October 7, 2005                                                            

The New Face of Education

Successful Career Attainable after 50

SPARTANBURG, S.C. –  Robin Deming never imagined she would be sitting in a classroom at Spartanburg Methodist College two years ago, however she’s there every Tuesday and Thursday evening and has been since August of 2004.

Robin is one of the many “Second-50-years” students who have returned to the classroom to pursue a legal career through Spartanburg Methodist’s College’s Paralegal Certificate Program.

Judy Hamer, General Counsel for Spartanburg Regional Healthcare System, had been encouraging Robin to pursue this path for several months.  Robin kept hedging… thinking up excuses as to why she could not swing attending classes after working all day.  Reluctantly Robin looked into the SMC program. She attended the open house last August, still secretly hoping someone would say class was full or that she did not qualify for some reason.  Then came the letter from Yvonne Harper, Director of  SMC’s Paralegal Certificate Program…Robin had been accepted.  Robin was shocked. 

Looking back she laughs and says “it was the best thing for me, a great accomplishment” and she is very proud of herself for taking that first step. Turning 50 on New Years Day, January, 2004  was the second hardest thing, after the passing of her husband that Robin had to go through.  She feared turning 50 – feared that “life would be over.” Today she lacks 6 classes and her internship to complete her paralegal education and is working in the “best, most amazing career I could have ever imagined. I’ve started a whole new life.”  Robin is currently the executive legal assistant for the Office of General Counsel at Spartanburg Regional Healthcare System, where she has worked in various positions since 1988.  

Robin believes the closeness and bond that the students in SMC’s paralegal program share have been instrumental to her success. “The classes are small enough so you get to truly know your classmates and instructors. We encourage each other and get excited when we do well on a test or get the job we have been dreaming and working towards.”  

Her favorite courses so far have been Ethics, Civil Litigation, and Research and Writing.  “David Sereque taught the research and writing courses and he pushed us to make us better students… and better paralegals,” she says. Robin is especially grateful for Roxanne Reynolds, another instructor in the program, who has become her mentor.  They belong to several paralegal organizations and interact through work outside the classroom.  “I am truly grateful to the instructors and the director – they want everyone of us to succeed. And I am blessed to have the support of my husband – he makes dinner so I can do my homework and even cleans the house – and tells me I can do anything.”

Life kept interrupting Robin’s attempt to finish her education… marriage, children, the passing of her husband, then her eventual remarriage.   She always regretted putting off her education and is proud to report that in August of 2006 she will graduate from the SMC Paralegal Certificate Program and will then enter Limestone College. “This has been a dream for me… I have always dreamed of completing my education – I may be 60 before I graduate from Limestone, but I’ll be 60 anyway…with or without a degree!  I always tell my children they are the only ones standing in the way of their dreams.”

The SMC Paralegal Certificate Program consists of 20 courses, offered in 10 sessions, with each session lasting 10 weeks. The cost for each course is $250 with payment plans and financial aid available.  Individuals may also audit a course for $100. 

For additional information, contact Yvonne Harper, Director of the Paralegal Certificate Program, at 587-4278, or e-mail harpery@smcsc.edu. You can also go online to www.smcsc.edu for more information on the Paralegal Certificate Program.