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April 2008 Vol. 

-SJI New

18, No. 7 

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SJI BOARD APPROVES GRANTS FOR THE SECOND QUARTER

The SJI Board of Directors met in New Orleans, Louisiana, on April 18, 2008, to review applications for 

the second quarter of Fiscal Year 2008. Four Project Grants, two Partner Grants, five Technical 

Assistance (TA) Grants, and three Curriculum Adaptation & Training (CAT) Grants were approved; for a 

total of $829,541. 

Included in the awarded Project Grants this quarter are projects to support the Maryland Mediation and 

Conflict Resolution Office (MACRO) to provide court ADR programs in Maryland with a web-based data 

collection and analysis system, and the Texas Office of Court Administration to test pre-trial strategies for 

the mentally ill offender. Five TA applications were approved by the Board, including support to the 

Vermont Supreme Court to strengthen their court interpreter program, a statewide civil legal needs 

assessment in Nevada, and a performance evaluation of the Sherburne County, Minnesota, Chemical 

Dependency Jail Treatment Program. Two CAT Grants were approved that will support the New York 

Unified Court System in their efforts to improve case management in New York City’s Family Courts, 

and the National Center for State Courts (NCSC) jury trial management efforts. 

The Board also approved a Partner Grant with the Open Society Institute, which is described in a separate 

article in this month’s E-SJI News. Staff is currently working to finalize another Partner Grant, and more 

information will be provided in next month’s edition of E-SJI News. 

As of the second quarter of FY 2008, SJI has awarded five Project Grants totaling $431,879; three Partner 

Grants totaling $607,000; ten TA Grants totaling $269,598; and four CAT Grants totaling $67,894; for a 

grand total of $1,376,371. Total match as of the second quarter of FY 2008 is $1,422,981. SJI has also 

awarded 62 Scholarships totaling $90,230 so far this fiscal year.

The Board and Staff would like to thank the Louisiana Supreme Court for hosting the second quarter 

Board meeting; in particular, Chief Justice Pascal Calogero, Judicial Administrator Dr. Hugh Collins, 

Valerie Willard, Bridget Daniels, and Robert Gunn.  During their stay in New Orleans, the Board visited 

the areas hardest hit by Hurricane Katrina, and was briefed by Supreme Court staff on the storm’s impact 

and their recovery efforts. The Board was truly impressed by the Supreme Court’s ability to overcome 

these difficult challenges. 

What’s Inside

Board Approves New Approaches to 

Address Immigration Issues 3, 4

Legal Momentum Launches 

New Web Course 2

Next Grant & 

Scholarship Deadline 4 

SJI Partners with OSI 2
SJI PARTNERS WITH THE OPEN SOCIETY INSTITUTE 

ON RACIAL AND ETHNIC FAIRNESS IN THE STATE COURTS

SJI has recently finalized a $354,000 Partner Grant with the Open Society Institute (OSI) for the second phase 

of the National Campaign to Ensure the Racial and Ethnic Fairness of America’s State Courts. This effort 

builds on a previous Partner Grant with OSI (Phase I) to mobilize the expertise, experience, and commitment of 

state court judges and officers across the country to address both the perception and reality of racial and ethnic 

fairness. Phase I, with the National Center for State Courts (NCSC) leading the project, resulted in a national 

compilation of promising programs to achieve racial and ethnic fairness in five key areas: 1) diverse judicial 

workforces; 2) fair and unbiased behaviors in the courthouse; 3) system-wide improvements to reduce 

disparities in specific types of cases; 4) availability of services to improve access for limited English-proficient 

persons; and 5) diverse juries. 

Phase II will focus on implicit bias – an issue that potentially affects decisions and activities related to each of 

the five areas but especially those related to fair and unbiased behaviors in the courthouse. NCSC will work 

with three jurisdictions to develop and deliver information on implicit bias to judges and court staff. Lessons 

learned from each jurisdiction’s efforts to address this issue will be made available to all state courts, and NCSC 

will provide technical assistance on this topic. 

LEGAL MOMENTUM LAUNCHES NEW COURSE ON SEXUAL 

ASSAULT AS A HIDDEN ASPECT OF DOMESTIC VIOLENCE

Legal Momentum, with support from a SJI grant, has launched a free web-based course, Intimate Partner 

Sexual Assault: Adjudicating This Hidden Aspect of Domestic Violence (SJI-04-N-170). The course provides 

current research from law, medicine, and the social sciences on the implications for the courts of the severe 

impact of intimate partner assault. Also included is how the law itself often undermines victim safety, how to 

create a court environment in which victims feel safe disclosing, which risk assessment instruments include 

intimate partner sexual assault as a factor, and how to assess the capability of batter intervention and sex 

offender treatment program to address intimate partner sexual assault and more. 

This course was researched and written by the National Judicial Education Program, a project of Legal 

Momentum in cooperation with the National Association of Women Judges. The University of New Mexico 

School of Law was also involved in the project. The course consists of twelve modules, self-tests and answers, 

reflection questions, civil and criminal case scenarios, questions, and commentary. To register for the free web 

course, please visit: www.njep-ipsacourse.org. 

Page 2 E-SJI News – Vol. 18, No.7 
BOARD APPROVES NEW APPROACHES TO ADDRESS 

IMMIGRATION ISSUES IN THE STATE COURTS 

Last month’s E-SJI News included an article on the March 27-28, 2008, roundtable discussion on the issues 

state courts are facing as a direct result of immigration. The roundtable participants identified many concerns, 

including a large increase in the need for court interpreters, concerns for equal access to justice for all, and 

determining how state and federal laws impact both legal and illegal immigrants. The group also identified key 

methods for SJI to provide assistance through the Strategic Initiatives Grants (SIG) program. A report on the 

group’s activities, including their key recommendations, was presented to the Board of Directors for their final 

decisions during the April 18, 2008, Board meeting: 

Strategic Priorities for Addressing the Impact of Immigration in the State Courts 

Combined, four Strategic Priorities should guide a comprehensive strategy for the state courts to address the 

impact of immigration: 

1. Increase understanding and awareness about the impacts of immigration in the state courts; 

2. Develop and test state and local approaches for assessing and addressing the impact of immigration in 

the state courts; 

3. Enhance state and local court capacity to improve court services affected by immigration; and 

4. Build effective national, state, and local partnerships for addressing the impact of immigration in the 

state courts. 

The Role of SJI in Assisting State Courts with Immigration Issues 

SJI, through the SIG program, will assist the state courts in addressing the four Strategic Priorities by focusing 

on three Program Areas: 

1. SJI will build national level partnerships for addressing the impact of immigration in the state courts 

by: 

3⁄4 identifying the key federal, state and local level public and private organizations who need to participate 

in examining and addressing the impacts of immigration on the state courts; 

3⁄4 facilitating problem-solving efforts using federal, state, and local partnerships; and 

3⁄4 coordinating all aspects of a national strategic initiative. 

2. SJI will support and coordinate state and local efforts to understand and address the impact of 

immigration in the state courts by supporting: 

3⁄4 the development of assessment, planning, and improvement approaches that can be used to address the 

impacts of immigration in courts across the nation; 

3⁄4 pilot projects to test, implement, and refine improvement approaches; and 

3⁄4 technical assistance efforts targeting potentially unique state and local needs. 

Continued on page 4 

Page 3 E-SJI News – Vol. 18, No.7 
Board of Directors

Chairman

Robert A. Miller 

Chief Justice (Ret.) 

Supreme Court of South Dakota 

Pierre, SD 

Vice Chairman

Joseph F. Baca 

Chief Justice (Ret.) 

New Mexico Supreme Court 

Santa Fe, NM 

Secretary

Sandra A. O’Connor 

States Attorney of Baltimore 

County (Ret.) 

Towson, MD 

Executive Committee Member

Keith McNamara, Esq. 

McNamara & McNamara 

Columbus, OH 

Terrence B. Adamson, Esq. 

Executive Vice-President 

The National Geographic Society 

Robert N. Baldwin 

Executive Vice President and 

General Counsel 

National Center for State Courts 

Carlos R. Garza, Esq. 

Administrative Judge (Ret.) 

Round Rock, TX 

Sophia H. Hall 

Administrative Presiding Judge 

Circuit Court of Cook County 

Chicago, IL 

Tommy Jewell 

Presiding Children’s Court Judge 

(Ret.) 

Second Judicial District Court 

Albuquerque, NM 

Arthur A. McGiverin 

Chief Justice (Ret.) 

Supreme Court of Iowa 

Des Moines, IA 

Janice Munsterman 

Executive Director 

Jonathan Mattiello 

Deputy Director 

The State Justice Institute is a 

private, nonprofit corporation 

established by Federal law in 1984 

to improve the quality of justice in 

state courts, and foster innovative, 

efficient solutions to common 

issues faced by all courts. SJI is 

governed by a Board of Directors 

appointed by the President and 

confirmed by the Senate. 

(Board Approves New Approaches to Address Immigration Issues in the State 

Courts continued from page 4)

3. SJI will coordinate the development of the knowledge base, forums, and 

 resources for understanding and addressing the impact of immigration on 

 the state courts by supporting: 

3⁄4 preparation of materials documenting the scope and impacts of 

immigration in the state courts; 

3⁄4 development of bench books addressing the intersection of international, 

federal, and state law; 

3⁄4 judicial education programs addressing the intersection of international, 

federal, and state law; 

3⁄4 efforts to inventory best practices for addressing immigration issues in 

courts; and 

3⁄4 development of performance indicators that measure the impact of 

immigration in the state courts. 

The Board unanimously approved the roundtable’s recommendations. Staff is 

now working to finalize specific grants in response to these Program Areas, and 

will provide updates in future editions of the E-SJI News and other forums.

NEXT GRANT & SCHOLARSHIP 

APPLICATION DEADLINE

Applications for all grants and scholarships must be received by SJI on 

August 1, 2008, to be considered for the fourth quarter of FY 2008. Please be 

advised this is not a mail date, but the date the application must be physically 

received by SJI. Notification of awards for scholarships will be completed by 

the end of August. New grant awards will be made by the end of September.

CONTACT THE STAFF

Janice Munsterman, Executive Director 

 janice.munsterman@sji.gov, Ext. 202 

LaVerne Durham, Program Manager 

 laverne.durham@sji.gov, Ext. 204

Jonathan Mattiello, Deputy Director 

 jonathan.mattiello@sji.gov, Ext. 210 

Candice Jackson, Office Manager 

 candice.jackson@sji.gov, Ext. 200

Van Debrick, Chief Financial Officer 

 van.debrick@sji.gov, Ext. 203

Ryan Williams, Finance Manager 

 ryan.williams@sji.gov, Ext. 206

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SJI E-News is published by the State Justice Institute, 1650 King Street, Suite 600, Alexandria, VA 22314 

(703) 684-6100 Fax: (703) 684-7618 www.sji.gov

 

 Editors Design/Layout

Janice Munsterman Candice Jackson 

Jonathan Mattiello 

Page 4 E-SJI News – Vol. 18, No.7