The Massachusetts Center of Excellence for Specialty Courts, an initiative of the Executive Office of the Massachusetts Trial Court, aims to bring innovative, evidence-based, and equitable interventions to Specialty Courts and related settings.
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In the Spotlight
Alexis Balkey, MA & Arielle Andrews, BA
Virtual Training, Healing Together: Family-Centered Approaches for Courts
On October 21, 2024, from 1-2pm, Alexis Balkey and Arielle Andrews will offer judicial leaders, court professionals, treatment providers, child welfare practitioners, and other community-serving agencies working in collaborative courts key strategies for implementing a family-centered approach, with particular focus on enhanced collaboration, communication, service delivery, engagement, and outcomes. Presenters evolve abstract concepts into concrete strategies, illustrating how professionals can apply these principles in any system to improve outcomes for families and our communities.
To register for the training, visit our events page events or click here.
Alexis Balkey, MA
Arielle Andrews, BA
Dara Drawbridge & Jinnia Baiye
2024 Shannon Community Safety Initiative’s Local Action Research Partnership
Dr. Dara Drawbridge and Jinnia Baiye are funded by the Massachusetts Executive Office of Public Safety and Security’s FY24 Shannon Community Safety Initiative to continue their work with Fitchburg, Gardner, and Leominster’s Tri-City Partnership as the Local Action Research Partner. The award provides funding to support the partnership in prevention and intervention efforts that address gangs and youth violence. In FY24, Dara and Jinnia will be joined by Alix Barry. The team will lead the initial piloting of the first-ever Tri-City Partnership’s Young Adult Advisory Board. The Young Adult Advisory Board (YAAB) will be comprised of a diverse group of young people between the ages of 18- 24 years who currently or previously lived in Fitchburg, Gardner, and Leominster areas and may have participated in the Tri-City Partnership’s Shannon-funded programming. The YAAB’s mission is to build an inclusive space where young people have an opportunity to engage in meaningful discussions and provide input on the programmatic activities, policies, and strategies of the Tri-City Partnership and the wider communities in which they live.
Read more about the Shannon Community Safety Initiative here.
Dara Drawbridge
Jinnia Baiye
Alix Barry
Training for Recovery & Engagement in
Addiction Treatment (T.R.E.A.T) Initiative
The Massachusetts Department of Public Health, Bureau of Substance Addiction Services (BSAS), in collaboration with its partners, the Massachusetts Executive Office of the Trial Court, the New England Association of Recovery Court Professionals, AdCare Educational Institute, and the University of Massachusetts Chan Medical School, Commonwealth Medicine received funds from the Bureau of Justice Assistance under its Adult Drug Court Discretionary Grant program, to fund a three-year training and technical assistance (TTA) initiative, the Recovery and Veterans Court TREAT Initiative – “Training for Recovery & Engagement in Addiction Treatment.”
The goal of this initiative is to strengthen the capacity of court clinicians and treatment providers working with specialty courts, with a focus on Massachusetts Adult Drug Courts and Veterans Treatment Courts.
