Reno – It was a brand new view for the National Council of Juvenile and Family Court Judges (NCJFCJ) as they celebrated with community leaders, colleagues and partners at their Open House in June 2016.
The NCJFCJ focuses on improving the effectiveness of our nation’s juvenile and family courts. A 2,000-member organization, the NCJFCJ provides continuing education, research, and policy development in the field of juvenile and family justice. The NCJFCJ has combined their two offices into one for true collaboration.
“The NCJFCJ is about to celebrate its 80th year of existence and 50 of those years are right here in northern Nevada,” said NCJFCJ president, the Honorable Darlene Byrne of the 126th Civil District Court in Travis County, Texas. “We are so thankful to be a part of and affiliated with the University of Nevada, Reno. Many of our employees were educated at the University, and we’re spreading our impact around the nation and the world.”
In attendance were Joey Orduna Hastings, former assistant county manager of administration and finance for Washoe County and the new NCJFCJ chief executive officer, who starts on July 15; the Honorable Cynthia Lu and the Honorable Frances Doherty, Second Judicial District Court; Michael E. Noyes, Ph.D., NCJFCJ chief program officer of juvenile law; and partners from local organizations helping children and families. The NCJFCJ was also presented a certificate of congratulations by U.S. Senator Dean Heller.
One of the biggest challenges facing the NCJFCJ is to help the public understand how a healthy court system affects their everyday life. Nearly everyone will have an experience with a family member, friend, employee or colleague that has interacted with the judicial system.
“It’s very important that judges get the kind of training that the NCJFCJ provides,” said Mari Kay Bickett, JD, NCJFCJ chief executive officer. “Our work involves families – families in crisis. They come into our courthouse in Reno and courthouses around the nation.”
The NCJFCJ focuses include domestic child sex trafficking, child abuse and neglect, domestic violence, keeping kids in school and out of court, military families, juvenile drug courts, adoption and foster care, juvenile justice, and trauma-informed courts.
More judicial officers are educated in Reno than any other place in the world. Every year, the NCJFCJ convenes more than 300 judicial officers in Reno through various educational programs.
The NCJFCJ was recently provided $900,000 to provide enhanced training and technical assistance, working closely with the Office on Violence Against Women, to implement an effective firearms response at the local, state and tribal levels.
About the National Council of Juvenile and Family Court Judges (NCJFCJ):
Founded in 1937, the Reno, Nevada based National Council of Juvenile and Family Court Judges, is the nation’s oldest judicial membership organization and focused on improving the effectiveness of our nation’s juvenile and family courts. A leader in continuing education opportunities, research, and policy development in the field of juvenile and family justice, the 2,000-member organization is unique in providing practice-based resources to jurisdictions and communities nationwide.