‘ Tis The Season to Say Thank You
Patricia Redmond , Stearns Weaver Miller Weissler Alhadeff & Sitterson , P . A . President , American College of Bankruptcy
As I leave New York City after attending the exciting and impactful study of Professor Joan Williams on interrupting bias in the restructuring industry , I am very grateful I had the opportunity to represent the College as its President at events like this one . It is because of all of you , the College is a leader in the restructuring space for mentoring , diversity and inclusion , education and public service , to mention just a few areas .
As Charlie referenced , the College has participated and co-sponsored various programs that not only support the restructuring community but also assure our leadership role in the insolvency area . My focus in describing the College ’ s participation will be on collaboration with other organizations and communities consistent with our mission to achieve excellence in all of our endeavors .
This is the second year in which the College collaborated with the American Bankruptcy Institute (“ ABI ”) to implement the Howard DREAMS . program . The program was similar to last year ’ s and the morning session featured opportunities in restructuring , student loan updates , and clerkships and internships as an entry point into the insolvency world . The afternoon included a presentation by Professor Melissa Jacoby on her new book “ Unjust Debts ” and a panel on mentoring and being
mentored with our Chair , Charlie Beckham , on behalf of the College , explaining how he had been mentored as a young lawyer and is now paying it forward by mentoring young associates . One of Charlie ’ s mentees , Re ’ Necia Sherald was also on the panel . The collaboration of the College with ABI created a network with which these law students could follow-up and connect with judges , lawyers and academics with respect to their futures .
The next program on Interrupting Bias in Restructuring was a collaboration between restructuring professionals in New York , the Focus Group on Gender Equality , Kirkland & Ellis , and the College . In part one , Professor Williams delivered her report , which was well received . Her conclusions with respect to the existence of bias were largely consistent with expectations . Part two focused the audience on a tool kit with which organizations could implement simple steps that have been proven to produce significant results in reducing bias . Many of the restructuring professionals in attendance asked for follow-up opportunities and information from Professor Williams . It was truly heartwarming to see how the College ’ s footprint is extending in collaboration with others .
The last collaboration and community based event which I had the pleasure to attend , with Mark Bloom , Melissa Kibler , Charlie and many other fellows from the Sixth Circuit , was the educational event in honor of the late Chris Meyer in Cleveland . It was a magnificent tribute to Chris and
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