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From the President: Deposits in the Bank
by Christy Tull

Christy Tull

Think back with me to January 15th of this year. Picture the image of Flight 1549 floating in the Hudson River with passengers standing on the wing awaiting rescue.

What were we thinking in awe and wonder? How did that pilot land that plane …safely…in the middle of the river?!

The answer according to Captain Chesley "Sully" Sullenberger? "…for 42 years I've been making small regular deposits in this bank of experience: education and training. And on January 15, the balance was sufficient so that I could make a very large withdrawal." When asked about her quick reaction, one ferry boat operator said “Training, training, and training.”

While judges and court personnel do not land planes, they do make life and death decisions and other actions that affect the lives of individuals and their families who navigate through the court system daily. Our role as judicial branch educators is to help judges, magistrates and court personnel make the needed deposits into their banks of knowledge and skills so that they are equipped to make withdrawals to fulfill their roles. As they continuously improve their competence, they enhance the administration of justice and strengthen public trust and confidence in the judicial system.

Although I could have begun this president’s column with the words “during this economic downturn,” I find it more important to remind us all of the significant role judicial branch education plays in the success of our third branch of government. It is tempting to focus on the challenge of shrinking revenues and what we don’t have. Yet, with this and every challenge we will find opportunities that enable us to fulfill our responsibility to make the judicial system work efficiently and effectively for those we serve.

In NASJE we have a rare opportunity. We are an exceptional network of professionals who are, by nature, problem solvers. In these challenging times we are able to share our collective knowledge and resources in ways that will save our states and courts thousands of dollars.

Is it any wonder that “networking” remains the greatest benefit our members report deriving from NASJE?

As your president, I encourage each of you to take advantage of NASJE to expand your network. Here are some suggestions to further maximize the rich benefits of our community this year:

• Join a committee. Working alongside each other is the best way to know and learn from your colleagues. Refer to the summary of committee purposes and contact the chair to join.
• Participate in the first “Virtual NASJE Member Conference” on Monday, December 7, 2009 from 3:00-5:00 p.m. (Eastern Time)! Check the website home page for more details.
• Work with your regional directors as they strive to build connections and share resources.
• Plan now to attend the 35th annual conference in San Antonio, Texas from August 8-11, 2010.

Here are the initiatives and goals I have established to help us seize the opportunities we face. We can educate and equip ourselves to deepen our own knowledge, skills and attitudes (KSAs) through the

• Development of a NASJE curriculum for judicial branch educators based on our core competencies and to be used for future NASJE conferences.
• Creation of an automated curriculum builder as a planning tool available for NASJE members at no cost.
• Scheduling of a pull-out session for state judicial education directors at the San Antonio conference in August 2010 focused on their unique issues.
• Finishing of the project to make JERITT monographs available via the NASJE website.
• Encouraging of members and committees to use new electronic tools to further expand our virtual community (e.g., WebCT for meeting services and webinars for continuing education).

Let me close by encouraging you to support NASJE in other ways. You can help identify funding sources and assist with our fundraising efforts. You can help recruit new members and diversify our membership. You can read our strategic plan online and share ideas to help us meet its objectives.

Finally, you can be creative. NASJE can be your forum to make a difference. Share your creative ideas to meet the challenges of the day. Make some deposits in our collective bank of KSAs that others can withdraw. You will reap returns on those investments beyond your imagination.

I am proud to be your colleague in this noble profession.

Copyright 1999-2012, National Association of State Judicial Educators
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