Over the past two years, Juvenile Court has seen a 16% increase in the number of children being

arrested for school

-based minor offenses. School
-safety is important and yet many schools have
limited resources and options for dealing with safety issues that may involve adolescent behaviors.
When the options used to address issues involving adolescent behaviors increasingly become a
school
-based arrest, it can and does intensify the
-to-prison
schoolpipeline.

This is a problem we can address together. The Orleans Parish Juvenile Court invites you to a 1 and
½ dayConversation
& Training session on Dismantling the
-to-Prison
School Pipeline through the
development of a School
-Justice Partnership. We ask that you please plan to join us in continuing
the work that many of you may have been part of that addressed the discipline code and expulsion in
the prior decade(s).

The School
-Justice Partnership
Conversation & Training is an opportunity for key stakeholders and
community organizations to come together with the -creating
goal ofaco
pathway for developing a
partnership that will aid us in reducing the number -based
of school
arrests.

Judge Steven Teske, the architect of the-Justice

SchoolPartnership model, and his team of experts
will be facilitating the conversation & training. Judge Teske has successfully worked with over 39
states across the country to develop a model for reducing
-based school
arrests.

School
-Justice Partnership
Conversation
& Training
February 27th & 28th
Starting at 8:30 am
1631OrethaCastle Haley Blvd.
4th Floor Conf. Room above Café Reconcile
Space is limited. Registration Required.
Lunch Provided.
Register:

For more information contact Damekia Morgan

-658-9553
at 504
or dmorgan@nola.gov
 The School-Justice Partnership is
supported by the American Bar
Association Racial Justice Improvement
Project (RJIP)

&

The Clayton County School- Justice

Partnership Technical Assistance Team

&

The Orleans Parish Racial Justice

Improvement Project Task Force

School -Justice
Partnership
Conversation
&Training
February 27 & 28, 2018

Convener: Orleans Parish Juvenile Court

 School-Justice Partnership Conversation &
Training Welcome!

I’d like to personally welcome each of you to the School-Justice Partnership Conversation &
Training. It’s an exciting time for the Orleans Parish Juvenile Court as we continue to grow,
always remaining adaptable, motivated and responsive to the youth of this community. The
Racial Justice Improvement Project and the School-Based Partnership Initiative is now our
most prominent task at hand. Our community is confronting a time of many changes with our
school system, but we’re meeting these changes with the collaboration of community agencies
and leaders to address safety issues and behavior concerns that constantly feeds the school-to-
prison pipeline.
I’d like to give you an idea of what you can expect and what we hope to achieve in this
day and a half training. We want to engage you in a conversation on Dismantling the
School-to-Prison Pipeline through the development of a School-Justice Partnership. Let’s
openly discuss the problem that exists in our schools and develop together, strategies of
how we as partners can architect a plan to address expulsions, suspensions, and school-
based arrests. Let strategize and plan how we can reduce the school-to-prison pipeline.

We want to help transform the way we discipline our children in schools. We want to
help revise and improve school policies on discipline and provide school administrators
with the needed resources to do so. We, like teachers, school administrators, law
enforcement, and community leaders can make a change in our school system when it
comes to discipline. We will have challenges, but I believe with continued support from
Judge Steven Teske, our partners, and the community leaders, we will continue with our
goals and objectives despite setbacks. We should all be very proud of where we are today
and excited about where we are headed.

Before I close, I’d like to thank each of you for attending our training and bringing your
expertise to our gathering. You, as organization and community leaders, have the vision,
the knowledge, and the experience to help us pave our way into the future of a confident
School-Justice Partnership. Our children today are our greatest assets for tomorrow, and
we need your support and leadership to build a strong model for change. Throughout
these two days, I ask you to stay engaged, stay proactive and help us build a pathway for
developing a partnership that will aid us in reducing the number of school-based arrests
in our schools.

Again, we welcome you, and I respectfully thank all of you for your support.
Sincerely,

Chief Judge Candice B. Anderson

 Racial Justice Improvement Project Task Force

The Honorable Candice Bates-Anderson, Convener

Ranord J. Darensburg, Facilitator

Lynette Adams, Member
Ethan Ashley, Member,
Ralph Brandt, Member
Douglas B. Eckert, Member
Karen Evans, Member
Mary K. Garton, Member
Charmel Gaulden, Member
Carla Gendusa, Member
Susan G. Guidry, Member
Chief Michael Harrison, Member
Chabre Johnson, Member
Andree Mattix, Member
Darrin McCall, Member
Paul Noel, Member
Salma S. Safiedine, Member
Melissa A. Schegoda, Member
Ariel Test, Member
Capt. Joseph P. Waguespack, Member
Angela Wiggins, Member
Tina Haines & Damekia Morgan, Coordinators
The American Bar Association Racial Justice Improvement Project (RJIP) aims to identify
and reform policies and practices that produce racial disparities in local criminal justice
systems across the country. By working with officials in state and local criminal justice
systems, RJIP attempts to address racial disparities by developing and implementing
evidence -based policy reforms throughout the adjudication process where policies and
practices have an adverse impact on people of color. While many jurisdictions have formed
criminal justice coordinating committees, RJIP is unique in that it facilitates collaboration
would not (or do not) usually engage or cooperate, and RJIP emphasizes a unified solution
to addressing data among criminal justice officials who otherwise identified racial
disparities. The creation of standing racial justice task forces, such as those fostered under
RJIP, are proven-effective initiatives that ensure local jurisdictions make a sustained
institutional commitment to racial justice reform.
Stella Cziment

Director of Enrollment Transitions, Recovery School District (RSD)

Stella Cziment is an advocate for children and families in New Orleans. Stella has an
extensive background in public interest with an emphasis in community development.
Prior to her position as Director of Enrollment Transitions for the Recovery School
District, Stella defended residents of New Orleans in Criminal District Court and Orleans
Municipal Court as a public defender. For more than three years, Stella coordinated
investigators and client services advocates and designed defenses for individuals accused
of felonies and misdemeanors

Stella attended Tulane University Law School and received her undergraduate degree
from Beloit College, where she designed a major in "Community Development and
Reform." Once in law school, Stella continued to build on her public interest
background by clerking for the community development division of the Lawyers'
Committee for Civil Rights Under Law in Washington D.C. and the New Orleans office
of the U.S. Equal Opportunity Commission. After graduating law school, she conducted
employment discrimination investigation for the Louisiana Commission on Human
Rights before becoming a staff attorney for the Orleans Public Defenders in 2012.

Ranord J. Darensburg JD, MSW

Judicial Administrator, Orleans Parish Juvenile Court

Ranord J. Darensburg has been a practicing attorney for over 25 years. He has written
and lectured on legal issues including juvenile justice reform, small business formation,
adoption and business development.

A native of New Orleans, Mr. Darensburg obtained graduate degrees in law and social work
from Loyola University College of Law and Tulane University School of Social Work. Mr.
Darensburg currently serves as Judicial Administrator for Orleans Parish Juvenile Court. Mr.
Darensburg has served in numerous and varied capacities during his legal career, including
Judge Pro Tempore, Ad Hoc Judge, Clerk of Juvenile Court, Code Enforcement Hearing
Officer and General Counsel at Transit Management of Southeast Louisiana. Since taking over
as Judicial Administrator of Orleans Parish Juvenile Court, Ranord has worked with the court
to enhance court services and operations.

Ranord can be reached by email at contact@ranord.com or www.ranord.com

Damekia Morgan, LMSW

JDAI Coordinator, Orleans Parish Juvenile Court

Damekia Morgan, a native New Orleanian, is the Juvenile Detention Alternative
Initiative (JDAI) Coordinator for the Orleans Parish Juvenile Court where she focuses on
creating an equitable, just and efficient juvenile justice system that aims to improve the
well-being of children/youth. Ms. Morgan received a B.A. in Elementary Education, and
her Master’s in Social Work from Southern University at New Orleans. Ms. Morgan was
awarded the following national fellowships: the 2009 Gulf Coast Community
Transformation Fellowship, the 2010 Women of Color Lead the Way Fellowship, and
the 2012 Human Rights Institute Fellowship.

Local School-Justice Initiatives Panelist

Ms. Morgan has been addressing children’s issues for the past 20 years, and her
efforts have been featured nationally, statewide and locally. Ms. Morgan has steered
several statewide legislative campaigns that sought to reduce the number of children
entering the juvenile justice system via the school-to-prison pipeline. She has
appeared on many panels speaking about issues regarding Juvenile Justice, the
School to Prison Pipeline, Early Childhood, and Coalition Building. Ms. Morgan’s
work as an advocate, organizer, and policy analyst/reformer has had a positive
impact on children and families living in New Orleans and throughout the state of
Louisiana. Ms. Morgan is considered to be an innovator and expert in her field. Ms.
Morgan is pursuing her doctorate in Social Work at the University of Southern
California.
“We must ensure that every child lives in a society that nourishes and support their full
development.” D. Morgan

Councilmember Nadine M. Ramsey

City of New Orleans, Councilmember District “C”

Nadine M. Ramsey, District "C" Councilmember represents the largest and most
diverse district in New Orleans, which includes Algiers, the French Quarter, Treme,
Bywater and Marigny.
Councilmember Ramsey attended Newcomb College where she earned a B.A. in
Political Science. After earning her bachelor's, Councilmember Ramsey attended
Cornell University Law School where she won the American Jurisprudence Prize for
Constitutional Law and earned her Juris Doctor Degree from Tulane University Law
School. From there she launched a career rooted in public advocacy and service.
Councilmember Ramsey served as Judge for Orleans Parish Civil District Court from
19972009. She was elected by her colleagues Chief Judge in 2007 and 2008. Before
being elected Judge, she ran her own law firm for nine years gaining a wealth of
knowledge in small business operations and learning the importance of small
businesses to New Orleans.
Gina Womack

Executive Director, Families and Friends of Louisiana’s Incarcerated Children

(FFLIC)
Gina Womack is the director and co-founder of Families and Friends of Louisiana's
Incarcerated Children (FFLIC), a statewide membership-based organization
dedicated to creating a better life for all of Louisiana's youth, especially those who
are involved, or at risk of becoming involved in the juvenile justice system. Since its
inception, FFLIC has worked with allies to pass the Juvenile Justice Reform ACT of
2003 which forced Louisiana to close the notorious Tallulah Youth Prison and
reduced the number of children locked in cages from over 2000 to less than 350
today and move to a system based on treatment that keeps families at the center of
their children’s treatment. FFLIC is working on a statewide campaign to interrupt
the school-to-prison pipeline in Louisiana and have educated many lawmakers on the
ills of school push outs.
Ms. Womack has worked on children issues for at least 20 years, have trained
hundreds of parents to be advocates for their children and develop leadership skills.
Her efforts have been featured in both national and local print media, radio, and
reports. She has appeared on many panels speaking on issues around Juvenile
Justice, School to Prison Pipeline, and the need for real Family and Community
Involvement.