In response to our members' needs and concerns, the Tennessee Court Reporters Association Board has made the decision to designate more of our Web site's content as members-only.

When you come to TCRA's homepage, you will notice that certain information and links are no longer available to the public.   Members need only log in with their username and password to access all the resources and links available on our site.  

If you do not know your TCRA username or password:

• You may click on "Forgot login" in the "Member Area" in the left-hand module.  Then check the appropriate box and enter your e-mail address.  Choose "Send Username".   An e-mail with your login information will be sent to the e-mail address on file with TCRA.

• You may e-mail our This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. , if you have any difficulties. 

If you are not yet a member of the Tennessee Court Reporters Association, you may join online today!  For a quick look at benefits of membership, click here.

Sheryl Weatherford

TCRA President

School supplies are bought.  Backpacks are packed.  It’s time to move college students into their dorm rooms like I just did.  As parents, aunts, uncles, and grandparents, we all take time to prepare children to enter new stages in their educational ladder.  As court reporters, we must take time in our busy schedules to continue our education and to take stock in our profession, which is what CE (continuing education) is all about.  It is important that court reporters remain current on the latest trends available in our field so that we can always apply the most recent skills and technology for our clients.    

Now that July 1, 2010, has come and gone and we are all Licensed Court Reporters in the state of Tennessee, it is time to start thinking about continuing our education.  We need to be ready to embrace the idea that we can always learn new skills and technology.  Continuation education will help all court reporters further their knowledge base in areas such as English (I know I can never have enough refresher courses in this subject), computers, and individual CAT software programs, just to name a few different areas of interest.   Attending conventions is a great way for all of us to further our education.  I personally hope all members of TCRA will look to this organization to help you earn the required hours for our licensure.   Conventions can be expensive but the knowledge gained, the people you meet and the friendships that develop surpass any costs.

Court reporters, get ready to fill your backpacks (machine cases or briefcases) with new technology, new gadgets, and new knowledge that you have gleaned from your continuing education seminars and classes.

Why I Can't Wait to Become a Court Reporter

By Serena White

I am now in my third semester at Southwest Community College in the Court Reporting Program. I can't believe how fast it is flying by and how far I have come.  When I first started the program it was so incomprehensible that I had to understand my theory through and through.  How could I learn something so foreign?  And now, it feels like my first language! It seemed inconceivable that you could actually write that theory on that little machine at 30 wpm.  And then, wow, I'm writing at 40 and then 60 with 80 and 100 being right around the corner.  The theory started to make sense and my fingers started to follow suit.  Every time I get a little faster or something becomes more automatic, it is just unbelievable.  The more I learn, the more I love it.  And what seemed so impossible now seems completely possible!

Court Reporting fills my thoughts all day.  It's hard to listen to the radio anymore without trying to write the songs in my head.  It's hard to listen to people speak anymore without writing what they are saying in my head, especially if a word comes out that I have never stroked.  Most nights I go to bed with my theory on my mind and then dream about briefs.

It is so hard to believe that I am almost halfway there.  I hear so many different stories of how long it took people to get done with school.  Some say it has taken several years and some say just a couple of years.  But I feel like this is becoming something natural and I know if I just keep practicing that I will be done in no time.

I can't wait to be a real court reporter.  I can't wait to drive to my first appointment.  I can't wait to swear in my first witnesses.  I can't wait to edit my first real transcript.  I can't wait for it to completely change my life!