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June 11, 2007
NCYL Director John O’Toole has been appointed to California’s Blue Ribbon Commission on Children in Foster Care. The 40-member commission, appointed by state Supreme Court Chief Justice Ronald M. George, is comprised of judges, legislators, attorneys, community leaders, and others with broad foster care expertise. The commission is chaired by state Supreme Court Justice Carols Moreno.
The commission’s purpose is to explore the causes and consequences of court-based delays and make recommendations on how to improve the ability of courts to move children quickly out of the legal limbo of foster care. The commission will present its recommendations to the Judicial Council for possible legislation, rules of court, and changes in policy and practice guidelines.
Specifically, the commission is committed to: - Improving the ability of the federal government, the state, local agencies, and the courts to more quickly secure safe, permanent homes for foster children, and, at the same time, reduce the need for foster care.
- Establishing a permanent collaborative framework among all those who are responsible for the well-being of vulnerable children.
- Developing strategies for applying resources in more flexible ways to support children and families while persuading the federal government to invest more effectively and to lift restrictions on how money can be spent by the state.
- Targeting further improvements in the performance of the courts where often the most critical life decisions are made.
Among the other members of the commission are: - Assemblywoman Karen Bass (D-Los Angeles)
- John Burton, former president pro tempore of the state senate and founder of John Burton Foundation for Children Without Homes
- Superior Court Judge Leonard P. Edwards
- Teri Kook, Senior Program Officer, The Stuart Foundation
- Superior Court Judge Michael Nash, presiding Judge of the Juvenile Court in Los Angeles County
- Diane Nunn, Division Director, Center for Families, Children & the Courts, Administrative Office of the Courts
- Jennifer Rodriguez, Legislative and Policy Coordinator, California Youth Connection
- David Sanders, Ph.D., Director, Los Angeles County Dept. of Children and Family Services
- Darrell S. Steinberg, former assemblyman, of counsel to Hanson Bridgett et al.
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