The Guardian
College of Court Reporting, est. 1984
March 2021
Court Reporting students need GRIT!
CCR Student Spotlight
Jennifer Wolfert
What got you interested in the program and what brought you to the College of Court Reporting (CCR)?
I have to be honest that I didn’t know anything about court reporting or stenography before I came across a Reddit post about specialties that are currently in demand. I had been thinking about going back to school, so I added court reporting to the list of careers I was looking into. I had recently graduated from university and was certain that I couldn’t work in the field that I had been trained for, so I was not interested in jumping in headfirst and making a similar mistake. I enrolled in an A to Z course with the NCRA. I thought that the course was a lot of fun, so I took the next step and started looking for a school. I was disappointed to see that attending a program in person was not an option for me, and I was a bit overwhelmed by the options for online schooling. Thankfully, someone had asked my A to Z instructor what school she had attended. She had attended CCR before beginning her career, and, after some research, I decided to apply.
What has been the most challenging part of getting through school, and what are you doing to overcome it?
I think that the most challenging part of school so far has been my battle with my motivation. It’s very hard to commit a high degree of effort for an extended period. It’s natural to have low periods, so when I catch myself falling into a rut, I try to forgive myself and find the motivation I need by focusing on my speed goals and the career that I want to have after graduating. In addition to motivation, I have a terrible habit of putting work off to be done over breaks, even though I am almost solely motivated by external deadlines. The best solution I have for this problem is to push myself to get everything I want to accomplish finished before my next break. That’s something I am still working on.
What has been the best piece of advice you have ever been given?
The best advice that I can think of came from one of my professors at university. My professor said that the best way to keep up with an online class is to keep a calendar of everything that will be due during the semester and to keep that calendar in a place where you will see it often. That advice was very helpful to me when I was taking multiple online and in-person classes at the same time.
What do you like to spend your free time doing?
My hobbies include exploring new foods, playing video games, listening to podcasts, and generally spending too much time on the internet. All my other hobbies are a bit inconsistent. It’s partly because of my love for video games and podcasts that I was originally interested in court reporting. It seemed like a natural progression since I spend most of my time listening to people talk and clicking buttons anyway.
Have any plans for when you finish school? What is your dream job?
I don’t have any solid plans for when I graduate yet. There are a lot of options when it comes to stenography, and I am sure that I will dabble in several of them throughout my career. At this moment, I think that I will most likely enjoy captioning and contract work. I am excited by the idea of working remotely on my own or for an agency since I have always wanted to move out of the suburbs to a more rural area. That freedom would also allow my fiance and me to move for his career without issue. For now, I am keeping my options open.
Looking for funding?
NCRA CASE Student Scholarship
The top prize of $1500 is the Sue Shelton White Scholarship, named in honor Sue Shelton White. White was a feminist leader originally from Henderson, Tenn., born on May 25, 1887, who served as a national leader of the women’s suffrage movement. She also worked as an official court reporter for the Tennessee Supreme Court from 1907 until 1918 and opened her own stenography business. In 1920, White earned her law degree from the Washington College of Law.
Four additional scholarships are available in the amounts of $250, $500, $750, and $1000.
Students must meet the eligibility requirements and submit the completed application listed below to qualify for the scholarship. Notification of the CASE Scholarship is sent each February to all NCRA-approved court reporting programs.
To be eligible to apply for the CASE Student Scholarship, students must meet the criteria below:
- Attend an NCRA-approved court reporting program;
- Hold student membership in NCRA;
- Have attained an exemplary academic record;
- Have passed one skills test writing 140-180 words per minute at the time of submission.
How to apply
The following documents are required to be submitted for application:
- CASE Student Scholarship speed verification form
- CASE Student Scholarship recommendation form
- A copy of the student's most recent transcript
- Required Essay
Essay subject: If you were asked to provide advice on the following three topics to current students learning to write steno, what advice would you offer?- Overcoming test anxiety
- Dealing with frustration encountered while building skills
- Learning the best ways to practice
Nominations are being solicited for Stenograph’s Milton H. Wright Memorial Scholarship. Students from NCRA-approved reporter education programs are encouraged to apply for the merit-based two-year award, which is worth up to $5,000 per year and will include use of a student writer and software. Full details here.
Eligibility
To be eligible to apply for the Milton H. Wright Memorial Scholarship, students must meet the criteria below:
- Attend an NCRA-approved court reporting program
- Have completed an NCRA A to Z ® Intro to Steno Machine Shorthand program
- Have received an NCRA A to Z ® Certificate of Completion
- Have attained an exemplary academic record (3.5 GPA or above)
- Have passed one skills test writing 80-120 words per minute at the time of submission
ABC, NBC, CBS?? Nah...we have your fav channels right here!
http://www.channels.ev360es.com/
CCR is accredited.
College of Court Reporting is accredited by the Distance Education Accrediting Commission (DEAC). CCR has maintained accreditation since 1987 and received an initial three-year grant of accreditation from DEAC through June 2021. CCR currently offers an A.A.S. in Court Reporting which was reviewed and approved by DEAC. Website: https://www.deac.org/
It's Not Too Late!
Contact Nicky Rodriquez at 866-294-3974 ext. 222 or nicky.rodriquez@ccr.edu for more information.
College of Court Reporting
Email: info@ccr.edu
Website: www.ccr.edu
Location: Valparaiso, IN, United States
Phone: 219-531-1459
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/ccr.edu/
Twitter: @collegecourtrep