Article below is courtesy of the Federal Executive Board
Robert S. (“Bob”) Hasson highly merits the Federal Executive Board Mentoring/Coaching Award. Bob has been a very effective and dedicated mentor and coach for ten years both in his work at the Environmental Protection Agency Office of Regional Counsel (EPA), and as an assistant track coach at Haverford College. He has had an important positive impact on the lives of hundreds of young people throughout this time. Bob has done these activities in addition to his highly demanding and successful work on numerous environmental cases as one of EPA Region III’s Senior Assistant Regional Counsels.
At EPA, Bob has been the leader of the Region’s extraordinarily successful law clerk program since 2005. Many talented volunteer law students from area law schools, including Temple, Villanova and the University of Pennsylvania have worked at EPA’s law office for a semester or for the summer. EPA has greatly benefitted from the contributions of these energetic and determined students, and the students have hugely benefitted from experience working on cutting edge environmental law research, and participating in pending cases and negotiations. Administering the program, which Bob has embraced, involves the basic hard work of coordinating with schools, coordinating and participating in student interviews, and helping students get oriented at EPA. Bob has put in significant amounts of time on these logistics, frequently on his own time. He is devoted to keeping this program vibrant, because he realizes how valuable it is to the students, and to the whole office. His work has provided key opportunities to numerous students. The spring and fall programs generally have involved six students, and the summer program includes typically a dozen full time. That adds up to almost 250 students!
Well above the demanding logistics of the program, Bob individually nurtures each student, and connects with each one. His supervisor often observes him sitting with a student, patiently taking the time to explain a complex legal concept, and discuss it with them, so that they have a true understanding. He provides research opportunities directly to the students, and ensures that their EPA supervisors of record provide them with challenging and appropriate research projects.
A recent intern, Christopher, has high praise for Bob, that throughout the semester: “Bob labored to ensure that [I] and my fellow interns had access to all of the resources necessary to produce excellent work, while also constantly looking for opportunities that would enhance our experiences. I will always be thankful for the time and effort he devoted to the EPA’s law clerk program while I was there. I have no doubt that dozens of past, present, and future law clerks feel the exact same way.”
The summer program is particularly intense. Bob and several co-workers provide formal weekly training on specialized topics by EPA attorneys. A recent summer clerk writes: “Bob was a great mentor and guide throughout my experience as an EPA law clerk. I appreciated that Bob was available at any time, even over lunch or at the end of the workday, to talk about his experience being an EPA attorney, as well as to give general career advice. The summer lectures organized by Bob were an invaluable experience to learn new topics and meet attorneys in the region. I appreciated in particular that Bob invited me to participate in a variety of meetings [which] added depth to the overall Law Clerk experience”. Another clerk adds: “I really can’t say enough good things about Bob as a mentor. Bob was a fantastic teacher and supervisor and gave me a great deal of confidence. I couldn’t imagine a better supervisor or mentor for a student intern, and I feel greatly indebted to him for his guidance.”
Bob has also been a mentor to young attorneys just starting out in the office. One of them has commented: “Bob stood out as someone I could go to for assistance or advice. His busy schedule notwithstanding, he was able to make time to respond to my questions. When answering them, Bob would always give detailed and very helpful answers, often drawing on specific experiences he has had from his years in practice. Bob is also an incredibly engaging advisor, using humor and his natural ability as a storyteller to help make what he has to say sink in. And even in the instances when I was not approaching him for help, Bob was always eager to teach me and help me develop as a younger lawyer. Bob remains someone from whom I will solicit advice regarding my professional life.”
In addition to mentoring law students, Bob has been an Assistant Coach for Men’s Cross Country and Track and Field at his alma mater Haverford College since November 2005. In this capacity, Bob has coached sprinters, hurdlers, jumpers, multi-events, relays and cross country runners. Head Coach Thomas Donnelly comments that in his 40 years of coaching, he has “never seen athletes have so much respect for a coach as our kids have for Bob. Bob has been our most valuable assistant. It is no exaggeration to say that he would absolutely be considered one of the best head coaches in the United States in track and cross country if he were in that role.” Coach Donnelly details that, in addition to Bob’s participation in some afternoon practices, Bob “is often here all day on Saturday and sometimes on Sunday for our competitions. He uses much of his vacation time to go to the three national championships each year, which can take up to a total of ten days.”
One of the athletes writes: “Bob has not only been a tremendous coach to me but he has also been a great mentor. When I first arrived on Haverford’s campus, I had just moved from California and was excited yet had very little direction. Bob immediately became the paternalistic figure that I knew I could put my trust in. Throughout my four years at Haverford, I looked to Bob for guidance in track, but more importantly, in life. Bob always offered me his time and perspective with anything I had questions about or was dealing with at the time. Instead of avoiding difficult conversations or issues, Bob was always patient with me and genuinely wanted to help. Bob’s continued guidance and direction for me is invaluable and I could not have asked for a better mentor.”
Bob’s effective coaching of these young athletes has contributed to their success and the success of their teams: an NCAA cross country title in 2010, five cross country NCAA Mideast Regional titles, and 18 Centennial Conference titles. He served as meet director for the Centennial conference indoor track and field championship for four years, and two years for the Conference’s cross country championship. Haverford College honored Coach Bob with the Larry Forman ’60 Award in 2011.
And Bob’s coaching has been meaningful in the athlete’s lives. James has high praise: “Bob Hasson has made an indelible impact on my life. From my first practice to my final practice, he was the impetus for my growth as a runner. Somewhere along the way, Bob also became the catalyst for my growth as a person. Bob has a way of inspiring young men by challenging our understanding of ourselves and forcing us to prove day in and day out that we are as strong as we think. Bob essentially gave me the resources and an example that drove me to dive head first into a career in medicine. All I had to do was take the confidence and work ethic that he taught me on the track and apply it to all aspects of my life. The time, detail professionalism he puts into his coaching is a model that I will follow for the rest of my life.” James even featured Bob in his medical school application: “During my entire college career, Coach Bob made a continuous effort to prepare me for competition while closely monitoring my progress. Likewise, it is my goal to be a physician that takes his time to prepare his patients for life outside of medical facilities.”