Many executive directors wear two hats--one
leading the bar association and the other for its sister bar
foundation. But what about those executive directors who
lead two bar associations?
Charles Turner sports multiple hats as executive
directors of the Colorado Bar Association and the Denver
Bar Association. Alice Roman leads the Wake County Bar
Association and the 10th Judicial Bar Association in Cary,
N.C. And Lee Cushman juggles both The Corporate Bar
Association of Westchester and Fairfield and The Regional
Bar, both in Stamford, Conn.
While most executive directors deal with only one
board, one set of officers, one annual budget, one set of
programs, and one membership group, Turner, Roman and
Cushman juggle twice the responsibilities. These bar
executives find that leadership, and the ability to instill that
value at every level, is vital. Handling a double workload
can also create a deeper resourcefulness and dedication
toward managing those values well.
Since two of the three staff executives have not held
similar multiple administrative duties elsewhere, they
cannot compare the experience. However, the long-time
systems involving the dual bar administrative activities in
their bars have always worked, they say, and benefit their
associations most notably by saving money through shared
services, office space and staff.
Turner in Colorado
"Everyone has grown up with this system and how
both bar associations cooperate with each other. You just
have to adjust to the mind set," says Charles Turner.
Turner got a taste of what would come later when
he spent nine years as an assistant dean and CLE director
for the University of Denver and the Colorado Bar
Association. In 1980, he was hired as executive director of
both the Colorado bar and the Denver Bar Association,
replacing Bill Miller who retired.
"It was a natural progression to move to that
position because I had worked with many of the same
people, had gained credibility with the CLE program and
knew the legal community well," recalls Turner, a lawyer
and a Vietnam veteran.
Both bars are housed in the same headquarters
building in Denver, and Turner oversees a $1.9 budget, 15
staff members and 12,600 members for the Colorado bar,
and a $797,000 budget, 10 staff members and 7,100
members in the Denver bar. Since several employees work
for both bars, strict time sheets are kept to determine which
bar pays for their services.
Turner's salary is split 60-40, with the Colorado bar
predominating. If the time records indicate a different
balance at the end of the year, an adjustment is made in the
salary allocation.
The Denver bar has a Board of Trustees with 17
people and holds monthly meetings. The Colorado bar has
a Board of Governors of 140 members, which meets three
times a year, and an Executive Council with 17 members
that meets eight times a year.
To mesh the two bars, a Joint Management
Committee oversees the operation of the office's shared
expenses, such as the telephone and computer systems. The
13-member committee, which includes both sets of officers
from the bars and the budget committee chairs from each
bar, collectively make decisions for both associations. The
officers and members of both bars believe the system saves
money and eliminates duplication of services, Turner
explains.
The Denver bar does not have any sections, so there
is no rivalry with the state bar in that area. Also, no rivalry
exists for membership because lawyers who join the
voluntary Colorado bar must belong to one of the 26 local
bars in the state.
If any competition exists, it's probably in the area of
member benefits. For example, Turner recalls a cellular
phone offer about five years ago that appealed to members
of both the Colorado and Denver bars. However, at that
time, the phone service area only included the Denver
region. So the local bar won that deal. Overall, the two bars
have existed peacefully and professionally without
significant turf battles.
"If it looks like we'll drive ourselves off a cliff, he's
duty-bound to save us. And he does," notes Craig Eley,
president of the Denver bar, about Turner.
"Chuck is there before each president comes, and
he's there when each president leaves. He's the continuity
and the glue that hold both associations together," says
Miles Cortez of Denver, president of the Colorado bar, who
served as Denver bar president in 1982-83.
Like Cortez, about a half dozen members who have
served as president of the Denver bar have also been
president of the state bar.
"They know how the system works and how to
work with it," Turner notes about the presidents who have
served both bars.
Juggling the bars' activities while keeping
everything straight on the job is easier because Turner, who
is married and has three sons, lives only about eight
minutes from the bars' office.
"What it all comes down to is a good faith effort by
the leaders who are all committed to the bar. The credit
goes to them," Turner says about his 17-year tenure.
Roman in N. C.
When Alice Roman's husband, John, was
transferred to Raleigh, N.C. while a manager for a metal
company, the move also opened a new opportunity for her
as well. The Pittsburgh native and former secretary landed a
job as assistant to the communications director of the North
Carolina Bar Association in 1988. After three years, she
became the convention coordinator and assistant to the
assistant executive director.
When the Wake County Bar Association and the
10th Judicial District Bar Association were looking for an
executive director to head both, Roman was hired to replace
Gail Huckaba in 1993. A year later, both local bars moved
into four rooms on the third floor of the North Carolina Bar
Association building, where they lease office space and pay
for services such as accounting, computers and office
equipment from the voluntary state bar.
Roman oversees Wake County's $197,000 budget
with its 1,436 members, and the $115,000 budget of the
mandatory 10th Judicial bar with its 2,539 membership.
Together, the bars share a staff of three, and they are paid
according to strict time records.
Although each bar has its own set of officers and
boards, this year there is only one president-elect. So next
year, both bars will be represented by one president, Walter
Brock of Raleigh.
"I remember last year two presidents-elect were
elected, and one walked into my office with a gift of two
large bottles of aspirin," Roman says of Barbara Weyher of
Raleigh, now president of the Wake County bar, and David
Long of Raleigh, current president of the 10th Judicial bar.
As with the common scenario of one bar and one
president, the success between the executive director and
two presidents is dependent on personalities.
"The role and attitude of the executive director are
crucial to this success. Obviously, one president rather than
two makes life half as complicated. But because I have
been blessed with two presidents who work together with
each other and with me as a team, it has been quite
rewarding for everyone," Roman says.
The 10th Judicial bar has various committees,
including a new professionalism committee that will work
to enhance the image of lawyers. "I do the best I can to
enhance the image of the profession and to help each new
president as they start their term and reach their goals,"
says Roman.
That help is an invaluable resource to the new
presidents.
"She tells me where I need to be and when I have to
be there and what I need to do. She is clearly the guiding
force," says Long of the 10th Judicial bar.
"Alice stays in the information loop' by attending
all committee meetings of both bars. This allows her not
only to keep the bar leadership informed of committee
developments, but also to keep the two bars and their
respective committees from working at cross purposes or
duplicating efforts. The bottom line is that she keeps us
straight," adds Weyher of the Wake County bar.
Wake County bar has more social activities and
public service projects such as a new fund-raising program
that started in June to pay for a $200,000 children's waiting
room at the Wake County Court building.
Whatever the projects or the people involved,
Roman lives by several mottos.
"I maintain a good attitude throughout life; strive to
do my best in everything I undertake; learn something new
every day; take time to be a good friend, spouse, mother
and grandmother; don't worry about climbing mountains;
and have some fun," Roman says.
Cushman in Connecticut
For 17 years, Lee Cushman has felt that she is
among friends.
"My board members feel truly like friends and
allow me to ask advice and bounce ideas off of them.
Because of what I believe is a truly unique relationship, I
am happy and they are happy," Cushman says of her work
with both The Corporate Bar Association of Westchester
and Fairfield and The Regional Bar in Stamford, Conn.
Her two presidents agree.
"She's excellent and always has the well-being of
the bar association at heart," says James Kambas, president
of The Regional Bar.
"Lee is just an invaluable resource for our
organization and the cement that holds us together," adds
Lynne Tomeny, the corporate bar.
Working for two presidents and two boards is not a
problem. Only once did Cushman consider leaving her
position because of a difficult president, whom she declined
to identify. "My boards are very supportive of everything I
do, and (they) give me tremendous freedom," she adds.
No red tape or bureaucracy exists because Cushman
has only one full-time assistant, Daniela DeJesus, who may
recruit her sister to help during busy times. Cushman may
even snag a neighbor to help on occasion. The reason?
Tight budgets--$54,000 for the corporate bar, which has
about 1,000 members, and $20,000 for The Regional Bar,
with 800 members. Both bars split costs on the rent,
machine leases, office supplies and fax machine. The bars
each pay for their own mailings and telephone bills. While
Cushman's salary is paid by both bars, her assistant is paid
primarily through the corporate bar.
The bars operate separately. The corporate bar
focuses on in-house lawyers, while The Regional Bar
attracts lawyers from firms. Programs are also separate,
except those on business law and intellectual property law,
which are available to both. On occasion, both bars
cosponsor events such as Law Day or a golf outing.
Cushman's bar association stint began in 1980
when she left Texasgulf, an oil company in Stamford. She
was assistant and paralegal to the general counsel, who was
also treasurer to the corporate bar (originally named
Westchester Fairfield Corporate Counsel Association Inc.).
Cushman often attended bar meetings on his behalf, and
soon began to moonlight for the corporate bar as a part-time assistant for membership, schedules and the directory.
As the bar and her responsibilities grew, she opted to leave
Texasgulf to become manager of administrative services for
both the corporate bar and The Regional Bar (previously
called The Stamford/Darien Bar and The
Stamford/Norwalk Regional Bar).
By 1984, then-President Mike Catanzaro of the
corporate bar changed her title to executive director.
Cushman continued working full-time out of her home until
1990, when both bars moved into an office in downtown
Stamford.
The two main problems Cushman faces in leading
both bars are splitting her time and her energy level.
Sometimes each bar may hold programs simultaneously,
causing her and her assistant to scatter their responsibilities.
Still, she strives to keep up her energy when some days
start with 8 a.m. breakfast meetings, followed by more
meetings or other events that may last as late as 10 p.m. For
many events, she even does the shopping, sets up the rooms
and even washes the silverware afterward.
"No day is ever the same, and we thrive on the
activity and the challenges," she says.
When the weekend finally comes, or down time in
the summer, she's ready for the break.
"The stress at times can seem overwhelming, and
you wonder how you will make it to the end of the week.
But then, suddenly, the end of the week is here, and you
wonder how it went by so fast. This is a job that would be
very hard to trade for anything else," Cushman adds.
(The author is the reporter for Bar Leader.)
