Virginia Court Reporters Association

What Virginia Court Reporters Association does

Virginia Court Reporters Association (VCRA) is a private nonprofit professional membership association founded in 1967 and headquartered in Round Hill, Virginia, serving shorthand and voice court reporters and captioners across the Commonwealth. Its membership program offers tiered annual dues (Professional $140, Professional with CCR $150, Associate $70, Student $35, plus Retired Lifetime), granting access to continuing education, advocacy, networking, a member directory, and the association's only-in-Virginia state-based Certified Court Reporter (CCR) credential. VCRA also runs the Carolyn M. O'Connor Education Fund (up to $1,000 scholarships, established 2013) and the Strongbox legislative fund (established 2019), and is governed by an elected Board of Directors with an Executive Director (Elizabeth Whitlock) and President (Dana Pon, RPR, CCR for 2026-2027).

VCRA's product surface is built around the Wild Apricot membership platform, which powers the website, member directory, event registration, online store, and renewals. Education is delivered through in-person conventions (historically held at the Virginian Hotel in Lynchburg, with a Spring 2025 convention planned for Washington, D.C.), Virtual Education Days, MAR Education Day, software training, and Tech Talk Tuesday sessions. The 2022 establishment of the Virginia Court Reporters Foundation (VCRF), a separate 501(c)(3), expanded VCRA's ability to fundraise for educational efforts via tax-deductible donations and silent auctions. The 2020 CCR relaunch broadened CEU eligibility to NCRA-, NVRA-, and VCRA-sponsored events, pro bono service, college courses, and board service.

Revenue is generated almost entirely through membership dues, event registration fees (e.g., $55 standard for Virtual Spring Education Day 2021), store merchandise sales (including raffle-based fundraising), and donations (COEF, Strongbox, and general VCRA). The association relies on two Platinum Sponsors (Accu-Beta Court Reporters and Esquire Deposition Solutions) and partners with NCRA, NVRA, Project Steno, NCRA Discover Steno, the Virginia School Counselor Association, and sister state associations (KCRA, MCRA, NCR, USCRA, WVRA). Growth in members is community-led — driven by referrals, student pipeline outreach, and annual membership drives — with VCRA reporting membership has nearly doubled in five years.

Name

Virginia Court Reporters Association

Legal name

Virginia Court Reporters Association

Website

https://vcra.net

Company type

Private

Founded year

1967

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1–10 employees

Short description

Virginia Court Reporters Association (VCRA) is a nonprofit professional membership association, founded in 1967, that serves Virginia court reporters and captioners with CCR certification, continuing education, legislative advocacy, scholarships, and community events.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Headquarters

HQ city

Norfolk

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices2 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Technology or R&D, Marketing or Sales, Others

Revenue model

1. Membership Dues: Primary revenue stream from annual membership dues at multiple tiers: Professional ($140/year), Associate ($70/year), Student ($35/year). Professional with CCR members pay $150 total ($140 membership + $30 CCR renewal fee). Membership has not had a dues increase since 2005 until 2021.
2. Event Fees: Revenue from education days, conventions, and virtual events. Registration fees vary: VCRA Member standard rate $55, Non-member $55, Student $15, Board Member $30 for Virtual Spring Education Day 2021.
3. Store Sales: The VCRA Store sells merchandise including raffle tickets, face masks, and other items. Used for fundraising through special raffles like Peloton bike raffles and football kickoff raffles.
4. Donations: Donations accepted for Carolyn M. O'Connor Education Fund (COEF) for student scholarships, Strongbox legislative fund, and general VCRA donations. VCRF donations are tax-deductible.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels3 records

Marketing channels7 records

Core offering

VCRA is a professional membership association that sells annual memberships to court reporters, captioners, and students in Virginia. Members gain access to the only state-based Certified Court Reporter (CCR) credential, continuing education events earning CEUs, a public member directory, scholarships, legislative advocacy, and a peer community. The association also operates an online store for merchandise and raffles, and accepts donations to scholarship and legislative funds.

Product overview

VCRA is a professional association offering a unified membership program that provides certification (CCR), continuing education events, scholarships, a member directory, pro bono services, and advocacy for court reporters and captioners in Virginia. The association is powered by Wild Apricot membership software and organizes annual education days, conventions, and virtual events. The core offering is the membership program, which grants access to all services including the CCR certification, CEU-earning events, networking, and legislative advocacy.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• VCRA Membership Program Annual tiered membership program for Virginia court reporters, captioners, and students, providing voting rights (Professional tiers), access to the CCR certification, CEU events, the member directory, advocacy, and the peer community.
• CCR (Certified Court Reporter) Certification The only state-based certification available for court reporters in the Commonwealth of Virginia; requires 2.0 CEUs each three-year cycle and is bundled with Professional membership at $150 per year ($140 dues + $30 CCR renewal fee).
• Education Events (Conventions, MAR Education Day, Virtual Education Days)

Quantifiable outcome

• Over $1,400 raised through online silent auction for VCRF
• +1 more outcomes

Named customers8 records

Segments4 records

Ideal customer profiles4 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Partnerships

Ten partnerships are on record, tiered platinum sponsor, core, minor and strategic.

• Accu-Beta Court Reportersplatinum sponsorOthers2026 Platinum Sponsor of VCRA. One of the two Platinum Sponsors supporting the association's activities and events.
• Esquire Deposition Solutions, LLCplatinum sponsorOthers2026 Platinum Sponsor of VCRA. National deposition services company supporting the association as a Platinum Sponsor.
• National Court Reporters Association (NCRA)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerNational parent organization for court reporters. VCRA works with NCRA for certifications (RPR), continuing education approvals, and professional standards. VCRA board members serve as NCSA representatives.
• National Verbatim Reporters Association (NVRA)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerNational voice writers association. VCRA has created a Voice Writers Committee and works with NVRA for voice writer representation and NASA leadership training.
• Project StenocoreGTM or Marketing PartnerNational initiative to attract new students to court reporting. VCRA refers potential students to Project Steno and collaborates on career outreach to high schools.
• NCRA Discover StenocoreGTM or Marketing PartnerNCRA's initiative to promote court reporting careers. VCRA directs interested individuals to Discover Steno and provides information about free introductory classes.
• Kentucky Reporters Association (KCRA)minorOthersSister state court reporting association listed in VCRA's links directory for member reference.
• Maryland Court Reporters Association (MCRA)minorOthersSister state court reporting association listed in VCRA's links directory. Collaborated with VCRA on Washington D.C. social events during Court Reporting & Captioning Week.
• Virginia School Counselor AssociationstrategicGTM or Marketing PartnerVCRA exhibits annually at VSCA conferences in Hampton to promote court reporting careers to school counselors and students.
• Virginia Court Reporters Foundation (VCRF)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerNewly established 501(c)(3) organization that works alongside VCRA to provide greater flexibility for fundraising and educational efforts. Hosts silent auctions benefiting Carolyn M. O'Connor Education Fund.

Scale indicators4 records

Recent moves8 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Broad incumbents

• National Court Reporters Association (NCRA): National parent organization for the court reporting profession; VCRA explicitly coordinates with NCRA on RPR certifications, continuing education approvals, and professional standards, making it the closest broad incumbent peer.

Regional players

• Florida Court Reporters Association (FCRA): State court reporting association serving Florida, a peer in size and structure to VCRA; provides continuing education, membership tiers, and advocacy in a different regional market.
• California Court Reporters Association (CCRA): State court reporting association serving California; offers the same professional community, certification, and advocacy services for shorthand and voice reporters in a much larger state market.
• Texas Court Reporters Association (TCRA): Larger state-level court reporting association serving Texas reporters; operates a similar membership-plus-certification model but in a different geography, useful as a regional scale benchmark.

Direct peers

• United States Court Reporters Association (USCRA): National court reporting association linked from VCRA; serves federal and nationwide court reporting community with overlapping membership, advocacy, and certification functions.
• Kentucky Court Reporters Association (KCRA): Sister state court reporting association listed in VCRA's links directory; offers the same membership, certification, and continuing education services for court reporters in Kentucky.
• West Virginia Reporters Association (WVRA): Sister state court reporting association listed in VCRA's links directory; provides an apples-to-apples comparison for benchmarking VCRA's membership, events, and legislative model.
• Maryland Court Reporters Association (MCRA): Sister state court reporting association; shares the same role, structure, and member base composition as VCRA, and has collaborated on Washington D.C. social events during Court Reporting & Captioning Week.
• North Carolina Reporters Association (NCR): Sister state court reporting association referenced in VCRA's links directory; serves the same professional community in North Carolina with the same membership and advocacy model.

Emerging players

• National Verbatim Reporters Association (NVRA): National voice writers association; VCRA has a Voice Writers Committee and partners with NVRA on voice writer representation and NASA leadership training, making it a closely-aligned peer for the voice writing segment.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat3 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• YouTubeyoutube.com/channel/UCNNUrQgGJnzqX7lTEGZ4eOg
• Facebookfacebook.com/vcrastrong
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/virginia-court-reporters-association
• Instagraminstagram.com/vcrastrong

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles5 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

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M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Virginia Court Reporters Association