The VBA Journal is the official publication of The Virginia Bar Association.
Issue link: http://vba.epubxp.com/i/436865
6 • VBA JOURNAL YOUNG LAWYERS DIVISION BY ELAINA L. BLANKS-GREEN CHAIR, VBA YOUNG LAWYERS DIVISION Theme and Variations I started my service to the VBA and YLD as a co-chair for the Diversity Recruitment Committee. We organized and held a Diversity Job Fair for fve years with the goal of connecting law school students who wanted to practice in Virginia with Virginia employers. Te YLD draws its inspiration in organizing new programs and modifying or continuing existing ones from the communities it serves. Te communities that the YLD assists are as diverse and unique as the makeup of the attorneys within the Virginia bar. Te diversity in the communities contributes heavily to the programs and activities that the YLD leads as each program is designed to target a specifc need of either the bar or the public. Te diversity that exists in our communities is the diversity that I challenge us, as current members of the YLD, to strive to emulate within the VBA. I challenge each of us to identify one or more young attorneys who will continue to build upon the vast knowledge that exists in the VBA and who will ofer a fresh and diferent perspective during discussions. I have gotten to know more members of our YLD and am amazed by the wonderfully new, diferent and fresh perspectives that the members provide. Te perspective from a young lawyer who is practicing at a large frm in a metropolitan area of Virginia difers vastly from the perspective from a young lawyer who is a solo practitioner in a rural Virginia community. Not surprisingly, when asked about the needs of young lawyers practicing law, they each provide diferent answers. Te goal of being a good citizen lawyer remains a common desire but the steps to achieve that goal vary. It is that variation that I hope we can continue to seek as members of the YLD by attracting and recruiting more members to the VBA who have those diferent perspectives. Our recruitment of additional members has a natural beginning with the area law school councils. Te various LSCs serve as our pipeline into the next class of young Virginia lawyers who will not only provide us with new ideas but also give us the current perspective of a young lawyer serving a diverse community requires broad insights 6 • VBA JOURNAL