Barbara J. Gilchrist, J.D.
Faculty Emerita
Education
Community Work and Service
Barbara Gilchrist is not afraid to take on big government — especially if it’s in
defense of the elderly. “My favorite bureaucracy used to be the Social Security Administration,”
says Professor Gilchrist. “Now it’s Medicaid.”
Gilchrist and her colleagues successfully fought back attempts by Missouri’s Division
of Medical Services to eliminate funding for dental and eyeglass services in the 2002
Medicaid budget. “Medicaid is so important to people, especially low-income people,”
says Professor Gilchrist. “When you start taking away their dental care and their
ability to see, you’ve taken away a lot.”
Professor Gilchrist advocated for the elderly since graduating from law school in
1976. She signed on with Volunteers In Service To America (VISTA) and was assigned
to the elder law unit at Legal Services of Eastern Missouri. While there, she published
the agency’s first Senior Citizens Handbook, a guide to the laws and programs affecting senior citizens in Missouri. The handbook
is in its 12th edition.
After five years at legal services helping older adults with wills and estate planning,
Gilchrist went into private practice for five years. She was lured away by a newly
created position at the School of Law to teach and practice elder law. “In elder law
practice you forge strong bonds with clients and their families,” Professor Gilchrist
says. “How many attorneys can say their clients bring them fruitcakes at Christmas?
It’s a different kind of relationship than a lawyer might have when working in a corporate
setting.”