Roosevelt University - Paralegal Studies Program

Graduate/Faculty Profiles
Paralegal Studies Program

GRADUATE PROFILES

New Graduate Profiles coming soon!

FACULTY PROFILES

LORRI AMBROSE

Lorri Ambrose joined the Paralegal Studies Program faculty in the Spring 2002 term and teaches Legal Research and Legal Writing in the full-time day program. She has extensive teaching experience and has taught at three different schools College of DuPage, William Rainey Harper College and Robert Morris College. Lorri earned her Bachelor of Science degree from the University of Illinois at Urbana and her Juris Doctor from Loyola University Chicago Law School. She has also completed an online teach certificate at the University of Illinois at Chicago. In addition to teaching, Lorri maintains a part-time law practice. She advises small businesses on various legal issues and handles domestic relations cases. She also conducts training seminars for pro se litigants involved in paternity and child support cases. She has appeared on a cable television show as a guest speaking on divorce and child support issues.

Lorri is enjoying her teaching experience in the Paralegal Studies Program and finds the students at Roosevelt to be motivated, disciplined, and astute. She says that she gets excited about teaching her class and enjoys preparing to meet her students’ challenging questions and comments. She looks forward to discussing the practical side of the practice of law with her students while at the same time engaging them in the process of finding and analyzing the law. Lorri thinks of teaching at Roosevelt as an opportunity to build relationships with other legal professionals as they embark upon their careers. She encourages her students to maintain contact with her after they leave the program. The Paralegal Studies Program is delighted to have Lorri as a member of the faculty and wishes her continued success in all of her endeavors.

BRAD JANSEN

After a three-year absence, Brad Jansen rejoined the Paralegal Studies Program in the fall of 2002, and again is teaching Pre-Trial Litigation. And Brad is glad to be back. "I really missed teaching at Roosevelt. The facilities at 18 South Michigan are great for the program, but the best part is working again with the faculty, staff and students. I learn as much from my students' work and life experiences as I hope they learn about litigation. I enjoy the challenge of making the subject matter interesting for our students. And teaching helps keeps my litigation skills sharp, too."

Brad earned his Bachelor of Arts in English with Honors from the University of Illinois at Chicago and is a high honors graduate of the Chicago-Kent College of Law. Brad has been practicing law since 1983, but his teaching experience dates back to the late 1970s, when he taught in the English Department at Thornwood High School in South Holland, Illinois. In 1980, Brad enrolled at Chicago-Kent College of Law, where he tutored legal writing students. After graduating with high honors in 1983, Brad joined the law firm of Friedman & Koven, where he practiced commercial litigation. For the next eight years, Brad worked in private practice, occasionally presenting in-house training programs to corporate clients on a variety of legal issues.

In late 1991, Brad joined the legal department of the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation, where he met Paralegal Studies Program instructor Jim Fine. Jim encouraged Brad to submit his resume to Roosevelt, and Brad started teaching in the Paralegal Studies Program in the spring of 1992. Brad taught real estate and litigation courses. In 1996, Brad joined the Chicago Transit Authority's legal department, where he specializes in labor, employment and civil rights law. Brad represents CTA management in labor arbitrations and before the Illinois Department of Human Rights, the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission, the Illinois Labor Relations Board, and state and federal courts, where he has obtained numerous summary judgments for CTA in employment discrimination cases. Brad is a member of the ABA's Labor & Employment Law Committee.

Recently the CTA's Law Department asked Brad to help develop an in-house training program for its paralegals. Brad expects the program to consist of twelve monthly workshops. "Our general counsel really emphasizes continuing legal education, for our attorneys as well as paralegals. The in-house program will be one element of our paralegals' continuing education. We also expect them to enroll in the Roosevelt Paralegal Studies Program CLE courses, particularly Judge Lewis Nixon's course '100 Days to Trial' and the course on medical terminology and records." In Brad's view, rapid changes in technology and ongoing developments in the law require legal professionals to constantly update their skills and knowledge. "That is why the Paralegal Studies Program CLE programs are so critical--they can cover specific topics that a law firm or corporation may not have the time or resources to address."

Brad makes his home in Deerfield. He has three children: Kelly, Conor and Ryan. For exercise, Brad runs to the Metra train station and roams the aisles of Crow's Nest, Rock Records and used bookstores. He also enjoys playing the live-action version of "Don't wake Daddy" with his young progeny. The Paralegal Studies Program is fortunate to have such high caliber professionals like Brad on its faculty and hope that he is able to continue teaching for the program for a long time to come.

CHERYL KETTLER

Cheryl Kettler began teaching the program’s Commercial Law course in the Fall 2003 semester. She attributes her interest in teaching to past “transitional” career experiences. Cheryl earned a Bachelor of Arts degree from George Washington University. “I thought about law school, but wasn’t ready to make the commitment at that time,” she explains. “I wanted to test a few other areas of interest.” After graduation, Cheryl taught public speaking at GWU and worked with a DC lobbying law firm. Her job required her to read newspapers, clip articles of interest and make daily runs to Capitol Hill to obtain bills and reports of interest to the firm’s clients. “I enjoyed the exposure to the political process, but chose to try other fields before settling on a legal career,” Cheryl states.

Two years later, Cheryl managed luxury hotels. She quit to go to law school four years later. “My family thought I was crazy to quit my job.” Her family came around when Cheryl graduated as Editor-in-Chief of the Law Review and first in her class from Catholic University of America’s Law School. Following graduation, Cheryl spent fifteen years as a tax/corporate attorney with large law firms in Washington, DC and Chicago and general counsel for a local restaurant group. As a partner at Schuyler, Roche & Zwirner from 1997-2001, Cheryl supervised the firm’s corporate paralegals, including a Roosevelt graduate. Today Cheryl is a solo practitioner who enjoys teaching at Roosevelt, too. “Whenever I’ve come to a fork in the road, I’ve taken both paths, and the choice has worked for me.”

Cheryl enjoys the opportunity to work with Roosevelt students. “They are bright, communicative and intellectually curious.” She tries to give students an “authentic” paralegal experience. Students work on a hypothetical client’s matters, preparing the same types of memoranda, correspondence and forms as paralegals in practice. In Cheryl’s class, a successful paralegal work ethic starts with professionalism, preparedness and punctuality. In her judgment, candidates with these traits and Roosevelt’s outstanding academic training will succeed. When she’s not working, Cheryl writes fiction and researches her family tree.

JUDY KULLENBERG

Judy Kullenberg started her legal career as a paralegal, attending the program after graduation from the University of Washington. After completing Roosevelt’s Paralegal Studies Program in 1981, she worked as a paralegal at Prairie State Legal Services which is a legal aid organization serving the northern half of the state. Judy’s experience as a paralegal, ran the gamut from being involved in class action lawsuits ( and helping keep track of all the documents that come with those) to handling her own caseload; representing clients in administrative proceedings such as social security disability, unemployment insurance and public benefits hearings. Because of her enjoyment of such work, she was drawn to law school, continuing to work for Prairie State while completing her J. D. at John Marshall. After graduation, Judy became an assistant public defender in Kane County. After several years of criminal defense work,( and three children) she started a part-time practice specializing in appellate work.

She has also been on the teaching staff of Elgin Community College Paralegal program for seven years, and began teaching Legal Research and Legal Writing at Roosevelt in the fall of 2002. Judy has first hand knowledge of the benefits of Roosevelt program as well as how rewarding a paralegal career can be and communicating this to students is a large part of her motivation to teach.

MICHAEL PINSOF

Michael Pinsof joined the faculty of the Paralegal Studies Program in 1998. Michael has taught Pre-Trial Litigation and Real Estate and is currently teaching Civil Law in the program. Michael is a sole practitioner in Des Plaines, specializing in business and commercial transactions and civil litigation. Michael asked us to point out that he would not be able to exist as a sole practitioner if it weren't for his legal assistant, Jill Schutz. Jill is not only a Paralegal Studies Program graduate, but is also one of Michael’s former students. Jill handles all the "legwork" and document preparation necessary to prepare files for real estate closings. She also drafts routine motions and notices, performs legal research on line, and occasionally does court filings and other errands such as purchase transfer stamps. She is very detail and deadline oriented, which is a crucial skill for a legal assistant.

Michael enjoys teaching at Roosevelt primarily because of the in-class interaction with the students. He finds that RU students are very motivated and committed, and take their paralegal studies seriously. He says that the students challenge him to be prepared every time he walks into class, and very often the students' insights and questions take the class into areas of the subject matter that he had not even considered. Michael applies current legal cases and events to the discussion of the subject matter at hand, and the students seem to respond favorably. He also strives to emphasize the practical aspects of being a paralegal, and stresses their day-to-day functions as assistant to the attorney and liaison with the client.

Michael recently edited the initial draft of a torts textbook designed for paralegals for Aspen Publishing. In doing so, he re-thought many of his own teaching techniques, and adopted some of the methodologies from the book. In terms of professional accomplishments, Michael derives gratification from building his law practice through referrals from satisfied clients. He tries to emphasize to his students that the practice of law is a service business, and a paralegal who can develop good relationships with clients and promote return business for the firm will be a tremendous asset to the attorney or firm who employs him or her.

Michael recognizes that the ultimate goal of his students is to find a job! Accordingly, he tries to help them with interview and resume techniques to prepare them for this challenging pursuit. He also urges them to use the writing assignments they prepare for his class as writing samples for prospective employers. Michael has noted a trend towards paralegal students going on to law school. He has gladly written several recommendations for former students, and believes that their paralegal training prepares them well for law school. Michael earned his bachelor’s degree from the University of Iowa and his law degree from DePaul University College of Law. His extensive experience, teaching style and “approachability” makes him a favorite instructor among Paralegal Studies Program students

Paralegal Studies Program