by Kenda Culpepper
Rockwall County Criminal District Attorney
I have been a member of the Texas Bar College since 1998. I am honored to now serve as its Chair and lead an impressive and diverse group of Board members from all across the State and in many different practice areas. From judges and prosecutors to corporate counsel and partners at some of the most elite firms in the state, our team represents the best of the best. And that makes sense, because, as the honor society of the bar, Texas Bar College members are certainly among the leaders in our profession.
The Board recently engaged in a Strategic Planning meeting. This is an opportunity to look at an organization in depth and from a different perspective. Not to criticize the past but to look to the future. And one theme came to light. Texas Bar College lawyers love being lawyers – they are proud of their profession and are often actively engaged in improving that profession. So, what do TBC members care about?
- Texas Bar College members care about learning. Members commit to completing twice the minimum CLE requirements every year. The Texas Bar College supports this mission by hosting some of the best CLEs in the State. Summer School: Sun, Sand, and CLE is in its 27th year and is one of the only multi-day courses that provides instruction on topics from Criminal Law to Property Law to Family Law and just about everything in between. I leave that course with a better basic understanding of the general practice of law, and that broad understanding has often helped me in my chosen niche of Criminal Prosecution. The Texas Bar College also hosts multiple webcasts on various topics every year, and members receive a discount.
- Texas Bar College members care about professionalism. When you are proud of your profession, you are apt to be more professional. TBC members recognize the benefits of being collegial and working together (most of the time) because that helps us achieve our goals in a case or matter. When I was Chair of the State Bar of Texas Professionalism Committee, I spent a lot of time talking about the Texas Lawyers Creed. TBC members try to live by that Creed by maintaining a professional reputation that makes a positive impression on their clients, judges and their colleagues. I truly believe that, in a close call, judges are more apt to rule in favor of a professional lawyer that they respect. TBC members understand that a reputation takes a lifetime to achieve and a minute to lose, and they work hard to maintain that good reputation.
- Texas Bar College members care about their communities. In the last several years alone, the College has awarded approximately $150,000 in grants to worthy projects all over Texas. These range from raising funds for lawyers in distress after natural disasters, to helping school-aged children in Galveston, to funding scholarships for Texas Opportunity and Justice Incubator cohorts committed to serving Texans who fall into the access to justice gap, to financially supporting CLEs for regional bar associations. The Texas Bar College Endowment Fund was established in 2005 and has grown exponentially since that time because of the generosity of state-wide lawyers. Members understand the gift of giving back to communities that support them.
- Texas Bar College members care about excellence. The TBC gives out some of the most coveted awards in our industry. The Jim D. Bowmer Professionalism Award recognizes a member based on their contribution to professionalism. The Franklin Jones Award recognizes a member for an outstanding CLE article. The Patrick Nester Award recognizes a Texas attorney for their significant impact on the legal community’s professional development. The Steven G. Condos Award recognizes an outstanding first-year member of the College, and the Merianne Gaston Award recognizes excellence in legal support. The Texas Bar College Awards Committee works hard to vet the many nominations for these awards; the 2025 winners will be announced soon.
Texas Bar College Board members are spending time building awareness about the TBC. We have a table and literature at state-wide CLE courses including many of the TexasBarCLE advanced courses. We are also developing a speech about the College that will qualify for CLE credit. If you need content for an upcoming local or regional bar meeting, please contact Executive Director Hedy Bower. She can help to schedule a regional Texas Bar College Board member to speak to your association. We want to answer your questions about this extraordinary organization.
The Texas Bar College is a jewel in our profession. Do you know someone who qualifies for membership? Check those initial qualifications again on the website (45 hours in one year or 80 hours over 3 years) if it’s been a while since you joined. For $75.00 a year, membership is a bargain. PLUS, you get free swag, including an online subscription to the TexasBarCLE Online Library (a $295 value). It is so easy to join; encourage others to check out our website for an application and more membership perks at www.texasbarcollege.com.
I am incredibly proud to be a member of the Texas Bar College and an Honored Endowment Fund Scholar. If you have any questions, there is a lot more information on our website or please don’t hesitate to call me or any of our Board members. We have lots to talk about! ♦
Kenda Culpepper | Texas Bar College Board Officer and 28-Year College Fellow
Kenda is currently serving her fifth term as the elected Criminal District Attorney in Rockwall County, Texas, and she was the first woman to take office as a DA in the history of North Texas. After graduating from Southern Methodist University School of Law, she was a prosecutor in the trial division of the Dallas County District Attorney’s Office. After leaving the DA’s office, she practiced Criminal Law throughout the State of Texas and became Board Certified in Criminal Law in 1999. She is a past President of the Texas District and County Attorneys Association and on the Executive Board of the National District Attorneys Association. She also serves on the Board of Directors of the State Bar of Texas, the Texas Bar Foundation, and the Texas Bar College. Culpepper is a co-founder of the Rockwall County Children’s Advocacy Center and the North Texas Regional Veterans Court and sits on state-wide task forces combatting issues including family violence, child abuse, and human trafficking.
Culpepper has received multiple awards including the “2021 Texas Prosecutor of the Year” by the State Bar of Texas and TDCAA, the 2018 “Living Legend Award” by the Dallas HELP Foundation, and the 2015 “Lone Star Award” for her work in the capital murder conviction of a man who killed two Texas prosecutors. Kenda has been named as a “Texas Super Lawyer” by Texas Monthly Magazine, one of the “Best Lawyers in Dallas” by D Magazine, and among “America’s Most Influential Women” by Forbes SkyRadio. In 2022, she was named by the Manhattan Institute for Policy Research’s City Journal as one of “The Five Best Prosecutors in America.”
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