News
From the President
by Liz Strong

Dear NASJE Members:

As many of you know by now and as was stated in the latest edition of the State Justice Institute (SJI) e-News, “after 16 years and $4.5 million, SJI and the Judicial Education Reference, Information and Technology Transfer (JERITT) Project find themselves at a crossroads. SJI’s support of JERITT will soon be coming to an end (SJI guidelines limit grants to no more than 5 years).” The NASJE Board is very appreciative of SJI’s support of JERITT for the past 16 years and understands that ongoing funding of this project would not meet the Congressional mandates for the State Justice Institute.

Liz Strong

NASJE values its many partners whose goal is to enhance the performance of the judicial system as a whole. In 2002, NASJE members and the Board mounted a vigorous campaign to help reinstate funding for SJI. Just as NASJE showed its support for SJI when funding from Congress was precarious, the Board took action and now is anxious to find a way to fund and maintain the important services provided through the JERITT Project.

As of this writing, JERITT remains operational via a no-cost extension from SJI through March 31. This extension allows JERITT to maintain core functions for the field. However, the question remains: What can NASJE do to maintain the product and services provided by JERITT that are so important to our members?

We have begun to address this question by asking members to articulate the benefit of JERITT to their state leaders. JERITT has offered a unique resource to the judicial branch education community, a resource that has greatly enhanced the quality and direction of state and local programs around the country. Not only has this project developed extensive and reliable databases that we all consult almost daily, but it has also produced some of the most valuable and progressive materials that people in our field can access. Experienced judicial branch educators rely routinely on JERITT’s monographs, project summaries, and directories, to name just a few published materials. New judicial educators have found these materials invaluable as they enter a field for which virtually no one is specifically prepared by their education and experience. We need to let our leaders know of this funding crisis as we investigate alternative sources.

I challenge each and every member to continue this discussion within your office, state and region. The NASJE Board will meet February 3-4, 2006 for our mid-year Board meeting and we welcome any ideas you may have. It remains my privilege to serve you and I look forward to hearing from you.

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