Greetings! As you can see below, there’s a lot going on in our organization.
The Board is continuing efforts to create positive growth in both NASJE’s membership and financial security. We’re happy to let you know there’s an opportunity for NASJE to get small donations at no cost to you if you shop on Amazon.com. The AmazonSmile program was developed as a way for Amazon to support their customers’ favorite charitable organizations. To sign up for this program, go to smile.amazon.com then to the drop-down menu “Your Account.” Click on “Change Your Charity,” then under “Pick your own charitable organization” choose “National Association of State Judicial Educators C/O CJER.” Amazon will then donate .5% of the purchase price to NASJE (at no cost to you). For this to happen, you do need to sign on to Amazon via smile.amazon.com each time you shop. For more information on the program, go to https://smile.amazon.com/about.
We are doing a membership drive this summer, so please help spread the word about NASJE and encourage more people who are involved in judicial branch education to become members. They can visit this website or you can contact Membership and Mentor Committee chair (and President-Elect) Margaret Allen at margaret.allen@sc.ohio.gov if you would like an electronic copy of NASJE’s flyer and membership application for distribution.
Registration is OPEN for our Annual Conference which will be in Seattle, Washington, on October 4-7, 2015. It is going to be an excellent conference! See this site for session descriptions and the registration form. I encourage you to sign up soon; the rooms at conference location, the Sheraton Seattle Hotel, are filling quickly. If you find that rooms are unavailable there for your preferred dates, we have arranged a comparable rate with a hotel nearby, the Crowne Plaza Hotel.
There will be regional meetings (web/telephonic) in all regions in the next few months, as well as regional meetings during the Annual Conference. Contact your regional director if you have questions about or input for the meetings: Midwestern Region: Tony Simones – Anthony.Simones@courts.mo.gov; Northeastern Region: Joan Bishop – djbishop2@msn.com; Southeastern Region: Dan Rettig – rettigd@flcourts.org; and Western Region: Joseph Sawyer – sawyer@judges.org. [If you’re not sure which region you’re in, go to the drop-down menu About NASJE” then click on “Regions.”]
The ad hoc Strategic Planning Committee is off and running, developing a plan to help shape NASJE’s efforts beyond this, our fortieth year. If you’re interested in being on the committee or just have input for it, contact committee chair Lee Ann Barnhardt at LBarnhardt@ndcourts.gov.
All current NASJE members should have received a packet in the mail with a hard copy of our newly released Diversity, Fairness, and Access Curriculum Design. Again, many thanks to our hard working Education and Curriculum Committee, chaired by Caroline Kirkpatrick (NASJE Vice President) and Jeff Schrade (NASJE Treasurer), for their efforts on this! If you didn’t receive the new curriculum design, please contact me, and I’ll make sure you get your copy. All twelve of NASJE’s excellent curriculum designs are also available on this website under the pull-down menu “Resources” > “Curriculum Designs.”
These are just some of the many benefits of being a NASJE member. I invite your ideas on what else we can do to improve your NASJE experience!
A lot has been going on with the Board and many of our committees. One very recent change is that we have a new Board member. Cynthia Davis, our Southeastern Region Director, has stepped down due to some family priorities. I have appointed Dan Rettig, Senior Attorney in the Florida OSCA Court Education office, as the new Southeastern Region Director. Members of the Southeastern Region will be hearing from Dan soon. The Board thanks Cynthia for her service and sends best wishes!
All current NASJE members will be receiving a packet in the mail in early May that includes a hard copy of our newly released Diversity, Fairness, and Access Curriculum Design. Many thanks to our hard working Education and Curriculum Committee members for their extended efforts on this. The Diversity, Fairness, and Access Committee also provided valuable input. And of course, thank you to SJI for providing funding for this and all of our curriculum designs! All twelve of these are also available on this website under the pull-down menu “Resources” > “Curriculum Designs.” If you haven’t done so lately, check out these valuable resources.
In the packet you’ll receive in the mail, there are several other items, including a NASJE flyer and membership application form. The Board is hoping you’ll spread the word about NASJE and encourage more people who are involved in judicial branch education to become members. The Education and Curriculum Committee is also including a form soliciting feedback from folks who have used the curriculum designs.
You’ll also find two “Save the date” postcards for our Annual Conference which will be in Seattle, Washington, on October 4-7, 2015. Please pass at least one of these postcards along to someone who might be interested in attending. This is shaping up to be an excellent conference, with the added bonus of being a collaboration with our justice system partners in the American Judges Association and the Washington Administrative Office of the Courts. Online registration for the conference will be open in May.
The newly formed Strategic Planning special committee is jumping into action. Lee Ann Barnhardt (ND) has graciously agreed to lead the effort. Each of NASJE’s committees has provided at least one volunteer to be part of the effort, but anyone who’s interested in shaping the plan for NASJE’s future is welcome. It is only a six month commitment. Anyone would like to be on the committee should contact Lee Ann at lbarnhardt@ndcourts.gov (or me at ktconsulting@judges.org ).
Our new Members Only area on this website (pull-down menu Resources > Member Area) continues to expand and has EASY access—I promise! There’s only one easy-to-remember password for all members—contact me at ktconsulting@aol.com or Communications Committee chair Christal Keegan at keegan@judges.org if you need the password. (The password will also be included in my cover letter in the packet you’ll be receiving in the mail.)
The Board had its Mid-Year Meeting in early March in Phoenix, AZ, with Jeff Schrade as our excellent host. It was a very productive meeting. The reports that committees provided for that meeting are posted in our Members Only area. I strongly encourage you to review the committees’ work and to choose one to join if you haven’t already.
In addition to other resources, the Members Only area also has links to recordings of two of our recent webcasts: Creating a Sense of Presence (Feb. 2015) taught by Karen Thorson, former NASJE President and inspiration for NASJE’s Karen Thorson Award, and Needs Assessment (March 2015) taught by Professor Gordon Zimmerman and former NASJE President Robin Wosje.
There will be additional regional and national webcasts coming soon.
This is NASJE’s 40th year, and we’d love for your continued input on how to keep improving it!
In 1975, six state judicial educators met and formed this association that now has about 170 members from most of the states as well as from several national organizations and other countries. The Board and NASJE’s many committees are working hard to make our 40th year a great one, with an emphasis on increasing benefits to NASJE members as well as raising the organization’s profile.
We will be doing a series of webcasts for all NASJE members throughout the year. The upcoming webcast on the critical topic of Needs Assessment will be on March 18 at 12:00 noon PDT/ 1:00 pm MDT/ 2:00 pm CDT/ 3:00 pm EDT. Professor Gordon Zimmerman and former NASJE President Robin Wosje are the illustrious faculty for this webcast. We hope you will join us! (See the calendar on this website to sign up for it.) Our thanks to The National Judicial College for generously continuing to support NASJE’s webcasts, including this one.
Save the date: Our Annual Conference Committee is putting together an excellent Annual Conference for 2015, which will be in gorgeous Seattle, Washington, on October 4-7, 2015. Note the date—it’s later in the year than usual for us because it is a collaborative conference. Take a look at the preview of the conference on this website.
The “NASJE Newsletter” celebrates its 30th anniversary this year. Obviously there have been major changes over the years with the evolving technology. There also have been changes just within the last few months as the Newsletter Committee merged with the Website and Technology Committee to form the Communications Committee. We have moved to a monthly format with even more frequent “breaking news” updates.
In addition, we’ve created a new Members Only site with easier accessibility. The Members Only site has a link to the excellent webcast from February 11, 2015, on Creating a Sense of Presence taught by Karen Thorson, former NASJE President and inspiration for NASJE’s Karen Thorson Award. For an overview of the session, see the article on this site: “How Judicial Educators Can Create ‘Presence’ Within the Judicial Branch.” Thanks to Karen and to NASJE’s Western Region led by Joseph Sawyer for this educational session.
NASJE members who do not have the password to the Members Only site can contact me at ktconsulting@aol.com or contact Communications Committee chair Christal Keegan at keegan@judges.org.
We invite you to be part of making 2015 NASJE’s best year ever!
“What do you want your legacy to be?” I started getting this rather intimidating question during my year as NASJE’s president-elect. It made me feel each time as if someone had just said “You’re It!” in a game of tag … and it made me think.
Upon much reflection, including participating in a “planning to plan” Board meeting facilitated by Karen Thorson last February, I refined my answer: I want my time as president to be about growth and development, in the most positive senses—healthy growth of membership, enhancement of value to existing members, and development of NASJE’s presence in justice system education.
Obviously, achieving these goals will require input and effort from all of us. I’m asking for your help on them.
We’re already in the process of making positive changes, starting with some adjustments to our website. The Board decided to combine the two separate committees in charge of NASJE News and the website into one: the Communications Committee. The streamlined approach should help us develop and maintain a more consistent NASJE “brand.” We also will have much more frequent updates to the newsletter portion of the website.
We’ve responded to feedback from the general membership saying that the existing Members Only site was not optimal in terms of access and use. So, we’ve created a new Members Only site linked to this webpage which has been designed to change that. NASJE members will be emailed the password for the new Members Only site in the near future. Among other things, survey results from our online poll of NASJE members about our vision, mission, and values will be available there.
Related to this survey and to the plenary session “Judicial Educators as Change Leaders” at the 2014 Annual Conference, we are gearing up on the continuation of our strategic planning process. NASJE members who are interested in being particularly instrumental in this effort should join the Strategic Planning Subcommittee–please contact me (ktconsulting@aol.com) if you’re interested. There are other committees you also should consider being involved in; for a list of NASJE’s committees go to the pull-down menu (on the upper left on this website): “About NASJE” > “Committees.”
Thanks to the dedication and efforts of NASJE members, these committees continue to make a difference. A great example of this is the work the Education and Curriculum Committee has done in conjunction with the Diversity, Fairness, and Access Committee to finalize a draft of the Diversity, Fairness, and Access Curriculum Design for approval by the Board. That curriculum design will be available shortly.
Don’t forget about the premium NASJE resources already at your fingertips — curriculum designs for the other eleven core competencies continue to be available on this website. Go to the pull-down menu (above): “Resources” > “Curriculum Designs.”
Another NASJE committee that has been quite active this fall is the Membership and Mentor Committee. This committee, along with the Board, has made it a goal to have NASJE members from every state and every key national organization/provider. We’d appreciate your assistance in identifying people who would be positive additions to NASJE.
Save the date: Our Annual Conference Committee is already hard at work on the 2015 Annual Conference, which will be in gorgeous Seattle, Washington, on October 4-7, 2015. Note the date—it’s later in the year than usual for us because it is a collaborative conference. Look for updates about the conference on this website.
NASJE’s influence has been felt in relation to other organizations, as well. NASJE members stepped up to provide input from the educational perspective on the National Association for Court Management’s core competencies (“The Core”). In the final version, Educational Development is listed as a core competency. Many thanks to all NASJE members who provided input to help achieve this and to enhance our working relationship with NACM. The final update of NACM’s core competencies is now available at http://nacmcore.org/.
Regional Directors will be planning regional meetings (mostly webinars) soon. Feel free to contact your Regional Director for more information (contact information is listed in the pull-down menu “About NASJE” > “NASJE Board”).
As you can tell, NASJE has opportunities to be involved in many ways; as a volunteer organization, we need a lot of member engagement to realize our potential. This profession is special in that our positive impact can have a ripple effect, influencing not only the people with whom we have direct contact, but also the many other people whose lives are impacted by anyone our education and programs have touched.
The entire NASJE Board wholeheartedly welcomes your input and participation! Help us make a difference. Please contact me at ktconsulting@aol.com with ideas, questions, and comments.
We all need to answer this question: What do you want your legacy to be?
Recently, while hanging a plaque with a paraphrased Margaret Mead quote, “Never doubt that a small group of thoughtful people can make a difference, in fact, it is the only thing that ever has,” I reflected on how central this concept has been in building NASJE as a professional organization. I’ve always been amazed at how much NASJE as a small professional organization accomplishes. However, until I joined the Board, much of the work and contributions were invisible and I didn’t realize what it takes to sustain NASJE and keep it flourishing into the future. My hope is that through a periodic update from the President, the work of the Board and efforts of NASJE members will be more visible. This update provides only a sample of the tremendous contributions over the past few months.
To support the goal of increased communication across our membership, I have been working with Joseph Sawyer, Website and Technology Committee Chair, John Newell, Newsletter Committee Chair, and Board Committee Liaisons, Kelly Tait and Mary Kennedy, to reconfigure and update the NASJE Website for easier access and expanded resources. Although it is a work in progress, Joseph and John have done wonders so please take a look around the site! Earlier this year, the Board created a central repository for NASJE documents and resources, which will provide better organization, continuity and accessibility of NASJE records, reports and related materials. Additionally, at the April meeting, the NASJE Board approved launching a NASJE LinkedIn Group as another opportunity for NASJE members to connect, network and share information and resources. Jeff Schrade, NASJE Treasurer-Elect, was instrumental in keeping us current by providing the research and foundation for both the central document repository and creation of the Linked In Group. All NASJE members should have received an invitation from Jeff to join the group or you may do so by clicking here.
In November, the International Organization for Judicial Training (IOJT) held their conference in the U.S. for the first time. Approximately fifteen NASJE members attended the conference in Washington, D.C. and Caroline Kirkpatrick led the group in hosting a NASJE Information Table at the IOJT Knowledge Fair. This provided an excellent opportunity to meet and network with many international colleagues. There was great interest in our organization and resources resulting in 12 new international NASJE members. Our model curricula on topics essential to judicial educators were of particular interest. Hats off to the Curriculum Committee for their fabulous work on these resources!
While 19 of these curricula have been designed and developed, the Board decided to invest the remaining resources from the SJI Curriculum Grant in the design of the curriculum for the Diversity, Fairness, and Access competency, which was approved by the NASJE membership in at the 2013 Annual Conference in Little Rock last summer. The Curriculum Committee and contractor Karen Thorson are working with the Diversity, Fairness and Access committee to review and finalize this curriculum. This will complete the curriculum designs for all current Judicial Branch Educator Competencies, which is an incredible accomplishment! Congratulations to the committee chairs who helped lead this effort, originally Christy Tull and currently Jeff Schrade and Caroline Kirkpatrick, and to the entire Curriculum Committee. And expression of appreciation would not be complete without acknowledging the State Justice Institute for funding this important work!
The NASJE Board held our Mid-Year meeting in late February. We dedicated an additional day to planning for NASJE’s future since our bylaws require the Board to review the NASJE Strategic Plan every three years. The current Board set the stage for planning by reviewing NASJE’s current Strategic Plan dated 2003 as well as NASJE’s strategic planning history (See NASJE News article: “Looking Back to Look Forward”.) The Board discussed what is changing around us that could impact or influence our planning and reviewed strengths, weaknesses, opportunities and threats. In planning for the future of a professional membership organization, the Board recognized that it is essential to involve the membership throughout the process. Since providing meaningful membership engagement in the planning process will likely span the term of more than one NASJE President, I have been working with President-elect Kelly Tait and Vice President Margaret Allen as a team to ensure this planning is sustained through their terms of office and ultimately implemented.
Early ways that members can become involved in the planning include completion of a survey regarding NASJE’s vision, mission and values, which will be sent to you soon. While the Board has done some initial work in drafting a vision, mission and a list of values, the drafts provide only a starting point for the important reactions and input from the membership. Additional information and opportunities for involvement will be available at the Annual Conference particularly in a session regarding change leadership.
The Education Committee, under the leadership of Lee Ann Barnhardt and Anne Jordan, has been working diligently and creatively in planning the 2014 Conference that will be held August 3-6 in Chicago, Illinois. The theme for the conference is “Perceptions of Justice: Improving Public Trust and Confidence through Judicial Branch Education.” Pre-conference sessions on Sunday, August 3rd will be expanded this year to include not only one on Fundamentals of Our Profession but also an advanced curriculum on Governance. In addition to the session on change leadership, conference highlights will include sessions on implicit bias, the Holocaust Museum, globalization in judicial education, trends in judicial branch education, as well as using films and literature in educational programs and networking opportunities. The conference will be held at the Westin Michigan Avenue hotel, a location central to many Chicago points of interest. Join us Monday evening for our social event and an opportunity to explore Navy Pier. Consider supplementing the Wednesday educational session on using the principles of improvisation in navigating through pressures of our profession by arranging to attend a program on Tuesday evening at Second City.
Additionally, the Annual Conference marks the beginning of a new program year and several opportunities to get involved in NASJE. You recently heard from Marty Sullivan, Chair of the Nominating Committee, about four vacancies on the Board for the next year that will be filled through elections at the Annual Business Meeting. Committees will be launching their work in August for the subsequent year and always welcome new and continuing members. Please consider how you would like to be involved in the coming year and feel free to contact committee chairs or Board members if you would like to discuss possibilities. We hope to see you in Chicago in August! The educational programming is inspiring and the venue and networking should serve to augment the experience and learning!
Greetings friends and colleagues! I hope you all had a safe and wonderful Holiday Season and I wish you all the best as we begin 2013. As the NASJE Board prepares to gather next month in Charleston for our annual mid-year Board meeting, I wanted to share with you a few things. First, we have had 36 NASJE members pledge a total of $3,870.00 to the new NASJE Endowment Fund. The Fund was set up last year to ensure the financial solvency of our member-led organization. If you haven’t pledged a donation to the Endowment Fund, I would encourage you to do so. Your tax-deductible donation will have a powerful impact on our organization. Please contact Jennifer Haire, Director of Association and Conference Services at the NCSC, if you would like more information on how to donate. Jennifer can be reached via email at: jhaire@ncsc.org.
Recently our Western Region Director, Evie Lancaster, decided to step down from the Board due to personal reasons. Evie has always been a great support to NASJE and has given many hours to the organization. I am grateful for her service and wish her all the best. Jeff Schrade of Arizona has graciously agreed to attempt to fill Evie’s shoes. I welcome Jeff to the Board and look forward to working with him as we continue to move our organization into the future.
I would like to remind everyone that NASJE is a volunteer-led organization. Without active members, we would accomplish nothing. NASJE has been the cornerstone of my professional development and I would encourage anyone that hasn’t joined a committee to please do so. You will find your service to be very rewarding and the friendships you make are invaluable.
Finally, I must report some sad news. Rick Young, the Judicial Branch Educator in New Jersey, passed away earlier this month after a battle with cancer. Rick was just 52 years old and had worked for the NJ Administrative Office of the Courts for 29 years. Our thoughts and prayers go out to his wife and two children. His years of service to help improve the administration of justice will not be forgotten.
Welcome to the latest edition of NASJE News! Special thanks go to the new co-editors, Jo Deyo and John Newell. They, along with the members of the newsletter committee, will follow the trail of excellence that Phil Schopick blazed for many years. The committee has a long history of keeping NASJE members informed of issues and trends that affect our profession. I have no doubt in the coming year, they will add to that legacy.
NASJE President Marty Sullivan
In the coming weeks, your regional directors will be announcing various webcasts, conference calls, and perhaps a mid-year meeting in one or two regions. Their goal is to give you tips, tools, resources, and a place for discussion to help make your job easier and more fulfilling. You also will be hearing from various committees soon that continue to work toward our goal of year-round membership education. I urge all newer NASJE members to get involved as much as possible. The NASJE network is truly a giving one.
Christy Tull and the Curriculum Committee continue to do an outstanding job developing and promoting the model curriculum project. NASJE is deeply grateful for the financial support provided by SJI for this important work. NASJE members who attended the annual conference in Boston have received a copy of the second installment of the Curriculum design. For members unable to attend the conference, a copy will be mailed to you soon. It will also be available for download on our NASJE members only portion of the website.
I’m proud to announce the creation of the Fairness and Diversity Education Core Competency Ad Hoc Committee. This committee of truly remarkable individuals will be led by Joseph Sawyer. I have asked the committee to develop a model curriculum for a twelfth NASJE core competency area on the issue of access, fairness, and diversity issues. Hopefully, this twelfth core competency can be unveiled at our upcoming 2013 annual conference, which will be held in my home city of Little Rock, Arkansas.
The Fundraising Committee was overwhelmed by the show of support for our newly announced Endowment Fund. We received a great number of contributions and pledges from our membership at the annual conference in Boston. Expect to hear more from the Fundraising Committee soon.
It is important to stress that NASJE is an all-volunteer organization. We depend and rely on each other to come up with creative solutions to common problems. It is remarkable the amount of work done by the various committees which keeps NASJE at the cutting edge of judicial branch education issues. For all of you, I am thankful and humbled to serve as your president for the coming year.
I hope that each of you has a wonderful spring and summer.
In the coming two months, the Diversity, Access and Fairness Committee and the Website and Technology Committee will present two webcasts.
On Tuesday, May 22 at 11:00 a.m. Pacific Time, the Diversity, Access, and Fairness Committee will bring you the latest research on the impact of implicit bias on the courts. During the webcast, the committee will share with NASJE members ways to reduce the influence of implicit bias.
On Tuesday, June 26 at 9:00 a.m. Pacific Time, the Website and Technology Committee, working with the Curriculum Committee, will take you on a tour of NASJE’s members only website. During this live tour, you will learn where to find the SJI funded Curriculum Designs and other learning resources. At the end of the June 26 webcast, you will be able to post content on the members only website. NASJE members can share program plans, conference schedules, and teaching techniques using the discussion forums within the members’ only site. You, as a judicial educator, will have an online place to go to discuss new developments in judicial education and share solutions to common problems we all face in our work.
Of course, none of you should forget about our upcoming conference scheduled for August 5-8, 2012. We will be meeting in the historic city of Boston. The education committee has put together an exciting program, which will include Dr. David Kolb discussing his Learning Style Inventory and Learning Circle.
I look forward to seeing all of you in Boston in August.
On behalf of the NASJE executive board, I would like to wish each of you a wonderful 2012. During the New Year, NASJE will increase our educational offerings for our members including web conferences, regional events, and of course, our annual conference scheduled for Boston in August.
Our first web conference of 2012 was held on January 10 at 10:00 a.m. Pacific Time. Lee Ann Barnhardt and I presented a one-hour webcast on fundamental adult educational resources that each judicial educator should know. To see a recording of the program, go here.
One of the most significant educational developments for NASJE members is the continuing work of the curriculum committee. Funded by the State Justice Institute, the committee continues to develop model curricula on a variety of topics essential to all judicial educators. Under the leadership of past-president Christy Tull, the committee will be presenting various aspects of the curriculum at our annual conference as well as two live web conferences during the spring of this year.
Speaking of the State Justice Institute, I am pleased to announce that SJI has approved our grant request to support our annual conference. Joan Bishop and all the members of the education committee deserve our thanks for their hard work in securing SJI’s support.
If you have any suggestions for educational topics that you believe NASJE should address, please contact me at sawyer@judges.org. I look forward to hearing from you.
