Manor College’s The Nest: Heather Hagerty ‘92
Heather Hagerty ‘92 is the Founder and CEO of H&H Settlement Services, an Independent Title Insurance Company. Hagerty graduated from Manor College with her Associate’s Degree in Paralegal Studies.
During the podcast, Hagerty talks about coming to Manor College, discovering her career path, life as a paralegal and not giving up on yourself.
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Episode 9 Transcript
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[Music] Hello Blue Jays and welcome to the nest stories about life after Manor College. I am your host Kelly Peiffer vice president of marketing communications and this is the best part of my day. My hope is that this podcast will encourage, inform, and inspire you. Making you feel like at Manor College you belong here always. Before we get to today's guest, it is time for a segment of the show I like to call Did You Know? Today's fun fact actually was one that I I personally did not know and I have
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worked at the college here for almost 12 years. So I feel like I know quite a bit but this one definitely got me. So for today's did you know did you know that in the late 90s Manor College offered distance learning programs that were broadcasted on WHYY channel 12. That's right. In 1996, Manor College embraced distance learning by broadcasting some of its courses on WHY, our local NPR station, channel 12. These programs were specifically designed to cater to students who can't attend full-time on campus. This is like early
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online learning what we have today. So these inaugural courses offered was introduction to psychology and it had an enrollment of six students. Due to its initial success, the televised courses became available to the entire student body just a year later. So each course would typically have about 26 hours long of lectures that were broadcasted twice a week throughout a typical semester, which is about 13 to 15 weeks. The lectures were aired on channel 12 between 1 and 5:00 p.m. where students would record them probably to a VHS. Um,
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that's a throwback right there. Record them for later viewing. So, I I just I I can and can't imagine this like being on your TV recording your class that then you'll watch back later on your TV again on a VHS and then you know maybe you make an assignment or you write something that you'll hand in for a grade. So, interesting enough, these students that were in this tele televised course only had to come to campus three times for in the terms in the term of the semester for orientation, for a midterm, and for the
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final exam. So, this you know, it was innovative. This innovative approach kind of highlights how Manor was an early adopter of distance learning to try to reach a wider range of students and just really accommodate students and where they're at. I think it's kind of neat that today, you know, almost 30 years later, we are doing the kind of the same thing. Obviously, we're not broadcasting it on our local NPR station. Um, but we do have a lot of hybrid high flex and distance learning um where students can take online
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instruction. So, the one that we utilize probably the most is high flex model, which is really students can attend in person. We also will record that in-person class where it can be streamed either live while it's happening or streamed for later. So, it's recorded and put into a we have um a learning management system called Canvas. So, while on campus sometimes um students can still go to class in person if they want. If they can't make it that day for whatever reason, they can watch it later. So just trying to be flexible
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because we understand obviously the life of a student is pretty pretty busy and different than maybe what it was back in the day. Um some of our examples of programs that have probably the most hybrid and high flex options include business management, early childhood education and child development. Our criminal justice, public policy, and cyber crime programs. We also offer a program where you can either receive a laptop to use while you're a student or um you can loan a laptop from our library or some other ways that we have
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here. So definitely trying to always be flexible for our students since the '9s. So that's kind of today's did you know. Welcome back. Today we have a fantastic guest joining us who has deep roots from right here in our Philadelphia area. Our g our guests grew up in the charming town of Rockledge and spent their formative years at St. Cecilia's in Fox Chase before heading to Bishop McDevitt High School in Glenside. Their academic journey then led them to Manor College where they pursued their
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passion in paralegal studies earning an associates degree in 1992. Their time at Manor laid a crucial foundation before they transferred to Holy Family University. Fast forward to today and our guest is a successful entrepreneur serving as the founder and CEO of their own independent title insurance company H&H Settlement Services. We are thrilled to hear about her experiences and how her path through higher education and into the business world transpired from the class of 1992. Please join me in giving a warm welcome
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to Manor College alumni Heather Hagerty. Welcome, Heather. Thank you, Kelly, for having me. Of course. Of course. It's so wonderful to talk to you and I'm really excited to hear your story. So, kind of take us back. How did you hear about Manor College and how did you make that decision to attend um for uh paralegal? Uh so, I knew about Manor College as I grew up in Rockledge and the St. Basil's girls across the street. I always wanted to be them as I would drive by MA and then go to Manor. Um, so I knew Manor
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just from growing up in Manor. Yes. Yeah. Around Foxchase. Um, and the second part of your question. Yeah. How did you decide to attend? Deciding to attend. Okay. Uh, really my mother decided for me. Um, a little lost when I was about 19. I had gone away to school and it was not for me. Definitely a homebody. Um, and she really to her credit had the wonderful idea that I should go to Manor and I did and I never looked back. And it was honestly a um really transformative moment in my life and I don't know how where I would
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have ended up had I not stepped foot into Manor. Oh, that's great. Well, I mean mother knows best, right? I feel like that's a saying that's true and sometimes your mom just knows um what their child needs. So kudos to mom for picking that out. Yes, Rockledge is literally our backyard is Rockledge. So it would be hard to not know who we are. Um but growing up in Rockledge and Fox Chase and Basil's um we we miss Basil across the street. They closed a few years ago and it was really really sad. And right now
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there's some things happening in the news around Toll Brothers is is building some senior living condos over there and that's going to be happening kind of soon. But Basil was a great school founded by the same group of sisters who founded the college. So really a special place in all of our hearts. Um so kind of take me back to what was your Manor experience like? What was it what was campus like in the 90s and kind of what how was it like for you to be a student? So, back then, you know, I had um it was
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a only a two-year college, so it was for me sort of like, okay, let's see if college is for me. Um it might have just been I didn't want to go away. Um and I will say it was a mostly commuter school at the time. Uh though there were some foreign, you know, exchange students for sure. Uh much smaller than what it is now. But um the reason I went into paralegal uh studies was although I was I was actually thinking I was get a degree and then go to law school. That was sort of the trajectory in my mind.
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My father was going through a transition in his own job where the company was being sold and he had talked about how he only deals with these paralegals. It was a very new thing at the time. Um so he thought well he said if that's what you're thinking why don't you try paralegal first? see if it's something you like at Manor. So that's what I did. Um I fell in love with it immediately. I just I would credit that to certainly the program run by Diane Pevar at the time. She was such a I was just so inspired by her. Um what she was
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doing that whole program, the teachers that were associated were were actual lawyers. um you know and I wasn't sure I loved you know we had mock trials we had research it was I mean it was like you know it was a lot but I found a nice group where we studied together we really um we fought over internships together we uh found our way so that's that was my very overgeneralized experience at Manor in the paralegal the pro program yeah that That's great. I think so so many I've talked to a handful of alumni
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who are from kind of the same era that you were in paralegal and they all all of you guys kind of say the same thing. Diane Pevar was like a real pillar of strength for all of you and someone that you really leaned on and really like led all of you and in your um those kind of like formative years. So it's really cool to hear that kind of over and over again which means like it must be true. Um, and it's good that you right away were like, "Oh, I really like this." So, what about what about paralegal did you
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like? And can you explain kind of what is a paralegal? Sure. Oh, sure. Um, so what I liked and like you said about Diane, she was a woman. She was just I could identify with, you know, certainly an inspired to what she certainly inspired me in that way. Um, a paralegal is a there's a legal assistant, there's a sec, I mean, back then you had legal secretaries, you know, you had these stenographers, you had, you know, uh, so the paralegal is someone that works with the attorneys that mostly
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um, if you're working in a a law firm that is doing trial work or, you know, things like that, a lot of the paralegals we did the legal research and we you could prepare, you know, and then legal writing as well. Um, I early on that was sort of where I thought I was going. Um, was down that path having thinking, you know, I would be going to law school. Um, the legal research piece, I really enjoy, you know, really liked that. Um, but that's I didn't end up going down that path, but that was the part I
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I probably like the most. Um, I ended up having a teacher at Manor named Marshall Grainer who um he said at the beginning of the year he always picked a student that he would have come work at his law firm, you know, um, as an intern. So that was a real estate law course and then that's when it changed for me that I was like okay yeah real estate that's that's what I want to do like real estate I don't want to be a realtor I don't want to be you know but I like the contractual piece of the contractual
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piece of real estate it wasn't litigation it wasn't as much research but I really enjoyed the contract work and Marshall was an excellent teacher um and I got picked to be as intern right well that that certainly helps too to get that experience Okay. So, that's kind of what put that light bulb into you like, "Oh, actually I like real estate." Yes. Um, okay. So, kind of explain then how have you transitioned from um paralegal to then I believe you went to Holy Family. What did you go to Holy Family for? Um, I
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went there for a four-year degree basically. Uh, yeah. I realize, you know, at that point I um had worked at Marshall's firm for a bit and that was in Glenside. Um and then I back go backwards for a second as it as it I did go for an internship in Center City while I was at Manor. I decided to work with Marshall instead, but I really liked the vibrancy of working in the city as a young person. So, what I ended up doing is leaving Marshall's office and I had worked with the attorney that ran a title company
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for him and to this day we're still friends, you know, excellent. I've been very blessed to work with excellent attorneys, um, great mentors and then I wanted to work in Center City. So, I moved to a law firm in Center City. Um and that there was a requirement in that firm to have a four-year degree um in order to be on the par you know and the paralegal staff as well. So right and then around that time they were sort of offering like paralegal certificates you know kind of things like that but um
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so that's and I wanted to I was already on the path of like school school so I was like let's just keep going so glad that I did as hard as it was to work full-time and go at night you know I know me people have it much harder I didn't have any children I was young you know but so I would go you know to work in the day and then at night go to Holy Family I got a psych a degree in psychology ology from there. Um the don't ask me why I can't even remember why that was sort of I I think it's always good to understand how how
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the brain works and and you know my mind this day certainly certainly feels useful to me. Yeah. I was I think maybe now that I just said that I think it was you know this law firm that I ended up working with um they gave you a MyersBriggs test to Okay. Yeah. were hired to make sure like you fit with what attorney you were like it was very like you know and I I did find his philosophy and all of that very interesting. Um yeah so I worked at that law firm uh made you know working my way through and up to be the
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head paralegal of about 18 paralegals. Um so I worked in center city at 15th and walnut for 16 about 15 years I guess. Um, and that's kind of my life made a change because then by that time I was married and had young children. Um, and you can imagine, you know, it was certainly a a a job that wasn't just 40 hours, you know, you were working a lot, you know. Um, and I thought, "Okay, now I guess it's time to go. You know, maybe I'll be a stay-at-home mom." That lasted uh I give credit to all the stay-at-home moms
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out there. I lasted I lasted less than a week. Oh my goodness. Hardest job in the world, right? Hardest job in the world. No, I uh I um love my children. the uh the I was actually offered a pos um an opportunity to open the law firm I worked at was specialized in corporate relocation which is real estate a very real estate heavy um that we also they also had a title company which I was involved in. I worked more on the law firm side but certainly with the title company at the time. So when I left, you know, it was it was not for
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anything other than personal reasons than to, you know, to sort of I also had to travel a lot. Um, so took a break, which was nice. Um, and then was able to start a title company for a local real estate office. They asked if I would do that for them. Um, while I was just to, you know, either consult with them and do it. I said I would absolutely do that, but I just didn't want to work there full-time. Um, but then that sort of got my entrepreneur bug going a little, I have to admit. Um, you know, I was, you know,
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started that company, hired for that company. Um, and to this day, that company, well, it doesn't, that title company is no longer in existence, but the client that runs it is still is a client of mine now. Oh, wow. Um, yeah. So that led to um me then expanding and going on my own. I started to build a a client base. Had some had a reputation from the law firm I worked at. Had people that were coming to me from that like hey I hear you're doing this thing you know and so you think you know oh maybe if I you know
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I'll just have this little thing and see how it goes. you know, my husband was working. So, I was, you know, and then it turned into by that time it was like 2008, 2009, and my husband, you know, there was a real estate, you know, recession as we all know. Um, and he he was looking at being laid off and um on the flip side, the title company I ran and was a part, you know, in a partner in was flourishing because we were doing all these refinances. So my husband ended up joining us and then the trajectory from there was we because of
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that we had our own H&H Solomon services which is still in here today. Yeah. Yeah. Wow. Wow. That's so cool. Rambling. No. No. I I love it. But I love hearing kind of the the the process of how it all became and the timeline and how you were trying to take a little break to focus on like motherhood and how the passion just stirred up inside you and opportunities came and you just took I did and you know and I I took him with the you know the support of my family of course um and I thought and it
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did work out very well in that I opened the company in Glenside we lived in Glenside so my son my sons went to St. Luke's here in Glenside and I was able to be right there so I could be available and so that was really a special time. They could go to our office after school, you know, and yeah, they were of it. It was fun. Right. Right. They're part of it, you know. It's a family business, so the kids the kids are in it whether you know whether they want to be or not. But I think what a what a cool
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thing for them to see um from their mom. you know, mom's mom's doing this and and that's I think they might I don't know if they if they're old enough now to reflect back on that, but I'm sure at some point they will and will be able to Yeah. kind of garner something from that. I think that's really special that you were able to do that and Yeah, that's awesome. Yeah. Well, that's to say it all started because of Manor. I mean, it really did. I just had, you know, such a great experience
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and it gave me the confidence, I think, now that I was like, "Oh, I can do. Okay, I get it. I can do this. Yeah. Yeah. Oh, that's great. I love hearing that and I love that you're able to see kind of that um that thread line back to Manor and feeling that confidence. That's so important, I think, for every college student regardless of when you come to Manor and what year, what decade. I mean, building your confidence in college is so imperative to then you going out into a career or you going out into starting
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a family or whatever it might be. Um, confidence is key to any of those successes. So, that's really good to hear. Um, so something interesting about you, Heather, is that your son actually attends Manor. Now, even can you can you talk a little bit about kind of as a parent now? What has that experience been like seeing your kids through the college process and kind of just what's the perspective on that? Well, you know, mom knows best as we talked about. So, and uh Aean graduated from Roman Catholic in center city and
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through co that was in COVID time and so he was one of those co junior seniors that just didn't have really school you know kind of the the the best parts of school which is the proms and the graduations and all those things. So, um he was accepted to Bloomsburg University. He was going off. He went off to Bloomsburg. Um CO we thought had let up and then it didn't. They closed Bloomsburg, you know, praisively first they closed the gym, they closed the couch and then he was basically in his room, you know. So we were like this is
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it was just not a good place to be, you know, mentally and you know um so he came home and that was totally fine. Um, I I know that path, you know. Uh, so as we were trying to figure things out with him together and I could see him floundering a bit, my mother's voice came to me and um, she had passed away at the time, but um, I said, "Matt, you know, Aean, I was there and my mother said to me, you know, I think that you should give this school a try." And you know, nothing against the community colleges or
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anything, but if you don't have I feel like if you didn't have a specific reason you're going, it's kind of harder to feel and I know that knew that at Manor he wouldn't be able to hide. He wouldn't be able to, you know, he would they would take care of him and it's so funny, Kelly, because he came I I don't know if but I can tell this. I I I saw like he was like, "Mom, I just had this class." And like, "Oh my god, I can't believe it. I got like a 93 and like I was like I wanted to like burst." I was like, I'm like, "That's
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it. That's confidence right there. He's getting confidence." What you're talking about thing, you got it. And then you know, he hasn't looked back. He's, you know, yeah, he's all he's a sports management major. um again has great professors, great teachers, great community, and um it's really nice to see him doing excelling. Yeah. Oh, how cool. I love I love that so much. Amen. We're cheering you on, bud. I think it's great. Yeah. And he can graduate with his bachelor's, so that's nice, too. Yeah. Yeah. He's going to hopefully
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get that bachelor's degree. And that's so cool. I when um whenever we have families who they have multiple generations who come through the college, we call that a legacy family. So, it's really cool that you guys you guys are a legacy family. Um, and I I love that it kind of goes back to mother knows best. I love that. Personally, as a mom, I'm like, yes, that is so true. That is so true. So, Heather, I I would be remiss if I didn't ask you about um you are going to be um kind of in a special role coming up in a few weeks.
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we have our 2025 commencement ceremony happening in the middle of May and you are going to be this year's alumni speaker. How do you feel about that and kind of what are your thoughts on that? Um how I feel about it is certainly honored, you know. Um I really appreciate that. It um yeah, it just really it's unbelievable to me. I just think of myself at 20 years old and you know here I am stepping into Manor in this way and it's just it's it's a little overwhelming to think about you know the
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the your life. Sure. Yeah. You know and stepping the last time I was at manor you know on that kind of stage was when I graduated and then to come back it's pretty awesome. Yeah there you know. It's going to be great. It's going to be great. I think I can't wait to hear can't wait to hear your words of inspiration for our students. I think um there's always something so special. We always have a commencement speaker and then we have our alumni speaker and I I personally love the alumni speaker
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because I just feel like they get it. They've been there in your physical shoes. They totally have like that same perspective. And I think also the students, they see that and they're like, "Oh, wow." Like this person, you know, they were me x number of years ago. And it's just that connection that you just have and the bond that you have with the students. Even if you don't talk to them, even if you don't know them, there's always that like, oh, I went to Manor. You went to Manor. It's just that, you know, it's so cool to to
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have that. Um, thank you for the opportunity. Oh, of course. We're looking forward to having you. I think it's going to be really, really a nice day. So, um, Heather, as we kind of wrap up, I want to ask you one last question. What advice would you have for current students as they are in their college journey? Um, you know, a lot of our students are working as they go to school. A lot of our students also are caregivers. I would say Manor students today, they are busy. They need flexibility. Um, and school is not their
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only thing going on. It's really not. Kind of gone are the days of like, oh, I I'm a college student and like that's all I do. Now it's I work, I take care of people, I got other stuff going on. Um, so what would your advice be for our students? Well, it's certainly in those scenarios, I would say that it's kind of easy to give up on yourself if you have all that going on. Um, you're working, you're taking care of ch, you know, probably parents, children, community. Um, don't give up on yourself. just try if you can to to keep
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going because it's just you're gonna feel awesome when you accomplish that that goal. Um I would say the other thing that I've learned certainly through careers and schools is I I just have always found and and even with my own sta our own staff um surround yourself with good people. like work with good people and trust me you'll have jobs that are offering you all kinds of money but if in your gut you feel like it's not good people or it's not good like I I just have learned so much because I decide to take the path of working with
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people that were good people great mentors helped my own growth and success um so I I really attribute a lot of that to my you know the co-workers I've had the bosses I've had and in turn I hope I give that back to our own staff. Yeah, that that's great. I love what you said about just being surrounded by good people. I think that's something that obviously we strive to be here at the college like we want to be that support to our students so that way they go out into society and kind of pay it
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forward in that sense. So, thank you so much as an alumni for doing that for the community out there. We certainly um are really proud of you and all that you've done and just thank you for today spending some time with me and sharing your story. I hope it was encouraging and inspiring for our listeners. I'm sure it was and I look forward to seeing you in a couple weeks here on uh graduation day. Thank you so much, Kelly, for this time. Thank you for tuning in today. If you like what you
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heard, listen and subscribe on Spotify or YouTube. Stay up to date with all new episodes by following Manor College at Manor College on Instagram. And that's a wrap on another episode of The Nest. Stories about life after Manor College. Remember Blue Jays, you belong here always.