Opting Back In Program

The Opting Back In program was started in fall 2006 as a four- or eight-week coaching, networking and educational program on the UC Hastings campus in San Francisco. For the last year and a half, it has taken the form of a twice-a-month, conference-call workshop with Linda Marks, director of training and special projects at the Center for WorkLife Law at Hastings, and Ellen Ostrow, a Maryland-based licensed psychologist, certified coach and law firm consultant, and up to 10 lawyers who took time out from their careers. They have mostly been women who wanted more time at home with their children.  The Center currently is running three groups and expects to start more.

Joan Williams, Distinguished Professor of Law at Hastings and director of the Center for WorkLifeLaw, said those who are re-entering the profession after an absence need three things simultaneously: a self-examination process to figure out what the next career step is; contacts who can help them weigh the next goal, and a mechanism by which they can take concrete steps to achieve the goal, including creating a plan within the family to deal with the change in home and work life.

Go to the Opting Back in Program web page.