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Today's Featured Biography
Tara Allison
Tara McKenzie Allison, Esq., is a male-to-female (MTF), transgendered woman, who resides in Columbus, Ohio.
She was born and raised in south-central Pennsylvania. After graduating from high school in 1981, Tara enlisted in the U.S. Navy and was trained as a nuclear reactor operator. After serving in the enlisted ranks for 2 years, she entered the United States Naval Academy in Annapolis, graduated in 1987 with an engineering degree, and was commissioned as a Naval Officer. According to the Naval Academy Alumni Association, she is only the second MTF transgender – to their knowledge – that has graduated from the Naval Academy. After being honorably discharged from the U.S. Navy, Tara enjoyed a career as a nuclear engineer for over a decade. She is a licensed Professional Engineer. In 1999, she partially completed a MBA degree, at the College of William and Mary, before relocating to Columbus.
Tara made the decision to transition in 2001. As part of her “transition plan,” she attended law school to change her career path. Tara has always been interested in the law, and she felt that the legal community would provide a more accommodating career environment in which to transition.
In 2005, Tara graduated from Capital University Law School, cum laude, passed the Ohio Bar Exam, and was admitted to the Ohio Bar. In 2008, she transitioned on-the-job, while serving as General Counsel/Contracts Manager for a mid-sized, company, in Lexington, KY. In 2008, she relocated back to Columbus, in order to start her own law practice. She is admitted to practice before the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Ohio.
Tara is passionate about equal rights, educating the public about LGBT issues, and supporting the LGBT community. She remains active in politics, lobbying state lawmakers for LGBT protections. In June 2010, she proudly walked with Equality Ohio, in the Columbus Gay Pride parade. In June 2011, she rode the "Outlook Columbus" float, in the Columbus Gay Pride parade.
Tara is an active public speaker on LGBT-related issues; she has spoken at The Ohio State University, The Ohio State University Law School, Capital University Law School, Dennison University, Ohio Northern University, Transylvania University, Columbus Alternative High School, the King Avenue United Methodist Church in Columbus, Ohio, and the LGBT Subcommittee of the Columbus Bar Association. She has been a presenter at the TransOhio Annual Transgender and Ally Symposium, for each of the past four years (every year since its inception). Recently, she spoke at the 2010 Ohio Diversity and Leadership Conference and the 2011 CAUSE Conference at Columbus State Community College. Tara regularly conducts diversity training, for new cadet classes, at the Columbus Police Academy. Tara is a regularly contributing author to OUTLOOK COLUMBUS magazine, published in Columbus, Ohio. She is also an Adjunct Professor at ITT Technical Institute, where she teaches a class in “Legal Issues in Construction,” as well as a college algebra class.
Tara served as a Board Member and Legal Counsel for TransOhio, a not-for-profit organization serving to educate and advocate on behalf of the transgender community in Ohio. In October 2010, she graduated from the Pride Leadership Program of the United Way of Central Ohio, better preparing her for further service on other Not-for-Profit boards. She currently serves on the Board for The Legacy Fund of The Columbus Foundation.
Tara can be reached at: [email protected]
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