Mission Statement
A diverse and inclusive community is essential to the success of our lawyers, business professionals, and clients. Indeed we believe that nurturing an environment where people from various backgrounds feel welcome and respected leads to creative ideas and new perspectives that enrich the practice of law. To that end, Parker Poe intentionally cultivates an inclusive workplace with talented lawyers and business professionals with diverse experiences and perspectives. We meet our personnel where they are and ensure everyone has a path to success.
Our Commitment
“Each person at Parker Poe is different, and those differences lift our entire firm. So we work to build an environment where everyone feels welcome and respected, which in turn serves our fundamental goals: building community, solidifying relationships, and finding the best ways to serve our clients.”
-Tom Griffin, Managing Partner
Parker Poe’s firm commitment to building a strong community has deep roots. For almost 20 years we have had a Diversity & Inclusion Committee focused on building a welcoming and inclusive workplace. We were also one of the first firms in the Southeast to establish dedicated leadership for our diversity efforts. Through the committee and our administrative leadership, we continually think about ways to enhance and improve our community, discussions which have resulted in recruiting and retaining talented attorneys from different backgrounds, and ensuring that all voices are heard in our ongoing efforts to be the best firm we can be.
Parker Poe is fortunate to have lawyers who recognize that our commitments apply equally to the legal industry and the communities in which we live and practice. For that reason, you will find many of our lawyers leading community initiatives and participating in partnerships with organizations who share our commitment to a diverse and welcoming community.
Here are some of the concrete ways Parker Poe has advanced our commitments:
- In 2024, we achieved nationally recognized Mansfield Certification for the second straight year from Diversity Lab. Mansfield certification validated our long-standing commitment to building a strong, inclusive workforce with the most talented lawyers and business professionals from diverse and varied backgrounds.
- We are a founding member of the Carolinas Social Impact Initiative, a coalition of 24 law firms working to reduce systemic barriers to social and economic mobility in the Carolinas. The coalition is focused on four areas: supporting disadvantaged businesses and entrepreneurs; advancing educational opportunities; supporting family stability and social justice; and improving access to social capital and career opportunities.
- Thirty years ago, we endowed the Parker Poe Scholars Program at Johnson C. Smith University (JCSU), an HBCU located in Charlotte, North Carolina. This endowed scholarship provides financial support and a mentorship program to undergraduate students interested in the law. To date, the program has granted scholarships to 15 students who aspire to become attorneys.
- Parker Poe actively recruits at the Southeastern Law School Consortium (SELSC) in Atlanta, Georgia. Through our participation in SELSC, we have the opportunity to interview students from a pool of 50 ABA-approved law schools across the region.
- Since 2010, Parker Poe has organized a panel of lawyers and business professionals to spend a portion of their afternoon with high school students participating in the Mecklenburg County Court Camp, which is designed for students interested in learning about the court system and the practice of law.
- “It meant a lot, especially for the fact that I’ve never been inside a law firm and didn’t know what to expect,” said Jalen Lowery, a 16-year-old who participated at Parker Poe. “It’s good to see that people who look like you can work in these fields.”
- Parker Poe reinforces its commitment to building a diverse and inclusive workplace through firmwide training sessions, team building, relationship building, and interaction with firm leadership.
- The firm offers alternative work schedule options to accommodate attorneys who strive to continue working while maintaining family commitments, civic engagement, and other personal obligations.
- Parker Poe has a professional development program, Parker Poe Institute, that provides a structured path for all attorneys to learn on the job and invest in their careers with the support of senior associates and partners. The program includes a shadowing component that pairs non-partner attorneys with more experienced attorneys, helping to build relationships and develop legal skills.
We are proud of the community we have built at Parker Poe, and our Diversity & Inclusion Committee helps us continue to focus on the things that matter. The committee works to develop new ways to promote cultural awareness, celebrate our differences, build strong relationships within our firm, and identify qualified and talented students and lawyers who may be interested in planting their flag at Parker Poe. The committee is made up of partners, associates, and business professionals who commit significant time to:
- Build on the culture of inclusion that makes Parker Poe welcoming and successful.
- Guide the firm’s efforts to recruit, support, and ultimately retain attorneys and business professionals from a variety of backgrounds.
- Partner with organizations striving to make their communities more open and accepting.
- Educate people inside and outside the firm about the important work we have done to foster a welcoming community of different people.
Below are the members of our Diversity & Inclusion Committee:
Our Diverse Leaders
- Brian Cromwell, Joy Hord, Rebecca Joyner, and Christian Torgrimson currently serve on the firm’s board of directors. Catharine Biggs Arrowood, Anthony Fox, Debbie Kleman, and Stacy Wood previously served on the board.
- Chief Talent, Diversity & Inclusion Officer Shalanna Pirtle oversees all aspects of talent management at Parker Poe and leads our efforts to develop a diverse and inclusive community.
- Marie Johns serves as CEO of PPC-Leftwich in Washington, DC, an affiliate of Parker Poe that continues the legacy of Willie Leftwich, who founded a long-standing minority/woman-led firm in the nation’s capital. Marie is also the lead independent director of the merged City First Bank and Broadway Financial, which combined to form the largest Black-led bank in the country with more than $1 billion in assets.
- Corri Hopkins serves on the North Carolina Bar Association's Sexual Orientation and Gender Identity Committee.
- Former Director of Diversity & Inclusion Chara O’Neale was a member of the Mecklenburg County Bar’s Diversity & Inclusion Committee.
- Former Director of Diversity Sidney Evering served on the South Carolina Chamber of Commerce’s Diversity Council and was an inaugural member of the S.C. Bar’s Diversity Task Force. The task force later became the SC Bar’s Diversity Committee, which Sidney chaired. He was also recruited by the Riley Institute at Furman University as a participant in the Diversity Leaders Initiative. In 2021, he became city administrator of Orangeburg, his hometown in South Carolina.
- Amy Allen Hinson in Greenville is a graduate of the Riley Institute at Furman University’s Diversity Leaders Initiative.
- Bill Farthing served as the vice chairman and ultimately the chairman of the Special Committee on Diversity of the Mecklenburg County Bar (MCB), which subsequently became the MCB Diversity and Inclusion Committee.
- Josephine Hicks served for many years on the Charlotte Chamber’s Diversity Officers Roundtable. She also has been a featured speaker on diversity panels for the Association of Corporate Counsel and the Mecklenburg Bar Leadership Institute.
- Rebecca Joyner was instrumental in the creation of NC Women in Public Finance. This organization is a trade group that promotes mentoring, networking, and education among women working in the public finance industry.
- Several lawyers at Parker Poe have participated and currently participate in the Mecklenburg County Bar Lunch with a Lawyer Program for middle school students.
Awards & Recognition
Parker Poe’s diverse, inclusive, and welcoming environment for lawyers and business professionals has been recognized for almost 20 years. Chambers of Commerce, media outlets, and professional associations in different markets have named Parker Poe and its lawyers the recipient of awards designed to spotlight law firms and lawyers with a commitment to welcoming different people and providing opportunity to all. Some of our more recent awards are highlighted below.
- In 2024, Parker Poe was named a finalist for the second straight year for the Minority Corporate Counsel Association (MCCA) Thomas L. Sager Award, a national award recognizing law firms committed to building an inclusive community that benefits everyone.
- In 2024, North Carolina Lawyers Weekly named Melanie Dubis and Kristen Bateman Leis to its list of "50 Most Influential Women." Melanie and Kristen were recognized for their commitment to North Carolina’s legal and business communities.
- The Charlotte Business Journal named Shalanna Pirtle among its Power 100 in 2023. Shalanna was recognized as one of "the region’s leading players in building a more diverse and inclusive Charlotte," according to the publication.
- In 2021, Catharine Biggs Arrowood was the inaugural recipient of Parker Poe's Women’s Achievement Award, which is now named after Catharine. She was a female pioneer in North Carolina’s legal community. The award winners since Catharine have been Josephine Hicks in 2022, Marie Johns in 2023, Melanie Dubis in 2024, and Rebecca Joyner in 2025.
- Business journals in Charleston, Charlotte, and the Triangle have named our attorneys among the 40 top business leaders under the age of 40 in their regions. Our attorneys who have been recognized for their successful legal practice, community involvement, and overall impact include Catherine Clodfelter, Megan Dunham, Maya Engle, Sarah Hutchins, Emily Luther, and Chara O'Neale.
- The North Carolina Bar Association honored Anthony Fox as a Legal Legend of Color in 2020. Anthony was recognized for the significant impact of his legal career in North Carolina, as well as for demonstrating a high level of service to the community.
- SmartCEO announced Parker Poe as a winner of its Charlotte Corporate Culture Award in 2017, which recognizes companies that foster creative, collaborative workplace cultures. “That philosophy extends to clients, the community and employees alike, and includes diversity as a crucial aspect,” SmartCEO wrote about our firm.
- In 2017, Sidney Evering became the first recipient of the South Carolina Bar’s Diversity Spotlight, which the Bar created to recognize members of the legal community “at the forefront in striving to increase diversity within the profession.”
- Adrianne Chillemi, Sarah Hutchins, Shalanna Pirtle, and Wanda Townsend are among our attorneys who have been named among the “50 Most Influential Women” in the Charlotte area by The Mecklenburg Times. The winners were nominated and judged by their peers, with an emphasis on community leadership and influence.
- The Best Lawyers in America, Chambers USA, and other publications have ranked many of our attorneys among the top lawyers in their fields.