In 2020, the National Council of Juvenile and Family Court Judges (NCJFCJ) continued to provide quality education to judges and other judicial professionals despite the limitations imposed by COVID-19. Through webinars, Zoom calls, and other virtual methods, the NCJFCJ maintained its role as the national leader in judicial education and continued to provide the knowledge and skills that improve the lives of families and children who seek justice.

Through the Firearms Technical Assistance Project (FTAP), the NCJFCJ provides ongoing technical assistance to the Bexar County Civil District and County (Criminal) Courts and the Collaborative Commission on Domestic Violence, which focuses on the development and implementation of improved responses to firearms in domestic violence cases.

The Judicial Engagement Network (JEN) Fellowship Program allows judges to enhance their skills as judicial leaders within the court and in their communities on domestic and dating violence, sexual assault, and stalking issues. A judge from Bexar County is a Fellow in the third class of the JEN Fellowship Program, which began in 2021.

As part of the Implementation Sites Project, the NCJFCJ provides targeted training and technical assistance to the Child Protection Court of Rio Grande Valley West, under the leadership of Judge Carlos Villalon, Jr., and to the Coastal Bend Children’s Court, under the leadership of Judge Jamie Rawlinson.

The NCJFCJ is funded by the Office of Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention (OJJDP) to provide targeted support to the Bexar County Juvenile Drug Treatment Court Team, which is implementing the Juvenile Drug Treatment Court Guidelines and other key recommended practices. The NCJFCJ also provides targeted support to the Grayson County and Tom Green County Juvenile Drug Treatment Court Teams.

With funding support from the NoVo Foundation, the NCJFCJ provides training and technical assistance to the Texas multi-site court collaboration, including Travis, Hidalgo, Webb, Duval, Jim Hogg, and Zapata Counties to identify and promote promising practices in juvenile and family courts to address child sex trafficking.

The Travis County Juvenile Probation Department is one of four jurisdictions receiving training and technical assistance as part of an OJJDP Second Chance Act award made to the NCJFCJ’s partner, the Performance-based Standards (PbS) Learning Institute.

The NCJFCJ has 71 Judicial and Associate Members in Texas. PACE Youth Programs, Inc., located in Houston, is an Organizational Member of the NCJFCJ.

Judge Robert R. Hofmann of Mason is an NCJFCJ Board Director, and Judge Aurora Martinez Jones of Austin is the Secretary of the NCJFCJ and a 2021 Days on the Hill Delegate. Judge Darlene Byrne of Austin and Judge Patricia A. Macias (Ret.) of El Paso are NCJFCJ Past Presidents. Steven Holloway of Pace Youth Programs, Inc. in Houston is a Sustaining Member of the NCJFCJ.