Judges to host summit on justice for children

GAINESVILLE - Judges, child welfare workers, juvenile court attorneys, school leaders, foster parents and others have been invited to meet from 10:00-2:15 Friday to a joint effort to improve how they handle cases involving abused and neglected children.

The Northeastern Judicial Circuit Justice for Children Summit will be held at the Frances Meadows Center.

The summit is sponsored by the Supreme Court of Georgia's Committee on Justice for Children (J4C) in partnership with the state Division of Family and Children Services (DFCS).

The purpose of the meeting is to draw together all those involved in the plight of children who come in contact with the state's child welfare system and to formulate action plans for improvement. Judge Cliff Jolliff and Judge Mary Carden, Northeastern Circuit Juvenile Court Judges, will kick off the summit, which will include the release of new data showing the rate of children placed in foster care in Hall and Dawson counties, their length of stay, the number eventually returned to their birth families, and the number of children who are adopted. The data for each county will be compared to data from other counties in Georgia.

For more information, contact: Christopher Church, Policy Analyst Principal for the Office of Children, Families and the Courts at the Administrative Office of the Courts 404-463-5227 (O) 404-561-4307 (Cell) [email protected]

http://accesswdun.com/article/2013/1/257814