PERSONAL STATEMENT OF
ANNIE T. KAO
FOR NAPABA SECRETARY

Thank you for your consideration of my candidacy for the 2009-2010 Secretary position. I have been privileged to serve as the NAPABA Southwest Regional Governor for the past two years and would be honored to continue to serve NAPABA’s members as an officer. My experience as NAPABA’s Southwest Regional Governor has given me valuable insight into NAPABA’s governance and has enhanced my respect for its Board members. I am very proud to be part of this extraordinary organization.

Locally, I am a former President of the Asian Pacific American Bar Association of Colorado and am currently a trial attorney at the Denver office of Hogan & Hartson, LLP. After being raised in Colorado, I graduated from Amherst College in Massachusetts and the George Washington University Law School in Washington, D.C.

As Secretary, I will focus on ensuring accurate and prompt record-keeping and preservation practices. As many state and local APA affiliates know, a historical record for a diverse APA community is often very difficult to reconstruct if contemporaneous records are inaccurate or sparse. At its core, the Secretary position requires an attention to record-keeping detail that I will take seriously and perform well. I am comfortable with technology and will use it appropriately to keep NAPABA’s records accurate and complete.

NAPABA’s most serious challenge in the coming year is the economy and its impact on fundraising. In a time when many companies and law firms are compelled to reassess which organizations should be the beneficiary of valuable resources, the coming year presents a critical opportunity for NAPABA actively to show—and not just to describe—NAPABA’s value. In exhibiting NAPABA’s invaluable services to both its members and the broader community, NAPABA must show that is an efficient, fiscally responsible organization worthy of a place on even the tightest budget.

Streamlined, efficient governance begins with a focused message, organized communication, and strong relationships. Externally, showing NAPABA’s value requires an ability to communicate NAPABA’s mission with an organized and unified voice. Internally, showing NAPABA’s value requires an ability to keep members promptly informed of NAPABA’s numerous resources, at both the local and national level. As Secretary, I will assist the Board with both its external outreach and its internal service to NAPABA’s members, by helping the Board focus and record its discussions and actions in an organized fashion. To advocate for NAPABA and its principles, I will draw upon the strong relationships I have with the current NAPABA Board of Governors as well as with numerous APA and non-APA leaders at the state and local levels.

As Secretary, I will draw upon my previous experience gained from serving as NAPABA’s Southwest Regional Governor from 2007-2009, which involved active participation on the NAPABA Board on behalf of NAPABA’s Colorado, Texas, and Arizona affiliates. In 2007-2008, I was the President of APABA of Colorado after serving on its Board since 2003. In my role as the APABA of Colorado President, I gained valuable experience organizing significant fundraising and community service activities. Currently, I am also a member of the Board of Trustees for the Denver Bar Association.