CFCC News - 2012
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December 2012 - CFCC received a $300,000 grant for expansion of the Truancy Court Program (TCP) from the AT&T Aspire Program.
Baltimore Mayor Stephanie Rawlings-Blake joined AT&T Mid-Atlantic President J. Michael Schweder, Circuit Court Judge David Young, Baltimore City Public Schools administrator Karen Webber-Ndour, Dean Ronald Weich, Professor Barbara Babb, and other local and university guests at the University of Baltimore on December 3 to announce a $300,000 AT&T Aspire grant to support CFCC’s Truancy Court Program (TCP). The grant is being used to help develop, implement, and analyze the TCP in four Baltimore City schools that serve eighth and/or ninth graders. As a result of the grant, the program can add enhanced case management and training for school administrators and faculty on how to intervene if a student is truant. CFCC is one of 47 recipients nationwide that were awarded funding under AT&T Aspire this year, one of the largest corporate commitments in the United States focused on helping more students graduate from high school ready for college and careers.
Click here to view a listing of the media outlets that covered this news, including local television and radio stations, the Daily Record, Baltimore Brew, and Baltimore Business Journal. We at CFCC are deeply grateful for the generous grant and for the community and media support we have received. -
November 2012 - CFCC received a $60,000 grant for the Truancy Court Program (TCP) from the Charles Crane Family Foundation.
This grant is especially meaningful for CFCC, as the Crane Foundation was our first TCP funder in 2004, allowing us to launch the initiative. They have funded the program every year since 2004, and we are extremely grateful for their belief in and support of the TCP.
CFCC has published the 4th issue of its Full Court Press E-Newsletter in September 2012.
This 4th issue includes:
- An interview with Connie Kratovil-Lavelle, Executive Director of the Maryland Administrative Office of the Courts Department of Family Administration
- A summary of CFCC’s Fourth Urban Child Symposium
- A discussion of Collaborative Law
- A review of CFCC’s 2012-2013 Truancy Court Program
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CFCC has published and distributed the 11th issue (Summer 2012) of its popular Unified Family Court Connection newsletter in June 2012.
This 11th issue focuses on a plenary session, “Promising Practices in Family Law,” from the October 2012 ABA Section of Family Law Continuing Legal Education Program and includes the following articles:
- “Promising Practices in Family Law Cases Help Ease Impact of Divorce” by Judge J. Stephen Schuster
- "Divorce Practices Must Aim to Protect the Children” by Jenny Schulz
- “Creative Uses of Alternative Dispute Resolution Techniques in Family Law Litigation Produce Better Outcomes” by Carlton D. Stansbury
- “Domestic Violence Trials: Minimizing the Impact on the Children is Essential” by Rick DeMichele
For a paper copy of the newsletter or to be added to the mailing list, please email cfcc@ubalt.edu.
CFCC has published the 6th issue of its Truancy Court Program (TCP) E-Newsletter in November 2012.
This issue features articles on:
- CFCC Receives Significant New Funding to Expand and Enhance the Truancy Court Program in 2012-2013
- The TCP's Many Moving Parts
- The TCP Improves Attendance, Increases Self-Esteem, Improves Relationships, and Affects School-Wide Attendance
- An Introduction to TCP’s New Staff
- News on TCP’s Recent Recognitions, Including Harvard’s Bright Ideas Award and a Feature in Urbanite Magazine
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CFCC has published its Benchbook on Substance Abuse and Addiction for Family Courts.
CFCC's Benchbook on Substance Abuse and Addiction for Family Courts provides information of interest and relevance to family court judges, judicial officers, attorneys, and court staff who are called to deal, directly and indirectly, with substance abuse issues on a daily basis. Please see our information sheet for details and ordering information. -
CFCC has completed the "Final Report on the Families Matter Symposium" held at the University of Baltimore in June, 2010.
The Families Matter initiative is a major, multi-year undertaking designed to develop legal practice methods and approaches to reduce the destructive consequences of the family legal process. Co-sponsored by the American Bar Association (ABA) Section of Family Law and CFCC, the initiative is designed to respond to the need for deep and meaningful reform of the family law process. -
December 2012 – Truancy Court Program Graduations
The Truancy Court Program will hold graduations in its eight Baltimore City schools and one Montgomery County school throughout December. Students who improve their attendance by 65% or more and demonstrate improved academics and behavior will graduate from the program and receive certificates and prizes. Typically, the majority of students graduate, and any students who do not are re-enrolled in the Spring session for continued attention to attendance issues. -
December 3, 2012 - Baltimore City Mayor Stephanie Rawlings-Blake, AT&T Mid-Atlantic President J. Michael Schweder, Baltimore City Public Schools administrator Karen Webber-Ndour, Circuit Court Judge David Young, School of Law Dean Ron Weich, and CFCC Director Barbara Babb joined invited guests to announce a 2-year, $300,000 grant from the AT&T Aspire program to expand the operation of CFCC’s Truancy Court Program to four Baltimore City schools serving eighth and/or ninth graders.
The announcement garnered significant media attention, which you can view here. CFCC is extremely grateful to AT&T for this generous support, and we thank everyone who attended the event.
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December 3-6, 2012 – In collaboration with the Association of Family and Conciliation Courts (AFCC), CFCC held two trainings for professionals who work with families and children.
December 3-4 - Mindy Mitnick, EdM, MA, presented “Intractable Issues in Child Custody Disputes.” December 5-6 - Christine A. Coates, MEd, JD, presented “Parenting Coordination: Working with High Conflict Families.” Thank you to everyone who attended and helped make these trainings very successful.
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October and November, 2012 – Truancy Court Program hosted Family Fun Nights
CFCC’s Truancy Court Program (TCP) hosted a series of events geared exclusively to TCP students and their families. Special TCP lunches and dinners brought TCP families, staff, and school representatives together for pizza and family-friendly activities. Click here for photos from this year’s TCP family events.
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October, 2012 - The CFCC Student Fellows Bios webpage is active.
CFCC focuses on its Fall 2012 Student Fellows with a new webpage dedicated to the biographies of law students enrolled in the CFCC Student Fellows Program.
Continue on to theCFCC Student Fellows Bios page.
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October 22, 2012 – The Daily Record published “Truancy Court Aims to Keep Youngsters out of Bigger Problems” by Steve Lash.
CFCC’s Truancy Court Program is the subject of an October 22 Daily Record feature. The articles focuses on the TCP’s positive effect on truant students in Baltimore City and Montgomery County, Maryland. Professor Barbara A. Babb, CFCC Director, and TCP volunteer judges, including Judge Catherine O’Malley, Judge James Sarsfield, and Assistant State’s Attorney George Simms, explain the importance of an early intervention, non-punitive, and holistic approach to address the reasons why students are missing school.
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October 5, 2012 - CFCC’s Director, Professor Barbara Babb, spoke at the Bruce J. Winick Fall 2012 Colloquium: Standards in the Problem Solving Courts, hosted by the University of Miami School of Law
Professor Babb shared her expertise on therapeutic standards and measures in problem-solving courts. For more information about the colloquium, please visit the University of Miami webpage.
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September 21 and 28, 2012 – CFCC co-sponsored Family Law trainings with the Maryland Chapter of the American Academy of Matrimonial Lawyers
This two-part program was geared to beginning family law practitioners and provided in-depth information and guidance on a broad spectrum of family law issues, ranging from initial client contact through trial. The program featured judges, masters, American Academy of Matrimonial Lawyers members, and attorneys from the Family and Juvenile Law Section of the Maryland State Bar Association.
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September 24, 2012 - Truancy Court Program (TCP) Orientations
Truancy Court Program (TCP) Orientations took place during the week of September 24, 2012, at 10 TCP schools in Baltimore City and Montgomery County.
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August 2012 – CFCC Student Fellows Program Begins
We invite students to register for openings in the Fall 2012 CFCC Student Fellows Program I (Law 888). Students will learn cutting-edge approaches to family law and family justice system reform, including an examination of problem-solving courts. Students also will be actively involved in one of CFCC’s many projects, including its popular Truancy Court Program.
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July, 2012 - CFCC received a grant of $105,523 from the Maryland Administrative Office of the Courts.
The Maryland Administrative Office of the Courts has awarded CFCC a grant of $105,523 to support the operation of our Truancy Court Program in Baltimore City. The AOC has funded the TCP since 2007 and has consistently appreciated the preventive power of the TCP to keep children out of the juvenile and child welfare systems and to keep parents out of the criminal justice system due to truancy.
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CFCC has published the 5th issue of its Truancy Court Program (TCP) E-Newsletter in June 2012.
This issue features articles on: A holistic approach to truancy, TCP data for the 2011-2012 school year, An interview with TCP Mentor Jana White, A new national report on absenteeism, Features on the 2012 First Lady of Maryland's Reception, the "Battle of the Schools" attendance contest, and the TCP "Kids and Theater" performance.
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April 12, 2012, 8:30am-5pm, University of Baltimore School of Law Moot Court Room – CFCC hosted its fourth annual
Urban Child Symposium, “The Beginning or the End? The Urban Child’s Experience in the Juvenile Justice System.”
- March 12, 2012 - Professor Barbara Babb spoke about CFCC’s Truancy Court Program and its impact on law students at a national conference,National Leadership Summit on School-Justice Partnerships, on March 12 in New York City. Professor Babb participated in a panel on “Truancy - School Engagement and Re-engagement” with other national experts on school attendance.