Enhancing Collaboration and Effectiveness in Criminal Justice: Implementing National Standards for Criminal Justice Coordinating Councils

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Tom Eberly is Program Director at the Justice Management Institute (JMI) and an expert in criminal justice coordinating councils. At JMI, Tom co-facilitates the National Network of Criminal Justice Coordinating Councils (NNCJCC) and has worked with jurisdictions nationwide to establish or enhance coordinating councils. He collaborated with the National Institute of Corrections to produce the National Survey of Criminal Justice Coordinating Councils and recently served as the principal author for the National Standards of Criminal Justice Coordinating Councils and the CJCC Essential Elements. Before joining JMI, Tom was the criminal justice director in Mecklenburg County, North Carolina for ten years, where he created and managed Mecklenburg County Criminal Justice Services. This department included pretrial services, treatment courts, forensic evaluation, re-entry services, and criminal justice planning. Earlier in his career, he served as criminal justice coordinator for Summit and Lake Counties in Ohio, where he established CJCCs to promote systemic reform efforts focused on improving justice operations and public safety.

Katie Green is a Correctional Program Specialist with the National Institute of Corrections overseeing and actively participating in the design, development, implementation and evaluation of resources to enhance the competencies of criminal justice practitioners. Prior to joining NIC 11 years ago, Katie was a criminal justice practitioner in the Commonwealth of Virginia leading organizational change efforts, improving pretrial and community corrections services and programming by leading the implementation of evidence- based practices. Included in her portfolio with NIC, Katie manages resource development for community supervision organizations to include leadership training and professional development for staff that provide direct supervision to persons under community supervision. Katie over sees training and technical assistance projects to advance the work of community supervision organizations. Currently she is managing the development and implementation of the Community Supervision Leadership Learning Lab and Facilitating Behavior Change trainings. Katie is also developing resources and training for local criminal justice systems, focusing on Criminal Justice Coordinating Councils (CJCCs).

Mandy Potapenko is the Executive Director of Milwaukee County's Community Justice Council, a collaborative group of justice leaders, elected officials, and community partners working together to ensure a fair and efficient justice system. With a strong belief in proactive relationship building, Mandy serves as a trusted bridge between the community and government, fostering strong connections to promote innovation and bridge divides. During the COVID-19 pandemic, Mandy and the Council's leadership demonstrated their commitment to collaboration, securing $16M in 2022 to support a coordinated plan for reducing the pandemic-induced criminal court backlog. Beyond her local work, Mandy actively participates in national criminal justice working groups, including the National Network of Criminal Justice Coordinating Councils, where she serves as a steering committee member. She also contributed as a subject matter expert to the development of the National Standards for CJCCs commissioned by the National Institute of Corrections (NIC). Prior to her current role, Mandy worked with Safe & Sound, a local non-profit organization, focusing on building relationships between law enforcement and the community to prevent and reduce crime. Her team's efforts were recognized as finalists for the Herman Goldstein Problem-Oriented Policing Award in 2015 for their collaborative crime prevention work in Milwaukee's Washington Park neighborhood. Mandy's earlier career included working in Milwaukee County's Pretrial Services programs and advocating for individuals seeking restraining orders through the county's restraining order clinic. A lifelong resident of Wisconsin and a graduate of the University of Wisconsin - Milwaukee, Mandy remains dedicated to fostering positive change in the community.