Karen McElrath

After Karen McElrath’s separation from her husband, she knew she needed to find adequate employment to support her three children. Being out of the work force for so long, Karen decided to return to school.

“During my marriage, my husband owned a very successful business which allowed me to be a stay-at-home mother, so I lacked any real experience to obtain a career. I had always been interested in law, so I looked into the Paralegal program at the Salter School in Tewksbury, MA,” Karen explained.

After learning that the program had no extra academic courses to sit though, just highly-focused career education, she decided to enroll.

Karen expressed, “I enjoyed going to school everyday because it made me feel good to do something for myself. I gained a lot of self confidence and it was also nice to have something positive to talk to my kids about. My kids thought it was great that I was going back to school and especially loved the fact I had homework, just like them!”

After graduating, Karen accepted a Paralegal position at a law office. “It has turned out to be exactly what I wanted,” Karen stated. “I have a wide range of responsibilities from basic administrative duties to drafting interrogatories, interacting with clients, and legal research. I am the attorney’s right hand woman and feel like I am part of a team.” 

In addition, Karen shares, “If it wasn’t for going to Salter School, I wouldn’t be where I am today. It not only helped my life financially by being able to get a career with a great starting salary, but it also helped me through a hard time in my life. This experience has broadened my horizons and I have begun a career in a field that I am passionate about. To anyone contemplating going back to school, especially those re-entering into the work force - Just do it.”