The court reporting program at Cuyahoga Community College (Tri-C), Parma, Ohio, hosted its largest open house ever on April 19, attracting 92 attendees interested in learning more about the court reporting and captioning professions.
The event, which was also captioned to provide those attending with a better understanding of realtime, outlined the various areas of court reporting and benefits such as flexibility, salary, and employment opportunities. A speed-networking session allowed attendees the opportunity to spend a few minutes with a variety of working court reporters, faculty members, and students from the program to ask questions and learn more about the profession.
Participants in the speed-networking portion addressed questions about speedbuilding, steno theory, CART and captioning work, the importance of English and grammar skills to succeed in the profession, what it is like to distance learn, Tri-C Court Reporting and Captioning Club activities, the student experience, and available scholarships.
NCRA Immediate Past President Sarah Nageotte, RDR, CRR, CRC, an official court reporter from Jefferson, Ohio, was also on hand to share information about the benefits of membership in NCRA and the Ohio Court Reporters Association.
“I was invited to speak about working as an official court reporter as well as about the importance of membership in professional associations while in school as a student in addition to as a professional in the field,” said Nageotte.
“While I was speaking specifically to my experience in working in the court systems of Pennsylvania, Ohio, and now the federal courts, I was fortunate to be able to refer to all arenas encompassed within the profession, including CART and broadcast captioning and freelance reporting and the benefits to each,” said Nageotte.
Nageotte said that the strong interest expressed by attendees about the 100 percent placement rate for graduates of Tri-C’s program also prompted her to share the information about retirement rates and job opportunities for the future in the profession based on the findings of the 2013-2014 Industry Outlook Report by Ducker Worldwide commissioned by NCRA.
According to Kelly Moranz, CRI, Tri-C’s court reporting program manager and an adjunct faculty member, the attendees represented a mix of all ages and demographics. She said that they had heard about the event either through stories featured by local print and broadcast media outlets, demonstrations and presentations at career fairs and community events, or a flyer they received in the mail.
“We had very positive feedback on the effectiveness of the speed-networking format in providing information along with insight into the program and profession,” said Moranz.
Moranz said after the event she received a number of emails from attendees expressing interest in enrolling in the Tri-C program as well as from one parent who wrote: “It was very informative, and what a turnout! I may pass this info on to my daughter. Thanks for inviting me.”
The event wrapped up with attendees having the opportunity to ask additional questions, try their hand at a steno machine, and learn more about Tri-C’s program and application process.
