of a matter are vital in order to progress the practice of law and make an impact on the industry,” Johnston Allison & Hord managing partner Darryl J. Shealy '82 says. “UNC School of Law has a highly sophisticated program that we feel fully prepares students for integration into the legal industry upon graduation.”

Johnston Allison & Hord’s leadership in promoting diversity in the legal profession augments Carolina Law’s diversity and inclusion initiatives and has helped Aparicio relieve some student debt.

“It is rare to find a large population of minority graduate students. Scholarships like this encourage other minorities to apply to Carolina Law and feel the support they need to get in and succeed within this school,” says Aparicio, of Port St. Lucie, Florida.

Her pro bono services have given Aparicio invaluable real-world experience and enabled her to develop skills working with fellow law students and attorneys “toward a common goal of helping others,” she says. “I can take those skills wherever my career leads me.”

Munashe Magarira

Munashe Magarira’s career has led him to the North Carolina governor’s office, where he is associate general counsel. He was the first recipient of the Johnston Allison & Hord scholarship. As a pro bono board member at Carolina Law, Magarira ’14 did legal research for the UNC Center for Civil Rights as well as wills clinics and drop-in legal advice clinics for Legal Aid of North Carolina.

In addition to skills he gained through that work, Magarira cites UNC’s Civil Legal Assistance clinic and Research, Reasoning, Writing and Advocacy program, which gave him experience preparing legal pleadings and representing a range of clients.

The scholarship had significant value beyond financial assistance for him.

“It demonstrated Johnston Allison & Hord’s and UNC’s belief in me and their shared commitment to diversity in the legal profession. The legal profession and society as a whole benefit from having lawyers who reflect their clients and bring their unique experiences to the field and their representation,” says Magarira, a 2014 Chapel Hill graduate. He started in a full-time position at Johnston Allison & Hord on graduating from Carolina Law.

For Aparicio, the scholarship reinforced her decision to attend UNC. “I chose Carolina Law because the community is unlike any other law school I have visited,” she says. “It’s truly a family, and I felt that from the moment I walked through the doors.”

-August 15, 2018

While many Carolina Law alumni can be found working in law firms and government agencies and as counsel to companies, others are using their degree in non-traditional ways. Here are four grads who have taken the road less traveled.

TY VOTAW ’87

A lifelong sports fan, Ty Votaw has combined his passion with his profession.

In his role as Executive Vice President, International for the PGA Tour, Votaw is involved with every aspect of the PGA Tour’s business that takes place outside of the United States.

“My activities on a day-to-day basis relate to both commercial and political activities, relationship building with other tours around the world, and audience development to ensure that we grow the game of golf from both a fan and participation perspective in certain strategic markets like China, India, Korea, and Japan,” says Votaw.

After graduating from Carolina Law, Votaw worked in the corporate transactions department of the Cincinnati law firm Taft, Stettinius, and Hollister. There he developed a strong working relationship with Charlie Mechem, one of the firm’s clients, who went on to become the commissioner of the Ladies Professional Golf Association (LPGA).

“Because I knew that I wanted to work in sports, I asked Charlie if there were ever any jobs that I would be qualified to help (him) with at the LPGA,” says Votaw.

Votaw was hired six months later, in June 1991, as general counsel for the LPGA. His legal activities as general counsel lasted two years before he transitioned to the business side of the LPGA which he served as commissioner from 1999 to 2005.

In 2006, Votaw joined the PGA Tour where he has held a variety of roles including chief marketing officer and point person for getting golf into the 2016 Rio Olympic Games.

Votaw says that he draws on his legal background every day, particularly with negotiations and relationship building. “My law degree and legal education at North Carolina helped sharpen my communication skills and the ability to hold two conflicting thoughts in my head at the same time,” he says. “My time at North Carolina was a real game changer for me because I developed the skill set to relate to people I was negotiating with and empathize with their positions so when we ultimately come together with an agreement or a relationship, it’s a win-win for both parties.”

The best and most meaningful relationships in Votaw’s life were built at Carolina Law. “I get together at least once a year—and have done so every year since 1987—with my four closest lifelong friends who were all classmates and graduates of UNC School of Law: Joe Buckner; Michael Hauser; Joe Dornfried; and Mike Nedzbala,” says Votaw. “I count my time at Carolina Law, as well as the friendships from that experience, as some of the most cherished moments of my life.”

Winston Crisp '92

WINSTON CRISP ’92

Winston Crisp enrolled at Carolina Law with the desire to follow in the footsteps of renowned civil rights attorneys such as Thurgood Marshall and Julius Chambers.

But a research assistant position during law school changed the course of Crisp’s career path and led to his current role as Vice Chancellor for Student Affairs at UNC-Chapel Hill.

“I spent two years during law school working with (former Carolina Law) Dean Judith Wegner as a research assistant on projects aimed at making things better and advocating for people, similar to the things I do in my job now,” says Crisp. “It was Judith who saw me as somebody who was made to be an educator.”

While Crisp says that he always had an interest in education, he had different plans for his post-law school career. “I grew up as an Army kid and I planned to take a commission in the Army JAG (Judge Advocate General’s) Corps,” says Crisp. “After I did my service, I was going to transition into a career in civil rights.”

Because of her conviction that Crisp would be better served and would better serve the world as an educator, Dean Wagner named him as Carolina Law’s first full-time assistant dean for student affairs upon his law school graduation. He was only 25 years old. “I made a deal that I would do the job for two years and if I didn’t like it at the end of that time, I would go back to the original plan (of joining the JAG Corps),” says Crisp. “That was more than 26 years ago and I have never looked back.”

Crisp worked in administration at the law school until 2005 when he moved to UNC’s main campus as the assistant vice chancellor before being named as Vice Chancellor for Student Affairs in 2010.

He describes his current role as supporting students so that they are able to “engage in an educational process that will result in them being ready to go out in the world and make their way.”

Crisp says that his work is similar to what he would have done in a legal career. “I get up every day and I try to use the total sum of everything I have ever learned to help other people move forward,” he says. “What I do is teaching writ large.”

He is grateful for his law school education.

“Carolina Law gave me problem solving skills and techniques,” he says. “I gained the ability to step beyond my own perspective and look at things from 360 degrees.”

“In law school, I was taught by a lot of really smart teachers and learned alongside a really smart peer group,” he says. “But the people, like Dean Wegner, who took the time to care about me, help me build skills and figure out where I was meant to be made all the difference in the world to me. That’s the thing I am always trying to pay forward.”

L’TRYCE SLADE ’04

While it’s been more than 14 years since L’Tryce Slade received her J.D. from Carolina Law, she continues to expand her knowledge. Since 2006, Slade has owned Slade Land Use, Environmental, and Transportation Planning, a licensed general contracting firm that specializes in geotechnical services, construction materials testing, environmental services and urban planning, located in Atlanta, Georgia and Birmingham, Alabama.

To stay on the leading edge in her field, Slade earned a general contractor’s license and has taken a range of certification and licensing classes. “Getting my general contractor’s license was much more difficult than getting my law degree,” says Slade. “I don’t have a builder background.” She also doesn’t have a background in science but that didn’t stop her from building a construction material/geotechnical laboratory in her business, one of just a few women in the Southeast to have done so.

“I’m one of 30 women across the country to be selected for the (Women’s Business Enterprise National Council’s) Energy Executive Program with Shell, BP and Chevron and Exxon/Mobil,” she says.

This year, she was also accepted into three competitive small business development programs sponsored by the City of Atlanta Watershed/Hartsfield Jackson Airport, Delta Airlines, and the Georgia Mentor Protégé Connection.

Slade says that law school gave her the ability to successfully complete applications for business development programs, proposals, sells, and project deliverables. “I have to sell myself and my company in order to get in these programs because they are for the best of the best,” says Slade.

Her Carolina Law education has supported Slade’s business success.

“I have to review a lot of contracts and knowing that I can negotiate contracts, and not be afraid to ask for alternatives that make it easier for me to perform has been really huge,” she says. “It has also helped me be really analytical with my business approach.”

With summer law school internship experience in the Environmental Protection Agency’s environmental justice liaison office, Slade’s first post-graduation job was in a Birmingham law firm working on an environmental justice class action suit. When that case ended after 18 months, so did Slade’s job. Unable to soon find another job in Birmingham, Slade created marketing materials offering urban planning services to larger construction and engineering firms.

“I also have a master’s degree in city and regional planning from UNC so I thought I could do consulting while I was looking for a job,” she says.

Her business continued to grow and now employs nine people.

“I feel like the sky’s the limit of being able to learn things that I’m interested in and teach other people about it,” says Slade. “I try to hire people that may not have a college degree. So the purpose of my business has become far greater than just having a business, it has become about helping people pull themselves out of poverty and provide a better life for their families. We not only build buildings, we build people.”

GILL HOLLAND ’91

It’s not easy to sum up the work of Gill Holland, who describes himself as a serial entrepreneur and community builder. While Holland’s interests are broad, they each reflect his commitment to connecting people and having a positive impact.

“(My companies) operate in the 21st century model of capitalism where it’s the return on community, not just the return on investment,” says Holland. “There has been such an emphasis that if you make money, you’re successful as opposed to if you make an impact, you’re successful.”

Holland has made an impact on his adopted hometown of Louisville, Kentucky in a variety of ways. He and his wife, Augusta, developed The Green Building, the greenest commercial structure in the state. An accomplished independent film producer with over 100 films to his credit, Holland found success with his first movie, “Hurricane Streets,” the first film to win three awards at the Sundance Film Festival. One of his most recent films, “Most Beautiful Island,” won SXSW’s Grand Jury Award in 2017.

After seeing the need to make music licensing easier for films, Holland started sonaBLAST! Records, a record label and publishing company which just passed 100 million streams on Pandora and Spotify. His book publishing house, Holland Brown books, primarily produces “positive, life- affirming Louisville- and Kentucky-related books.”

Holland says that soon after law school, “I quickly realized I wasn’t going to be a traditional lawyer because I’m too entrepreneurial. I’m a big picture guy and lawyers need to be very detailed focused.”

His first job after graduating from law school was in a Paris law firm which represented a film producer. “Growing up in Davidson and going to Chapel Hill, I had never met anybody who worked in media,” he says. But once he did, “I said, ‘I think I need to do that,’” says Holland. “It’s the perfect blend of my business mind/creative mind.”

Like Votaw, Holland says that his Carolina Law education helps him in negotiations. “Arguing torts cases helps you see both sides of an issue which, in a perfect world, helps creates empathy and compassion,” says Holland. “So many people in the world don’t see the win-win but there is always a win-win. It’s important to understand how to get others onto your team to build a greater community because nobody can do that by themselves.”

“Contracts, which was my worst grade of all and the class I totally didn’t get on any level, is of course the thing I do every day,” laughs Holland. “Having been in law school, I’m not scared of dealing with contracts and I know when I can do it on my own and when I need to hire someone to do it for me.”

“I love what I do,” says Holland. “You have one life so it’s important to think about what’s going to be your impact and your legacy.”

-August 15, 2018

With the end of the Fall 2018 competition season concluding in November, UNC School of Law’s Holderness Moot Court represented the school with the same types of success that it marked in 2017. The highlights this year include:

Negotiations Team

3Ls Rana Odeh and Jasmine Plott, members of UNC Holderness Moot Court’s 3L American Bar Association (ABA) Negotiations Team, tied for first place in their regional competition at Elon Law School in November. Odeh and Plott will compete for the national championship in Chicago in January. Carolina Law was also represented brilliantly at the regional competition by Evan Dancy and Coker Holmes, the other 3L members of the Holderness ABA Negotiations Team. Both teams were coached by Professor Sam Jackson ’77. This is the second time in three years that Jackson has qualified a Holderness team for the ABA National Negotiations Championship. 

National Team

In November, all six members of the Holderness National Team brought home honors. The team competed at the Fourth U.S. Court of Appeals in Richmond, Va., at the regional competition of the National Moot Court Tournament. The team of Tyra Pearson 3L, Megan Shook 3L and Edward Woodall 3L shared the tournament's top recognition for “Best Brief.”

Rachel Kokenes 3L, Marie Farmer 3L and Matt Hinson 3L just missed advancing to the semifinal round and, instead, shared the tournament's “Elite Eight” honors. Last year, the same team brought home “Elite Eight” honors from the Charleston National Constitutional Law Moot Court Tournament.

International Moot Court Team

Four 2L members of the Holderness International Team – Michael Peretz, Zachary Shufro, Claire Smith and Jennifer Cofer – traveled with Martin H. Brinkley ’92, dean and Arch T. Allen Distinguished Professor of Law, to London to compete in the Middle Temple competition over fall break in October.

“This fall, former Dean Ken Broun and I accompanied our Holderness International Team to London, where they competed against four students from the Middle Temple – one of the four medieval inns of court where Britain has trained barristers for centuries,” says Brinkley. “Our Carolina Law students more than equaled – they usually outperformed – their competitors, getting rich feedback in oral argument technique from panels of British and American judges. All this in historic courtroom settings at the Old Bailey and the Royal Courts of Justice. This is one of the most rewarding things I’ve done as dean. I couldn’t have been prouder of our students.”

The Holderness International Moot Court Team at Middle Temple in London.

Additional Teams

Holderness Moot Court also recognizes the following students who represented UNC this fall:

• In New York City, at the Hispanic Latino/Latina Law Student Association Competition: 3Ls Sana’a Bayyari and Natalie Kutcher. 
• In Fort Lauderdale, at the Asian American Law Student Association’s Thomas Tang Moot Court Competition: 3Ls Tae Hun Park and Xiaolu Sheng, and 2Ls Nur Kara and Brett Orren.
• In Atlanta, at the Emory Civil Rights and Liberties Moot Court Competition: 3Ls Alexis Weiss, Joscelyn Solomon, Daniel Kale, Lindsay Frazier and Michael Roberson. 
• In Virginia, at the William & Mary Law School Negotiation Tournament, 2Ls Briana Kelly, Lena Madison, Kylie Norman and Nute Thompson.
• In New York City, at the ABA National Arbitration Competition, 3Ls Blake Benson, Sheri Dickson, Rebecca Floyd and Richard Lowden, and 2Ls Mollie McGuire, Anna Gillespie, Chelsea Pieroni, and Charles Plambeck.

“Holderness is incredibly proud of our teams and their effort,” says Donald Hornstein, Aubrey L. Brooks Professor of Law and faculty advisor to the Holderness Moot Court program. “We look forward to next semester and our continued success.”

-December 7, 2018

This article originally appeared in the August 2018 issue of Carolina Law.

Samantha Aparicio

Carolina Law 2L Samantha Aparicio has spent time in law school helping others through pro bono work.

She’s been involved in projects regarding special immigrant juvenile status proceedings within state court, case law related to the president’s executive orders concerning immigration, and domestic violence protective orders.

Aparicio’s efforts to benefit others have in turn been supported partly by the Johnston Allison & Hord Diversity Scholarship, awarded to a 2L student by the Charlotte-based firm known for commitment to pro bono work and community service. Recipients of the scholarship, awarded to a student “who enhances diversity within the law school community,” must demonstrate a commitment to such work and be interested in practicing law in Charlotte, the endowment agreement states.

“We believe it is of the utmost importance to have diversity in the legal profession because of its ability to cultivate innovation. Diverse thoughts, ideas and opinions on all sides of a matter are vital in order to progress the practice of law and make an impact on the industry,” Johnston Allison & Hord managing partner Darryl J. Shealy '82 says. “UNC School of Law has a highly sophisticated program that we feel fully prepares students for integration into the legal industry upon graduation.”

Johnston Allison & Hord’s leadership in promoting diversity in the legal profession augments Carolina Law’s diversity and inclusion initiatives and has helped Aparicio relieve some student debt.

“It is rare to find a large population of minority graduate students. Scholarships like this encourage other minorities to apply to Carolina Law and feel the support they need to get in and succeed within this school,” says Aparicio, of Port St. Lucie, Florida.

Her pro bono services have given Aparicio invaluable real-world experience and enabled her to develop skills working with fellow law students and attorneys “toward a common goal of helping others,” she says. “I can take those skills wherever my career leads me.”

Munashe Magarira

Munashe Magarira’s career has led him to the North Carolina governor’s office, where he is associate general counsel. He was the first recipient of the Johnston Allison & Hord scholarship. As a pro bono board member at Carolina Law, Magarira ’14 did legal research for the UNC Center for Civil Rights as well as wills clinics and drop-in legal advice clinics for Legal Aid of North Carolina.

In addition to skills he gained through that work, Magarira cites UNC’s Civil Legal Assistance clinic and Research, Reasoning, Writing and Advocacy program, which gave him experience preparing legal pleadings and representing a range of clients.

The scholarship had significant value beyond financial assistance for him.

“It demonstrated Johnston Allison & Hord’s and UNC’s belief in me and their shared commitment to diversity in the legal profession. The legal profession and society as a whole benefit from having lawyers who reflect their clients and bring their unique experiences to the field and their representation,” says Magarira, a 2014 Chapel Hill graduate. He started in a full-time position at Johnston Allison & Hord on graduating from Carolina Law.

For Aparicio, the scholarship reinforced her decision to attend UNC. “I chose Carolina Law because the community is unlike any other law school I have visited,” she says. “It’s truly a family, and I felt that from the moment I walked through the doors.”

-August 15, 2018

This article originally appeared in the Fall-Winter 2018 issue of Carolina Law.

They call it “Commencement” for a reason: Graduating law school is only the first step toward becoming a lawyer. Next comes passing the bar exam. And after that, securing work that taps into your talents and passions.

Helping students gain employment is a critical mission of Carolina Law. U.S. News & World Report also recognizes the importance of employment. When the national magazine compiles its annual ranking of law schools, it considers the percentage of law students who have been hired into full-time jobs in their field at graduation and within 10 months of graduation. Carolina Law has a number of programs, faculty and staff committed to laying a path that leads from law school to a satisfying career. But oftentimes relationships with alumni can be the key to their success.

Many alumni already serve as conduits for Carolina Law students to connect to the first rung on their career ladder. Lawyers who graduated decades ago or only months ago participate in Career Nights, on-campus recruitment events, employer receptions, mock interviews, ranking analytics or panel discussions about practice areas. They share insights, offer encouragement, mentor students and, most important, they hire from among their own. They raise the profile of Carolina within their firms and organizations and look for opportunities to hire Carolina Law graduates.

Noel Barnard '13

Noel Barnard ’13 took advantage of the law school’s externship program as a student, working at a small pharmaceutical company a couple of days a week during a semester in exchange for course credit instead of pay. The company hired him full time when he graduated. A couple years later, he accepted an offer from another company and had to hire his own replacement, which he did by reaching out to a former extern. And when he needed to add staff at his new company, he tapped yet another former extern.

“When you’re a Carolina Law grad and you’re hiring another Carolina Law grad, you know what you’re getting,” Barnard said. “You know it’s a great school; you know the professors; you know the curriculum. You’re getting great people who are going to work hard and contribute to the community.”

As an alumnus he speaks as a panelist to share his experience with the externship program, and he represents his company at the law school’s Career Night.

Barnard considers the externship program a win-win. Students get practical experience, and employers get fresh minds to take on some of the legal tasks that a junior lawyer might do. Externs can sample from a variety of professional settings by working for a corporation, a judge, a law firm or a nonprofit.

The company he externed for was a strong proponent of the extern program, and now that Barnard is in a position to hire, he can see why.

“Carolina Law grads who externed can walk through the door and handle what I think it would take two or three years for someone to know how to do well on their own,” he said. “They can take it and run with it and do a fantastic job.”

Suzanne Chester '95, left, recruits for Legal Aid of North Carolina during on-campus interviews.

Similarly, interns, whether paid or unpaid, also gain valuable experience but no course credit. A few years ago, Suzanne Chester ’95 became co-chair of Legal Aid of North Carolina’s law school recruitment committee, and she assigned herself to recruiting at UNC. She does on-campus interviews and, with a co-worker, has continued to develop Legal Aid’s internship program. She also conducts mock interviews, speaks as a panelist on UNC employer panels and attends employer receptions.

“When I graduated from law school, you found what you found by yourself,” she said. “Now, UNC does a lot of advising and one-on-one work, especially with students interested in public interest.”

Internships give students the inside story of what Legal Aid work is like and sometimes leads to securing one of four fellowships or a permanent hire. Clients are poor and often in crisis. Interns go out into the field and see firsthand the impact of poverty on people’s lives and how conditions in society can throw them into crisis. This can fuel a passion in some law students, one shared by longtime Legal Aid lawyers. The senior lawyers enjoy the energy interns bring.

“If you love your job, it’s great to be able to share that with students,” Chester said.

Assistant District Attorney Nicole Gomez Diaz ’18, left, is sworn in as a prosecutor for the Mecklenburg County District Attorney's Office alongside her mother and District Attorney Spencer B. Merriweather III ’05. She joins the Misdemeanor Team.

Early on in his career with the Mecklenburg County District Attorney’s office, Spencer Merriweather ’05 was the intern coordinator. Now as the district attorney, he makes all the hires for his office. He relies on Carolina Law continuing to prioritize diversity in its student body.

“I want to be able to count on Carolina Law as a resource to create a prosecutor’s office that looks like the state of North Carolina,” he said.

This year, he’ll be part of Career Night at the law school to communicate to students that dedicated, hard-working students from Carolina Law have a place in his office. He participates in the Practicing Law Webinar that gives a vivid picture of the range of opportunities for law students. Because in Charlotte his office competes with the likes of Duke Energy, Wells Fargo and Bank of America for top-quality law grads, he has to make the closing argument that convinces them that the district attorney’s office is a worthwhile place to make a career.

“A prosecutor never has to go to bed at night wondering whether they had an impact on someone’s life or in the community,” Merriweather said.

He tends to give Carolina Law graduates a higher level of scrutiny to make sure that the institution that granted him a law degree still has the same quality.

“From the students I’ve seen over time,” he said, “there is no question that Carolina Law is getting better. I see a deeper pool of talented students.” Their grasp of social justice issues, their willingness to challenge convention and ask questions improve any institution. “I’m finding brave kids applying to this office. That gives me a great sense of pride as a UNC graduate.”

Rebecca Mitchell '18 and Frank Whitney '87

Rebecca Mitchell ’18 wasn’t sure when she entered law school whether to follow the public interest or private practice route. But she was drawn to Carolina Law because of its solid pro bono culture. Tar Heel born and bred, “it was very important to me to go to a law school that gives back to North Carolina,” she said. She lives that value by recommending classes to current students and giving them interviewing tips.

In high school, she had shadowed Frank Whitney ’87, chief judge of the U.S. District Court, Western District of North Carolina. She interned for him the summer after her 1L year. Now that she has her law degree, he hired her as one of his term law clerks.

She knew about the Carolina Law family and its strong alumni network. “It speaks for itself,” she said. “I had no concerns about finding employment once I graduated.”

Mitchell, who will head to Boston to practice in the labor and employment section of a private law firm once she completes her yearlong clerkship, said: “I don’t want to minimize the importance of financial contributions, but grads hiring grads is the biggest thing alumni can do for their law school.”

René Kathawala ’96

René Kathawala ’96 runs the pro bono program at Orrick Herrington & Sutcliffe in New York. He has been with the firm since he got his law degree, except for a yearlong federal clerkship. At the time he graduated, only two New York law firms came to Carolina to recruit. For the past 22 years, he has advocated for Orrick to recruit at UNC, and he has prevailed. For several years, he represented the firm during recruitment visits to campus; he also conducted phone screens. When Orrick pared its number of schools to 20, he made sure Carolina stayed on the list.

This year Carolina Law alumnus David Ruff ’09 is up for partner at Orrick, in line to become the first Tar Heel to make partner there.

“That’s critical to longevity in recruiting people from UNC,” Kathawala said.

He continues to share his insights and guidance with Carolina Law grads, even when Orrick doesn’t make them an offer. Associates have to take on the challenge of being business developers, winning assignments from partners who dole out the work. A good lawyer identifies problems for clients before they become crises. Even those with the most gifted analytical minds won’t be successful lawyers if they aren’t good at interacting with human beings. Not only must your clients find you likable, but so must the lawyers on the other side.

Kathawala recognizes that he received a world-class education at Carolina Law with tuition substantially subsidized by taxpayers, which motivates him to make current students’ lives and careers richer. His continued involvement with new waves of alumni is a tangible way to show his gratitude beyond writing a check.

“Every Carolina Law grad has the opportunity to give back,” he said.

All of these experiences provide a blueprint for helping even more Carolina Law grads secure employment. “Students come out of Carolina Law prepared and eager to do top quality legal work,” said Andy Hessick, professor and associate dean for strategy. “Carolina Law’s alumni network provides an amazing potential resource for helping students land jobs.”

In addition to being part of Carolina Law’s core mission to its students, increasing employment has the advantage of substantially improving Carolina Law’s place in law school rankings.

Charles Plambeck ’86

When Charles Plambeck ’86 who runs a global structured finance team at Citigroup learned that Carolina Law’s ranking in U.S. News & World Report had dipped, it didn’t square with what he knew of the quality of the school, its faculty, and its graduates. Applying tools similar to the ones he uses in his day-to-day work, he parsed the formula and data driving the USNWR rankings to find ways to lift the rankings to better reflect the quality of a Carolina Law legal education.

The data show an astonishing reality that hiring Carolina graduates has a disproportionate effect in moving the ranking upward. While financial gifts will always be needed to support the school, engaging with students and hiring grads can be just as important.

“Alumni can materially help the law school by hiring a new graduate before next March,” said Plambeck.

Climbing in the rankings through increased employment can be a self-fulling prophecy. Employers are more likely to hire from a higher-ranked school. Increasing the ranking can have other benefits, too. It can help attract top students and faculty, and it can create new opportunities for the law school’s growth, because funding sources are more likely to invest in a school on the rise.

More generally, the quality of the law school matters to the residents of our state, whether they realize it or not.

“Law and legal education are central to the prosperity and welfare of the people of the state,” Plambeck said. “If you don’t have a well-functioning legal system, people’s economic prospects are harmed, and their social rights and liberties are limited.”

To consider next steps, Plambeck now works, still as an alumnus giving back, as part of a team with Jeff Hirsch, professor and former associate dean for strategy, and Hessick, his successor; Nick Goettsch, associate dean for administration; Kelly Podger Smith ’02, associate dean for student affairs; and Deirdre Gordon, associate dean for advancement. Dean Martin Brinkley ’92 is also closely involved.

Beyond the rankings, all of this comes back to ensuring that Carolina Law grads thrive professionally and personally. Plambeck noted that law is an apprentice profession.

“How you deal with the people side of law, the practice and traditions, you only learn as an apprentice,” he said. “Everyone in law remembers the people they trained under. Finding a good mentor to teach you—that shapes people’s lives.”

All 11,000 Carolina Law alumni are an integral part of the team. While the career development office welcomes leads to well-paying full-time jobs, they also want to hear about those two-day research projects. Not everyone is in a position to hire a law grad, but most alumni can find a half-hour to talk with a student.

Carolina Law’s goal is to hit as close to 100% employment as possible by March for the previous year’s graduates. Carolina Law’s career development office gives students a head start by prepping first-year law students with resume reviews before fall break. From there, students participate in a career development curriculum that covers subjects such as drafting effective cover letters, conducting a successful job search and an interviewing skills workshop. Each student is given a career development handbook that guides them them through their legal job search as students and as grads. But the career development office can’t do it all. There are many ways alumni can get involved to help launch students’ careers. Alumni have the opportunity to serve as mentors, share their experiences in their practice areas at Career Night, participate in the mock interview programs and in CareerCasts webinars, or recruit students through on or off-campus interviews.

A Carolina Law grad knows the quality of a Carolina Law legal education. When grads hire grads, they have the opportunity to impact the life of a fellow alum, contribute to the quality of the school and invest in the legal education of future colleagues.

-December 26, 2018

This article originally appeared in the Fall-Winter 2018 issue of Carolina Law.

Approximately half of Forrest Firm lawyers are Carolina Law alumni, including founder James Forrest ’04 and Monica Webb-Shackleford ’06 (below), who also serves as the firm’s pro bono and public service coordinator in addition to her legal practice.

In some ways, James Forrest ’04 runs his law practice, the Forrest Firm, like a dry-cleaning business. At a dry cleaner, an employee greets customers, takes their clothing and gives them a ticket with a date to pick up the garments. The prices are displayed on the wall.

“I tell our lawyers it’s no different with our work,” Forrest says. “Of course, qualitative excellence in our work product is a baseline standard, but our team has to also be responsive to clients at intake, give estimates on cost and turn-time, and then deliver on both fronts.”

Before he launched Forrest Firm in 2011, Forrest worked for seven years as a corporate transactional lawyer at two large business law firms in Atlanta and Research Triangle Park. His clients were happy with his services generally, but some were dissatisfied with the unpredictable nature of pricing for legal services. “Several clients gave me the same type of feedback — basically that, ‘We never know what to expect with respect to pricing, and for us that is problematic,’” Forrest recalls.

That was when Forrest began shifting his thinking about pricing, client relationships, and the quality of life he wanted as an attorney with three children at the time (now four).

“Chapter 1 of my career was working at a couple large law firms, which was awesome. I learned from wonderful mentors. But over time, I desired a platform that would allow me to have more flexibility, both in the type of services provided to clients as well as more personal autonomy,” Forrest says.

At Forrest Firm, Forrest is committed to client service by making fees and billing transparent and predictable and by communicating regularly with clients to give estimates. “We slide some leverage back to their side of the table,” he says. “Our goal is for our clients to never be surprised by a bill. In order to do that, we have to be proactive in our communication with our clients and take on some risk.”

That approach has fostered strong client relationships across North Carolina for Forrest Firm — over 2,000 clients have engaged the firm since its inception. As the firm has grown, clients have consistently expressed a desire for the firm to add substantive legal areas to its offerings. The firm has added legal professionals with experience in many areas, including corporate/transactional law, intellectual property, commercial real estate, estate planning and administration, employment law, and litigation/dispute resolution.

In addition to her legal practice, Monica Webb-Shackleford ’06 serves as the firm’s pro bono and public service coordinator.

Many of the firm’s legal professionals are Carolina Law alumni. Of approximately 35 Forrest Firm lawyers, about half earned UNC law degrees. Some, including Forrest, also earned bachelor’s degrees at Chapel Hill. One Carolina Law graduate is Monica Webb-Shackleford ’06.

“Having Carolina Law alumni as colleagues is wonderful. Working with others who shared the Carolina Law experience certainly lends itself to a supportive work environment,” she says.

Another distinguishing feature of the Forrest Firm is attorneys’ flexibility: the choice of working at one of the firm’s offices daily, stopping at the office only periodically or working from home or otherwise remotely. The firm has eight offices across North Carolina. Forrest’s approach with lawyers is to assess “what legal professionals want, how much they want to work, what kind of quality of life they want, and where they want to be in five years, and determine how to partner with them to get there,” he says.

“That’s the right thing to do, and a lot of times it works out to be good business, too.”

The firm also puts a premium on giving back to communities. Lawyers collectively donated over 1,000 hours of pro bono and volunteer work in 2018. They’re compensated “dollar for dollar for those hours, just like they were billable hours,” Forrest says.

He embraced the giving-back mentality while at Carolina Law.

“UNC provided me an incredible education. I use things I learned there almost every day in my practice,” he says. “It was not just about legal acumen but serving the community and doing the right thing. It has absolutely shaped our firm’s mission to impact clients, our culture and our communities.”

Webb-Shackleford, based in Raleigh, appreciates Forrest’s approach. She was recently named the firm’s pro bono and public service coordinator in addition to her legal practice.

“The Forrest Firm strives to create a positive experience, not only for clients but also for the people that work here. It’s rare to find a law firm that puts an emphasis on both. I value working for what I consider a ‘well-rounded’ firm. We value our clients and provide legal services that exceed their expectations, we value each other, and we strive to make a positive impact” in the communities where the firm does business, she says.

Hiring qualified Carolina Law graduates has been an integral part of Forrest Firm’s growth.

“It’s important to me because I’m from North Carolina and have two degrees from UNC. The public universities are such a value-add to our state. They provide an economically sound way for our residents to obtain higher education,” he says. “I’m always going to be passionate about that.”

-December 26, 2018

UNC School of Law Announces Annual Alumni Association Awards

Four will be recognized for their significant contributions to the legal field.

The University of North Carolina-Chapel Hill School of Law Alumni Association will honor three exceptional graduates and an exemplary faculty member at its annual Law Leadership and Awards Dinner May 3, 2019, at the Carolina Inn.

The awards recognize members of the UNC School of Law community who embody the law school’s mission to serve the legal profession, the people and institutions of North Carolina, the nation and the world with ethics and dedication to the cause of justice.

Four Alumni Association Awards will be presented:

John L. Sanders '54

D.C. "Mike" McIntyre '81

Jessica N. Holmes '09

Lissa L. Broome

• John L. Sanders ’54, of Chapel Hill, N.C., a UNC School of Government faculty member from 1956-1994, will be presented with the Lifetime Achievement Award, recognizing a lifetime career that has been highly distinguished, and achievements and contributions that are widely recognized as significant and outstanding in his field.

• The Honorable D.C. “Mike” McIntyre ’81, of Hillsborough, N.C., a partner at Poyner Spruill LLP and former congressman, will be presented with the Distinguished Alumni Award, for accomplishments and contributions that have enhanced the school and the profession of law at the local, state, national and international level.

• Jessica N. Holmes ’09, of Cary, N.C., an adjunct professor at N.C. State University and chair of the Wake County Board of Commissioners, will receive the Outstanding Recent Graduate Award for achievements that have brought credit to the school, the legal profession or society.  

• Lissa L. Broome, of Chapel Hill, N.C., Burton Craige Distinguished Professor and director of the UNC Center for Banking and Finance, will receive the Professor S. Elizabeth Gibson Award for Faculty Excellence for embodying the outstanding qualities of integrity, legal scholarship, exemplary teaching and commitment to service to UNC School of Law and the University.

Read more about this year's winners . Tickets to the awards dinner will be available for purchase in February. Contact Kelly Mann at mann@unc.edu or 919.445.0170 with questions.

-January 7, 2019

Among North Carolina law schools, UNC School of Law had the highest-ranking bar passage rate for first time test takers for the July 2018 North Carolina Bar Exam. Eighty-six percent (86.79) of the 106 Carolina Law graduates who took the North Carolina bar exam for the first time in July 2018 passed, according to exam results released by the state’s Board of Law Examiners. Carolina Law’s passage rate exceeded the overall state passage rate of 72.5 percent for first time test takers by over 14 percent.

Excluding Duke, which had 15 total test takers sit for the exam, Carolina Law also ranked first in total bar passage. Combining the first time test takers and repeat test takers together, Carolina Law’s total bar passage rate was 81.90 percent (116 total takers; 95 passing). This overall passage rate was 24.51 percent above the overall state average (57.39 percent).

The school’s Academic Excellence Program (AEP) provides all students with resources to aid their legal study, including one-on-one bar preparation for 3L students. “This year we increased our summer bar support, instituted a series of summer bar essay workshops and increased enrollment in our restructured bar preparation courses,” says O.J. Salinas, AEP director and clinical associate professor of law. “I am pleased to see such great numbers for our Class of 2018, and I look forward to helping prepare the Class of 2019 for the upcoming Uniform Bar Examination.”

The Class of 2018 was the second class to graduate under a formalized academic success policy that empowers more students to receive individualized assistance during the final two years of law school. Carolina Law students also benefit from a rigorous first-year research and writing program in which full-time professors comment regularly on students’ written work in small, workshop-style classes and frequent individual conferences.

“Our rigorous writing curriculum and the extensive individual feedback that our professors provide to students on their legal analysis will continue to be an asset for our bar passage rate as North Carolina transitions to the Uniform Bar Examination,” says Salinas.

The law school’s Research, Reasoning, Writing and Advocacy (RRWA) program, now in its eighth year as a full-year, six-credit program, ranks No. 12 in legal writing by U.S. News & World Report’s 2019 edition of “America’s Best Graduate Schools.” During two intensive semesters in RRWA, first year students work in small sections taught by full-time faculty members to develop key skills for legal practice, including legal research, writing and analysis.

“I want to thank O.J. Salinas and our entire faculty and staff for this outstanding result. The support our students receive while they are here is inspiring,” says Martin H. Brinkley ’92, dean and Arch T. Allen Distinguished Professor of Law. “The wonderful classroom experiences this school brings to bear year after year, through our great teaching faculty, means our graduates leave here knowing how to think and write. The role those skills play in our students’ success on the bar exam and in their professional lives is clear.”

-September 7, 2018

With the end of the Fall 2018 competition season concluding in November, UNC School of Law’s Holderness Moot Court represented the school with the same types of success that it marked in 2017. The highlights this year include:

Negotiations Team

3Ls Rana Odeh and Jasmine Plott, members of UNC Holderness Moot Court’s 3L American Bar Association (ABA) Negotiations Team, tied for first place in their regional competition at Elon Law School in November. Odeh and Plott will compete for the national championship in Chicago in January. Carolina Law was also represented brilliantly at the regional competition by Evan Dancy and Coker Holmes, the other 3L members of the Holderness ABA Negotiations Team. Both teams were coached by Professor Sam Jackson ’77. This is the second time in three years that Jackson has qualified a Holderness team for the ABA National Negotiations Championship. 

National Team

In November, all six members of the Holderness National Team brought home honors. The team competed at the Fourth U.S. Court of Appeals in Richmond, Va., at the regional competition of the National Moot Court Tournament. The team of Tyra Pearson 3L, Megan Shook 3L and Edward Woodall 3L shared the tournament's top recognition for “Best Brief.”

Rachel Kokenes 3L, Marie Farmer 3L and Matt Hinson 3L just missed advancing to the semifinal round and, instead, shared the tournament's “Elite Eight” honors. Last year, the same team brought home “Elite Eight” honors from the Charleston National Constitutional Law Moot Court Tournament.

International Moot Court Team

Four 2L members of the Holderness International Team – Michael Peretz, Zachary Shufro, Claire Smith and Jennifer Cofer – traveled with Martin H. Brinkley ’92, dean and Arch T. Allen Distinguished Professor of Law, to London to compete in the Middle Temple competition over fall break in October.

“This fall, former Dean Ken Broun and I accompanied our Holderness International Team to London, where they competed against four students from the Middle Temple – one of the four medieval inns of court where Britain has trained barristers for centuries,” says Brinkley. “Our Carolina Law students more than equaled – they usually outperformed – their competitors, getting rich feedback in oral argument technique from panels of British and American judges. All this in historic courtroom settings at the Old Bailey and the Royal Courts of Justice. This is one of the most rewarding things I’ve done as dean. I couldn’t have been prouder of our students.”

The Holderness International Moot Court Team at Middle Temple in London.

Additional Teams

Holderness Moot Court also recognizes the following students who represented UNC this fall:

• In New York City, at the Hispanic Latino/Latina Law Student Association Competition: 3Ls Sana’a Bayyari and Natalie Kutcher. 
• In Fort Lauderdale, at the Asian American Law Student Association’s Thomas Tang Moot Court Competition: 3Ls Tae Hun Park and Xiaolu Sheng, and 2Ls Nur Kara and Brett Orren.
• In Atlanta, at the Emory Civil Rights and Liberties Moot Court Competition: 3Ls Alexis Weiss, Joscelyn Solomon, Daniel Kale, Lindsay Frazier and Michael Roberson. 
• In Virginia, at the William & Mary Law School Negotiation Tournament, 2Ls Briana Kelly, Lena Madison, Kylie Norman and Nute Thompson.
• In New York City, at the ABA National Arbitration Competition, 3Ls Blake Benson, Sheri Dickson, Rebecca Floyd and Richard Lowden, and 2Ls Mollie McGuire, Anna Gillespie, Chelsea Pieroni, and Charles Plambeck.

“Holderness is incredibly proud of our teams and their effort,” says Donald Hornstein, Aubrey L. Brooks Professor of Law and faculty advisor to the Holderness Moot Court program. “We look forward to next semester and our continued success.”

-December 7, 2018

This article originally appeared in the Fall-Winter 2018 issue of Carolina Law.

They call it “Commencement” for a reason: Graduating law school is only the first step toward becoming a lawyer. Next comes passing the bar exam. And after that, securing work that taps into your talents and passions.

Helping students gain employment is a critical mission of Carolina Law. U.S. News & World Report also recognizes the importance of employment. When the national magazine compiles its annual ranking of law schools, it considers the percentage of law students who have been hired into full-time jobs in their field at graduation and within 10 months of graduation. Carolina Law has a number of programs, faculty and staff committed to laying a path that leads from law school to a satisfying career. But oftentimes relationships with alumni can be the key to their success.

Many alumni already serve as conduits for Carolina Law students to connect to the first rung on their career ladder. Lawyers who graduated decades ago or only months ago participate in Career Nights, on-campus recruitment events, employer receptions, mock interviews, ranking analytics or panel discussions about practice areas. They share insights, offer encouragement, mentor students and, most important, they hire from among their own. They raise the profile of Carolina within their firms and organizations and look for opportunities to hire Carolina Law graduates.

Noel Barnard '13

Noel Barnard ’13 took advantage of the law school’s externship program as a student, working at a small pharmaceutical company a couple of days a week during a semester in exchange for course credit instead of pay. The company hired him full time when he graduated. A couple years later, he accepted an offer from another company and had to hire his own replacement, which he did by reaching out to a former extern. And when he needed to add staff at his new company, he tapped yet another former extern.

“When you’re a Carolina Law grad and you’re hiring another Carolina Law grad, you know what you’re getting,” Barnard said. “You know it’s a great school; you know the professors; you know the curriculum. You’re getting great people who are going to work hard and contribute to the community.”

As an alumnus he speaks as a panelist to share his experience with the externship program, and he represents his company at the law school’s Career Night.

Barnard considers the externship program a win-win. Students get practical experience, and employers get fresh minds to take on some of the legal tasks that a junior lawyer might do. Externs can sample from a variety of professional settings by working for a corporation, a judge, a law firm or a nonprofit.

The company he externed for was a strong proponent of the extern program, and now that Barnard is in a position to hire, he can see why.

“Carolina Law grads who externed can walk through the door and handle what I think it would take two or three years for someone to know how to do well on their own,” he said. “They can take it and run with it and do a fantastic job.”

Suzanne Chester '95, left, recruits for Legal Aid of North Carolina during on-campus interviews.

Similarly, interns, whether paid or unpaid, also gain valuable experience but no course credit. A few years ago, Suzanne Chester ’95 became co-chair of Legal Aid of North Carolina’s law school recruitment committee, and she assigned herself to recruiting at UNC. She does on-campus interviews and, with a co-worker, has continued to develop Legal Aid’s internship program. She also conducts mock interviews, speaks as a panelist on UNC employer panels and attends employer receptions.

“When I graduated from law school, you found what you found by yourself,” she said. “Now, UNC does a lot of advising and one-on-one work, especially with students interested in public interest.”

Internships give students the inside story of what Legal Aid work is like and sometimes leads to securing one of four fellowships or a permanent hire. Clients are poor and often in crisis. Interns go out into the field and see firsthand the impact of poverty on people’s lives and how conditions in society can throw them into crisis. This can fuel a passion in some law students, one shared by longtime Legal Aid lawyers. The senior lawyers enjoy the energy interns bring.

“If you love your job, it’s great to be able to share that with students,” Chester said.

Assistant District Attorney Nicole Gomez Diaz ’18, left, is sworn in as a prosecutor for the Mecklenburg County District Attorney's Office alongside her mother and District Attorney Spencer B. Merriweather III ’05. She joins the Misdemeanor Team.

Early on in his career with the Mecklenburg County District Attorney’s office, Spencer Merriweather ’05 was the intern coordinator. Now as the district attorney, he makes all the hires for his office. He relies on Carolina Law continuing to prioritize diversity in its student body.

“I want to be able to count on Carolina Law as a resource to create a prosecutor’s office that looks like the state of North Carolina,” he said.

This year, he’ll be part of Career Night at the law school to communicate to students that dedicated, hard-working students from Carolina Law have a place in his office. He participates in the Practicing Law Webinar that gives a vivid picture of the range of opportunities for law students. Because in Charlotte his office competes with the likes of Duke Energy, Wells Fargo and Bank of America for top-quality law grads, he has to make the closing argument that convinces them that the district attorney’s office is a worthwhile place to make a career.

“A prosecutor never has to go to bed at night wondering whether they had an impact on someone’s life or in the community,” Merriweather said.

He tends to give Carolina Law graduates a higher level of scrutiny to make sure that the institution that granted him a law degree still has the same quality.

“From the students I’ve seen over time,” he said, “there is no question that Carolina Law is getting better. I see a deeper pool of talented students.” Their grasp of social justice issues, their willingness to challenge convention and ask questions improve any institution. “I’m finding brave kids applying to this office. That gives me a great sense of pride as a UNC graduate.”

Rebecca Mitchell '18 and Frank Whitney '87

Rebecca Mitchell ’18 wasn’t sure when she entered law school whether to follow the public interest or private practice route. But she was drawn to Carolina Law because of its solid pro bono culture. Tar Heel born and bred, “it was very important to me to go to a law school that gives back to North Carolina,” she said. She lives that value by recommending classes to current students and giving them interviewing tips.

In high school, she had shadowed Frank Whitney ’87, chief judge of the U.S. District Court, Western District of North Carolina. She interned for him the summer after her 1L year. Now that she has her law degree, he hired her as one of his term law clerks.

She knew about the Carolina Law family and its strong alumni network. “It speaks for itself,” she said. “I had no concerns about finding employment once I graduated.”

Mitchell, who will head to Boston to practice in the labor and employment section of a private law firm once she completes her yearlong clerkship, said: “I don’t want to minimize the importance of financial contributions, but grads hiring grads is the biggest thing alumni can do for their law school.”

René Kathawala ’96

René Kathawala ’96 runs the pro bono program at Orrick Herrington & Sutcliffe in New York. He has been with the firm since he got his law degree, except for a yearlong federal clerkship. At the time he graduated, only two New York law firms came to Carolina to recruit. For the past 22 years, he has advocated for Orrick to recruit at UNC, and he has prevailed. For several years, he represented the firm during recruitment visits to campus; he also conducted phone screens. When Orrick pared its number of schools to 20, he made sure Carolina stayed on the list.

This year Carolina Law alumnus David Ruff ’09 is up for partner at Orrick, in line to become the first Tar Heel to make partner there.

“That’s critical to longevity in recruiting people from UNC,” Kathawala said.

He continues to share his insights and guidance with Carolina Law grads, even when Orrick doesn’t make them an offer. Associates have to take on the challenge of being business developers, winning assignments from partners who dole out the work. A good lawyer identifies problems for clients before they become crises. Even those with the most gifted analytical minds won’t be successful lawyers if they aren’t good at interacting with human beings. Not only must your clients find you likable, but so must the lawyers on the other side.

Kathawala recognizes that he received a world-class education at Carolina Law with tuition substantially subsidized by taxpayers, which motivates him to make current students’ lives and careers richer. His continued involvement with new waves of alumni is a tangible way to show his gratitude beyond writing a check.

“Every Carolina Law grad has the opportunity to give back,” he said.

All of these experiences provide a blueprint for helping even more Carolina Law grads secure employment. “Students come out of Carolina Law prepared and eager to do top quality legal work,” said Andy Hessick, professor and associate dean for strategy. “Carolina Law’s alumni network provides an amazing potential resource for helping students land jobs.”

In addition to being part of Carolina Law’s core mission to its students, increasing employment has the advantage of substantially improving Carolina Law’s place in law school rankings.

Charles Plambeck ’86

When Charles Plambeck ’86 who runs a global structured finance team at Citigroup learned that Carolina Law’s ranking in U.S. News & World Report had dipped, it didn’t square with what he knew of the quality of the school, its faculty, and its graduates. Applying tools similar to the ones he uses in his day-to-day work, he parsed the formula and data driving the USNWR rankings to find ways to lift the rankings to better reflect the quality of a Carolina Law legal education.

The data show an astonishing reality that hiring Carolina graduates has a disproportionate effect in moving the ranking upward. While financial gifts will always be needed to support the school, engaging with students and hiring grads can be just as important.

“Alumni can materially help the law school by hiring a new graduate before next March,” said Plambeck.

Climbing in the rankings through increased employment can be a self-fulling prophecy. Employers are more likely to hire from a higher-ranked school. Increasing the ranking can have other benefits, too. It can help attract top students and faculty, and it can create new opportunities for the law school’s growth, because funding sources are more likely to invest in a school on the rise.

More generally, the quality of the law school matters to the residents of our state, whether they realize it or not.

“Law and legal education are central to the prosperity and welfare of the people of the state,” Plambeck said. “If you don’t have a well-functioning legal system, people’s economic prospects are harmed, and their social rights and liberties are limited.”

To consider next steps, Plambeck now works, still as an alumnus giving back, as part of a team with Jeff Hirsch, professor and former associate dean for strategy, and Hessick, his successor; Nick Goettsch, associate dean for administration; Kelly Podger Smith ’02, associate dean for student affairs; and Deirdre Gordon, associate dean for advancement. Dean Martin Brinkley ’92 is also closely involved.

Beyond the rankings, all of this comes back to ensuring that Carolina Law grads thrive professionally and personally. Plambeck noted that law is an apprentice profession.

“How you deal with the people side of law, the practice and traditions, you only learn as an apprentice,” he said. “Everyone in law remembers the people they trained under. Finding a good mentor to teach you—that shapes people’s lives.”

All 11,000 Carolina Law alumni are an integral part of the team. While the career development office welcomes leads to well-paying full-time jobs, they also want to hear about those two-day research projects. Not everyone is in a position to hire a law grad, but most alumni can find a half-hour to talk with a student.

Carolina Law’s goal is to hit as close to 100% employment as possible by March for the previous year’s graduates. Carolina Law’s career development office gives students a head start by prepping first-year law students with resume reviews before fall break. From there, students participate in a career development curriculum that covers subjects such as drafting effective cover letters, conducting a successful job search and an interviewing skills workshop. Each student is given a career development handbook that guides them them through their legal job search as students and as grads. But the career development office can’t do it all. There are many ways alumni can get involved to help launch students’ careers. Alumni have the opportunity to serve as mentors, share their experiences in their practice areas at Career Night, participate in the mock interview programs and in CareerCasts webinars, or recruit students through on or off-campus interviews.

A Carolina Law grad knows the quality of a Carolina Law legal education. When grads hire grads, they have the opportunity to impact the life of a fellow alum, contribute to the quality of the school and invest in the legal education of future colleagues.

-December 26, 2018

This article originally appeared in the Fall-Winter 2018 issue of Carolina Law.

Approximately half of Forrest Firm lawyers are Carolina Law alumni, including founder James Forrest ’04 and Monica Webb-Shackleford ’06 (below), who also serves as the firm’s pro bono and public service coordinator in addition to her legal practice.

In some ways, James Forrest ’04 runs his law practice, the Forrest Firm, like a dry-cleaning business. At a dry cleaner, an employee greets customers, takes their clothing and gives them a ticket with a date to pick up the garments. The prices are displayed on the wall.

“I tell our lawyers it’s no different with our work,” Forrest says. “Of course, qualitative excellence in our work product is a baseline standard, but our team has to also be responsive to clients at intake, give estimates on cost and turn-time, and then deliver on both fronts.”

Before he launched Forrest Firm in 2011, Forrest worked for seven years as a corporate transactional lawyer at two large business law firms in Atlanta and Research Triangle Park. His clients were happy with his services generally, but some were dissatisfied with the unpredictable nature of pricing for legal services. “Several clients gave me the same type of feedback — basically that, ‘We never know what to expect with respect to pricing, and for us that is problematic,’” Forrest recalls.

That was when Forrest began shifting his thinking about pricing, client relationships, and the quality of life he wanted as an attorney with three children at the time (now four).

“Chapter 1 of my career was working at a couple large law firms, which was awesome. I learned from wonderful mentors. But over time, I desired a platform that would allow me to have more flexibility, both in the type of services provided to clients as well as more personal autonomy,” Forrest says.

At Forrest Firm, Forrest is committed to client service by making fees and billing transparent and predictable and by communicating regularly with clients to give estimates. “We slide some leverage back to their side of the table,” he says. “Our goal is for our clients to never be surprised by a bill. In order to do that, we have to be proactive in our communication with our clients and take on some risk.”

That approach has fostered strong client relationships across North Carolina for Forrest Firm — over 2,000 clients have engaged the firm since its inception. As the firm has grown, clients have consistently expressed a desire for the firm to add substantive legal areas to its offerings. The firm has added legal professionals with experience in many areas, including corporate/transactional law, intellectual property, commercial real estate, estate planning and administration, employment law, and litigation/dispute resolution.

In addition to her legal practice, Monica Webb-Shackleford ’06 serves as the firm’s pro bono and public service coordinator.

Many of the firm’s legal professionals are Carolina Law alumni. Of approximately 35 Forrest Firm lawyers, about half earned UNC law degrees. Some, including Forrest, also earned bachelor’s degrees at Chapel Hill. One Carolina Law graduate is Monica Webb-Shackleford ’06.

“Having Carolina Law alumni as colleagues is wonderful. Working with others who shared the Carolina Law experience certainly lends itself to a supportive work environment,” she says.

Another distinguishing feature of the Forrest Firm is attorneys’ flexibility: the choice of working at one of the firm’s offices daily, stopping at the office only periodically or working from home or otherwise remotely. The firm has eight offices across North Carolina. Forrest’s approach with lawyers is to assess “what legal professionals want, how much they want to work, what kind of quality of life they want, and where they want to be in five years, and determine how to partner with them to get there,” he says.

“That’s the right thing to do, and a lot of times it works out to be good business, too.”

The firm also puts a premium on giving back to communities. Lawyers collectively donated over 1,000 hours of pro bono and volunteer work in 2018. They’re compensated “dollar for dollar for those hours, just like they were billable hours,” Forrest says.

He embraced the giving-back mentality while at Carolina Law.

“UNC provided me an incredible education. I use things I learned there almost every day in my practice,” he says. “It was not just about legal acumen but serving the community and doing the right thing. It has absolutely shaped our firm’s mission to impact clients, our culture and our communities.”

Webb-Shackleford, based in Raleigh, appreciates Forrest’s approach. She was recently named the firm’s pro bono and public service coordinator in addition to her legal practice.

“The Forrest Firm strives to create a positive experience, not only for clients but also for the people that work here. It’s rare to find a law firm that puts an emphasis on both. I value working for what I consider a ‘well-rounded’ firm. We value our clients and provide legal services that exceed their expectations, we value each other, and we strive to make a positive impact” in the communities where the firm does business, she says.

Hiring qualified Carolina Law graduates has been an integral part of Forrest Firm’s growth.

“It’s important to me because I’m from North Carolina and have two degrees from UNC. The public universities are such a value-add to our state. They provide an economically sound way for our residents to obtain higher education,” he says. “I’m always going to be passionate about that.”

-December 26, 2018

UNC School of Law moved up 11 spots to No. 34 out of 192 law schools ranked in the U.S. News & World Report’s 2020 edition of “America’s Best Graduate Schools,” released on March 12.

Of the 26 public law schools listed in the top 50 law schools in the U.S. News rankings, UNC School of Law is No. 14.

In the specialty areas ranking, the law school’s Research, Reasoning, Writing and Advocacy (RRWA) program, now in its eighth year as a full-year, six-credit program, ranks No. 8 in legal writing, an increase of 10 spots from two years ago.

Carolina Law also ranks No. 25 in tax law and No. 27 in health law. The school continues to be in the top 50 law schools for clinical training, environmental law, intellectual property law, international law and trial advocacy.

“We are in a time of real momentum for Carolina Law,” says Dean Martin H. Brinkley ’92. “We are proud of our trajectory and pleased to receive national recognition for the excellent work our faculty, students and staff do year-in, year-out.”

According to U.S. News, UNC continues to maintain a strong reputation among legal professionals. This year Carolina Law held steady in reputation among law school peers and moved up a spot to No. 19 among lawyers and judges.

“The rankings increase is the product of hard work by everyone at Carolina Law,” says Brinkley. “We had financial support from the N.C. General Assembly, UNC-Chapel Hill’s leadership and our generous donors. We also benefited from the efforts of our loyal alumni and employers who worked closely with our career development office to assist with increasing student employment.”

“We recognize that rankings are important not just to the school and alumni but to prospective students as well,” says Andy Hessick, professor of law and associate dean for strategy. “Moving forward, we plan to build on the momentum of this year, continue to look at the data and identify additional areas where we need to improve.”

In other rankings news, The National Law Journal recently ranked the top “50 Go-To Law Schools” according to the percentage of the schools’ 2018 graduates who took associate jobs at the largest 100 firms in the country. Carolina Law ranked No. 31. Of the 50 schools ranked, Carolina Law had the third lowest tuition rate, further confirming that a law school can charge an affordable tuition and have its graduates land associate positions at big law firms. The National Law Journal also noted that Carolina Law tied for 27 for the number of alumni promoted to law firm partnership during 2018.

“Carolina Law does an excellent job preparing students to work at private law firms, in business and industry, as well as in judicial clerkships, non-profits, public interest organizations, and government legal positions,” says Brinkley. “We provide a superb legal education at an affordable cost, while remaining committed to our mission of producing the next generation of lawyer-leaders serving North Carolina and beyond.”

-March 12, 2019

From left, Miranda Goot 2L, Leigh Wicclair '11, Lauren Toole 3L, Nicole Angelica 1L, Lashieka Hardin 3L, Grace Lempp 2L, Professor Luke Everett '08, Emily Burke '14.

The board of the UNC School of Law Pro Bono Program awarded the 2019 recipients of the Pro Bono Publico Awards at the annual Pro Bono Celebration Thursday, April 11. Graduating students with more than 75 pro bono hours were recognized, as well as the Christian Legal Society, which received UNC-Chapel Hill's Robert E. Bryan Public Service Award.

As part of the ceremony, Dean Martin H. Brinkley ’92 addressed attendees and congratulated the Class of 2019 for reaching 100 percent participation in pro bono projects. This year's award recipients included:

• Sylvia K. Novinsky Award - Lauren Toole 3L
• 3L Student of the Year - Lashieka Hardin 3L
• 2L Student of the Year - Grace Lempp 2L
• 1L Student of the Year - Nicole Angelica 1L
• Group Pro Bono Project of the Year - Environmental Law Project, accepted on behalf of ELP by Miranda Goot 2L
• Faculty Member of the Year – Lewis Moore “Luke” Everett ’08, Clinical Associate Professor of Law
• Alumnae of the Year – Emily Burke ’14 and Leigh Wicclair ’11

Learn more about the award winners. Award nominations may be submitted by alumni, legal organizations, or any member of the Carolina Law community.

-April 11, 2019

Recent UNC School of Law graduates who passed the North Carolina bar exam in February now have the flexibility to use their exam score to transfer to other jurisdictions. North Carolina administered the Uniform Bar Exam (UBE) for the first time in February 2019, and Carolina Law had the highest-ranking bar passage rate among North Carolina law schools. UNC also ranked No. 1 among North Carolina law schools for first-time test takers for the July 2018 North Carolina bar exam.

Eighty-seven percent (87.5%) of the eight Carolina Law graduates who took the North Carolina bar exam for the first time in February passed, according to exam results released by the state’s Board of Law Examiners. The school’s passage rate exceeded the overall state passage rate of 71.9% for first time test takers by 15%. The school also ranked first among total test takers for North Carolina law schools at a 90% passage rate (30 total takers, 27 passing). The school’s 90% passage rate for total test takers exceeded the overall state passage rate for total test takers by 25%.

“We are pleased with such an outstanding result for our graduates for North Carolina’s first administration of the UBE,” says O.J. Salinas, director of the Academic Excellence Program and clinical associate professor of law at Carolina Law.

The UBE offers law school graduates a portable score that can be used to apply for admission in other UBE jurisdictions, such as New York, Washington, D.C., and Boston, therefore maximizing job opportunities and reducing the cost of taking multiple exams. Passing UBE scores vary by jurisdiction – North Carolina has one of the higher passing scores at 270.

-April 17, 2019

UNC School of Law congratulates 39 first-year law students who received a Eugene Gressman & Daniel H. Pollitt Oral Advocacy Award on April 16. The annual awards, given by faculty of the Writing and Learning Resources Center, recognize outstanding oral advocacy in the first-year Research, Reasoning, Writing, and Advocacy (RRWA) Program. This year marked the 24th anniversary celebration of the awards. The RRWA program, now in its eight year as a full-year, six-credit program, ranks No. 8 in legal writing by U.S. News & World Report.

The awards' sponsor is the firm of Johnston, Allison & Hord of Charlotte. Carolina Law alumnus and attorney at Johnston, Allison & Hord, Michael L. Wilson '96, worked with Professor Emerita Ruth McKinney '88 to establish the awards in 1995. Emma Chase ’18, an associate at Johnston, Allison & Hord and 2016 Gressman Pollitt Award winner, spoke at the ceremony and congratulated this year's recipients. The awards honor Eugene Gressman, William Rand Kenan Jr. Professor of Law Emeritus, and Daniel H. Pollitt, Graham Kenan Professor of Law Emeritus, who both passed away in 2010.

The RRWA professors and their award recipients are:

Kevin Bennardo - Clinical Associate Professor of Law

Section 11

• William Kohake Harris

• Amy Mull

• Carleigh Zeman

Section 13

• Jacob Patrick Buckley Brannon

• Kaity Y. Emerson

• Christopher C. Patterson

Luke Everett ’08 - Clinical Associate Professor of Law

Section 4

• Bradley Anderton

• Kathryn Alexandria Johnson

• Charles Ponder

Section 9

• Katie E. Dixon

• Ryan Dovel

• Michelle P. Marchand

Pete Nemerovski - Clinical Associate Professor

Section 5

• Cannon Lane

• Camila M. Rohena-Maldonado

• Grant Thomas Pendergraft

Section 6

• Cecilia G. Rambarat

• Taylor B. Rodney

• Salonika Tiwari

Jena Reger – Professor of the Practice of Law

Section 2

• Andrew M. Benton

• Maureen Gleason

• Anastasia Kaitlyn McKettrick

Section 12

• Ryan M. Collins

• Emily Jilson

• Destiny Zapora Planter

Elizabeth Sherowski - Visiting Clinical Assistant Professor

Section 3

• William Kwadwo Aboagye-Kumi

• Robert C. DiDomenico III

• Nathan Wilson

Section 14

• Chris Armistead

• Ambar Fleites

• Sarah M. French

Craig T. Smith - Assistant Dean for the Writing and Learning Resources Center and Clinical Professor of Law

Section 7

• Foram Majmudar

• Mallory A. Morris

• Samantha L. Reeves

Sara B. Warf ’06 - Clinical Associate Professor of Law

Section 1

• Mousa A. Alshanteer

• Madiha Chhotani

• Lucas B. Earle

Section 8

• Alexandra Franklin

• Joseph E. Gerber

• Madison Leigh Scott

-April 17, 2019

UNC School of Law Announces Annual Alumni Association Awards

Four will be recognized for their significant contributions to the legal field.

The University of North Carolina-Chapel Hill School of Law Alumni Association will honor three exceptional graduates and an exemplary faculty member at its annual Law Leadership and Awards Dinner May 3, 2019, at the Carolina Inn.

The awards recognize members of the UNC School of Law community who embody the law school’s mission to serve the legal profession, the people and institutions of North Carolina, the nation and the world with ethics and dedication to the cause of justice.

Four Alumni Association Awards will be presented:

John L. Sanders '54

D.C. "Mike" McIntyre '81

Jessica N. Holmes '09

Lissa L. Broome

• John L. Sanders ’54, of Chapel Hill, N.C., a UNC School of Government faculty member from 1956-1994, will be presented with the Lifetime Achievement Award, recognizing a lifetime career that has been highly distinguished, and achievements and contributions that are widely recognized as significant and outstanding in his field.

• The Honorable D.C. “Mike” McIntyre ’81, of Hillsborough, N.C., a partner at Poyner Spruill LLP and former congressman, will be presented with the Distinguished Alumni Award, for accomplishments and contributions that have enhanced the school and the profession of law at the local, state, national and international level.

• Jessica N. Holmes ’09, of Cary, N.C., an adjunct professor at N.C. State University and chair of the Wake County Board of Commissioners, will receive the Outstanding Recent Graduate Award for achievements that have brought credit to the school, the legal profession or society.  

• Lissa L. Broome, of Chapel Hill, N.C., Burton Craige Distinguished Professor and director of the UNC Center for Banking and Finance, will receive the Professor S. Elizabeth Gibson Award for Faculty Excellence for embodying the outstanding qualities of integrity, legal scholarship, exemplary teaching and commitment to service to UNC School of Law and the University.

Read more about this year's winners . Tickets to the awards dinner will be available for purchase in February. Contact Kelly Mann at mann@unc.edu or 919.445.0170 with questions.

-January 7, 2019