CPP newsline [Vol. 6, no. 2 (Fall/Winter 2003)]

Vol. 6 No. 2 Fall/Winter 2003
CPP Newsline
The Supreme Court of Georgia Child Placement Project Newsletter
Welcome to the CPP newsletter. The format of this newsletter will focus on the implementation of improvements to the child deprivation process and will strive to keep our readers informed of the
progress of the CPP.
TABLE OF CONTENTS
CPP Priorities Set for 2004 Happenings in Georgia CPP Happenings
Happenings Around the Nation Grant Funds Awarded

CPP Priorities Set for 2004

By Michelle Barclay CPP Director
The CPP received its seventh year of funding in August 2003 and the CPP Implementation Committee met before and after the award to firm up the spending priorities for the rest of 2003 thru 2004. Congress has funded the project through early 2006, providing $347,000 in funds to CPP for this coming year.
The priorities for this year are continuing a number of currently popular and successful programs:
$50,000 to support juvenile court judges hosting "stakeholder"

$75, 000 to further develop the CPRS for judicial management and the staffing addition of Betsy Hyder (part time) to manage the CPRS.
$10,000 in consulting fees to the Carl Vinson Institute to work on the Juvenile Court Improvement/Accountability Project.
Last year, the CPP used $35,000 to "leverage" its funds to bring in more financial assistance to courts. Nine grants were applied for, two were received and one is still pending. The four grants recieved total funding was $375K. Based on this return on investment,

lunches for those vested in the child welfare system. As in past years, CPP will pay up to $5 per person/lunch to cover the costs of these meetings.
$23,000 to assist with travel expenses of the Fall Child Placement Conferenceand to assist judges with travel and tuition expenses to be able to attend and participate in national conferences.
$50,000 to help courts purchase technology devices to "provide a positive incentive to use the CPRS" and computers for speeding case processing and manage case oversight.
Staffing addition of Melissa Dorris to manage the Permanency Project which will focus on court performance measures and reporting.

the CPP has decided to renew that contract and to keep seeking grant funds for court-related child welfare projects. The firm will notify judges of available grants and will work with courts to produce winning grants.
Some of the CPP funds will be held in reserve with spending to be decided as projects and issues often present themselves suddenly. Composed of members representing all aspects of the juvenile court and foster care systems, the CPP board also continues to search for and relieve bottlenecks in the handling of abuse and neglect cases. CPP is in a position to provide great assistance to those seeking to improve the child welfare system. Be sure to take advantage of the services CPP offers!
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Happenings in Georgia
Court Calendaring System on the Web
In order to develop an online court calendaring system the Child Placement Project contracted with Relevant Arts.com. This system was then piloted in Haralson and Polk counties by Juvenile Court Judge Mark Murphy and his court administrator Ms. Carol Brown. This system has a number of user friendly features and has been found to be beneficial for practical use in the court. Some of the highlighted features include: Add/Update/Delete hearings on the calendar, including scheduling for morning and/or afternoon call, as well as time certain hearings; Search Features using: -- County and hearing date, or -- Keyword; Navigation Buttons at the bottom of the screen to move through the calendar in view mode; and Security Features, such as automatic log off when program is stagnant.
In addition to these highlighted features, the initial users relayed back to the Child Placement Project some very positive feedback. The feedback includes the following: Judge Murphy and Ms. Brown expressed appreciation at having the use of the system.
This system: Reduces paper weight, especially for a judge who serves more than one county. Prior to this system, the judge would carry a significantly large notebook containing his calendaring information. Provides immediate access to the calendar from any computer with internet access. Is easy and simple to update and is immediately accessible to the parties with access to the system.
This provides instantaneous communication of the court calendar. Reduces schedule conflicts when sharing courtroom space. Allows the judge to make pertinent notes from the bench, such as the reason for continuance, etc. Reduces probability of overloading the daily calendar and as such saves time for the parties. Improves long term efficiency.
In sum, the online court calendar system has proved to be a success and it is recommended that other counties around the state consider adopting this successful system. If interested in using the calendar in your circuit contact Michelle Barclay at barclaym@gaaoc.us
First Lady's Summit on Our Children
The Summit on Our Children was held on August 27th at eight regional sites around the state of Georgia (Atlanta, Augusta, Columbus, Dalton, Macon, Savannah, Tifton, and Toccoa). This event was designed to both raise awareness about the plight of at-risk and foster children, as well as to garner support from the community, including individuals, corporations and foundations. This Summit marks the beginning of the new Our Children Campaign, supported by Mrs. Mary Perdue, the First Lady of Georgia. For more information, please see, http://www.gov.state.ga.us/

Mrs. Perdue, at the Summit, formally declared her commitment to the issues related to child protection and foster children for her term as First Lady. This commitment sets an exciting precedent for the upcoming years. Additionally, the Administrative Office of the Courts, through the Supreme Court of Georgia Child Placement Project, has affirmed its commitment to this initiative, beginning with providing support to the First Lady for her kick-off event. For the Summit, Michelle Barclay and Belinda Prawdzik, worked as members of the steering committee to support the workshop development, the written materials and some web site information. Ten Juvenile Court Judges presentedduring the summit, including Judge Peggy Walker, Judge Robin Nash, Judge Holli Martin, Judge Warner Kennon, Judge Michael Key, Judge John Beam, Judge Tom Rawlings, Judge Doug Flanagon, Judge Tom Matthews, and Judge Joanna Temple. The judges spoke passionately about what the child welfare system needs both locally and at the state level. The creation of visitation centers received a lot of attention. In the end, the Summit was successful as a result of the generosity of the First Lady along with the presenters and other volunteers. As such, the hope is that this year's event was only the first of its kind. For additional information about the First Lady's Our Children Campaign, you can write the childsummit@gov.state.ga.us
Case Plan Reporting System (CPRS) Expansion Planned
The Child Placement Project has been approved forfunding under the Strengthening Abuse and Neglect Courts in America (SANCA): Management Information Systems Project from the Office of Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention (OJJDP) to make enhancements to the CPRS. The Strengthening Abuse and Neglect Court Act was authorized in October, 2000. In FY 2002, Congress earmarked OJJDP for $2 million to initiate the implementation of the Act. The overall goal for this pilot project is to demonstrate the implementation of these pivotal national data standards and measurements. SANCA MIS will develop courts' capabilities to collect, track and measure court data. This project will determine how courts' are progressing with reference to the Adoption and Safe Families ACT (ASFA) goals of safety, permanency and wellbeing for children. Additionally Judge Robin Nash and the DeKalb Juvenile Foundation received $75,000 from the Zeist Foundaiton to further develop the CPRS.
Child Placement Project to Partner with Atlanta Volunteer Lawyer Foundation (AVLF) and Atlanta Legal Aid Society (ALAS)
The Child Placement Project, in partnership with AVLF, will begin to research models of representation that work outside of the courts in order to create a program to recruit and train lawyers to fulfill their pro bono requirements in Georgia's juvenile courts. By effectively using the leadership potential afforded by the Supreme Court, the Permanency Project Manager will coordinate the efforts of the various stakeholders.
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CPP Happenings
A status report of CPP projects:
Summer 2003 Court/DFACS Snapshot
The CPP through Lori Bramlett teamed up with the Office of the Child Advocate to do a review of six counties. Both DFCS and Court case files were pulled in those counties. Information was recorded from sets of files on separate instruments and then compared. The National Council of Juvenile and Family Court Judges performed the data analysis of the information collected. Lori's report can be seen at: http://www2.state.ga.us/Courts/Supreme/cpp/summer03.html
Committee Appointments
Ms. Betty Wrights, interim director of the Foster Care Unit at the Department of Family and Children Services, was recently appointed to the CPP Committee.
Model Courts Project
The Georgia Model Courts Project held its Fall Workshop on October 3rd in Ellijay, Georgia. Judge William Reilly, Chief Juvenile Judge of the Appalachian Judicial Circuit hosted the meeting. He not only provided a great atmosphere to meet in, but also prepared a superb meal for all to enjoy. During the meeting, each model court site judge gave an update of progress made on established court improvement goals. The group of stake holders also put the finishing touches on the Senate Bill 236 Implementation Recommendations. These recommendations were presented by a panel consisting of Judge Sanford Jones (Fulton County), Melissa Dorris (Child Placement Project), Vivian Egan (DFCS), Linda Doster (DFCS), Tyra Farmer (Winshape Homes), and Ken Allen (LaurensCounty CASA) to juvenile judges statewide at the juvenile judges seminar held at Callaway Gardens November 3 - 5. The publication will soon be available on the Child Placement Project Web site. The Model Courts Project will be taking on the task of prioritizing permanency options as its next project beginning in January 2004. For more information on the Model Courts Project, please contact Coordinator, Lori Bramlett, at (404)463-6480 or bramletl@gaaoc.us
Stakeholder Meetings
To encourage better communication between all the participants in deprivation cases, the CPP will pay for lunch! The meetings must be arranged and hosted by the court and the judge. Their purpose is not to talk about individual cases, but to discuss ways to improve the process for kids in your court.
Technology Equipoment
The CPP is holding a promotional contest for the top users of the CPRS. Judicial winners will receive either a blackberry or a Treo. For more information, please see this web site: http://www.childwelfare.net/mrb/promo/ or contact Betsy Hyder at hyderb@gaaoc.us
Case Plan Project

Over 18,000 case plans are now in the on-line Case Plan Reporting System (CPRS). The CPP has hired a project manager named Betsy Hyder, just for the CPRS. The DHR and the CPP are continuing to add enhancements to the system. Betsy's contact info is hyderb@gaaoc.us or 404.713.0943
To see a demo of CPRS, see: http://www/gacaseplan.org/
Grant Writing
The CPP will be renewing the contract with the grant writing company in the coming months. Notices of available grants will be sent out on the CJCJ list serv.
Court Calendar on the Web
In order to develop an online court calendaring system the Child Placement Project contracted with Relevant Arts.com. This system was then piloted in Haralson and Polk counties by Juvenile Court Judge Mark Murphy and his court administrator Ms. Carol Brown.
Travel for Judges
The CPP will assist with travel expenses for any juvenile court judge in Georgia to attend national conferences about deprivation law and process.
Trial Manuals
These manuals are in the process of being updated and should be done by Spring 2004.
Cross-Training
The CPP, in partnership with the Department of Family and Children Services, Council of Juvenile Court Judges, the Department of Juvenile Justice and the Georgia Association of Homes and Services for Children, is holding the fourth Child Placement Conference in Atlanta on November 12-14. The list of invitees included DHR Placement Staff, Supervisors, Resource Development Staff, Independent Living Staff, Administrative Staff; Juvenile Court Judges and Attorneys; Community Volunteers; and Private Providers. Almost 600 people attended the 2002 conference.
See: http://www.gahsc.org/
Visitation Protocol
The problem is that most agencies and courts set visitation between children in foster care and their parents based on available resources or arbitrary factors, without understanding or taking into account the developmental needs of the individual child or the effect that the visitation has on achievement of the permanency plan. The result is that children are harmed psychologically, bonds are weakened, and any contribution to the achievement of the permanency plan is incidental.
The objective is to develop minimum standards and best practices for visitation between children who are in foster care, and their parents, based on their individual developmental needs and their permanency plan. Also a curriculum around those standards and practices would be developed for agency personnel,

judges, attorneys, CASAs, panel review members, and court administrators.
Currently, research has been compiled from both social science and legal resources on visitation issues as related to permanency. This research is in the process of being reviewed. In addition, the judges will be receiving a short survey on visitation centers in the upcoming months.
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Happenings Around the Nation
Block Grants for Foster Care?
Congress is discussing making Federal Title IV-E foster care funds as block grants which may mean the funds could eventually be capped. It would also mean less federal regulation on foster care. The states would be able to set their own rules. This proposal has not gotten too far yet, but it is worth watching. To see view the opinion from CWLA on the above subject, see: http://www.cwla.org/advocacy/financingtestimony030611.htm
The Child's Bureau Express Newsletter
Has a new web addresss: http://cbexpress.acf.hhs.gov/
New CDC Study on Home Visitation
Report on Violence Prevention Say Home Visits Can Reduce Child Abuse, But Finds Insufficient Scientific Evidence to Determine Whether Firearm Laws Impact Rates of Violence. For more info, see: http://www.cdc.gov/od/oc/media/pressrel/r031002.htm
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Grant Funding Awarded
The Administrative Office of the Courts would like to announce that two nonprofit in partnership with their juvenile court judges have been awarded funding for the implementation of visitation centers.
Twin Cedars in Troup County and the Child Advocacy Center in Forsyth counties were each awarded $75,000 of start up funding from the DHR Promoting Safe and Stable Families grant program. These grant applications, while originating from the county organizations, were supported, in their development, by the Child Placement Project. Through a contract with Randall Development Company, the Child Placement Project has been able to assist Juvenile court judges in seeking out additional funding for initiatives impacting child and the courts. Currently the Child Placement Project has assisted with a number of grant applications, some of which are still pending and total over 3 million dollars.
Visitation Centers are a big help to the child welfare system for both the courts and DFCS. Georgia failed on visitation efforts during a 2001 federal review. Visitation for children in foster care to see both their parents and siblings is very important (supported by research) to maintain bonds and the motivation if a case is to get to reunification.
Unfortunately, with all the work that caseworkers have to do, visitation becomes a low priority. Also, visitation is normally only available at DFCS county offices from 9 to 5, Monday through Friday. It is easier on both children and families if weekend or evening hours are available for visitation. This is exactly the kind of community support courts and DFCS offices need. For more information for how to create a visitation center in your community, the Barton Child Law and Policy Clinic has created a "how to" manual, see: http://www.childwelfare.net/resources/VisitationCenterManual/VisitationCenterManual.pdf
To get a list of all the supervised visitation centers funded by the Safe and Stable Families Grant in Georgia, go to the page below and select "supervised visitation and all" http://www.pssfnet.com/resourceguide/
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