Nominations are due no later than December 11th Nominees and Recipients will be honored at the 20201Children's Law Institute, January 13-15, 2021
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Information about your Nominee:*
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Tell us about your nominee Nomination Category:* Please select the category that best fits for your nominee. If you aren't sure or they fit into multiple categories you may select "general" and the selection committee will decide.
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Attorney Title:*
Attorney For any area below please describe, including using specific examples that will illustrate your nominee’s distinctive qualities, why you think your candidate deserves an award of excellence as an Attorney.
1. Zealous Representation/Diligence. Attorneys are required to “zealously represent” their clients. This means that they must bring energy and commitment to their efforts for their client, by for example, actively preparing for and participating in meetings, negotiations, mediations, and court hearings; taking active steps to move cases forward; telling a compelling story about his or her client; and conferring with service providers, foster parents, and other professionals and volunteers. Please provide specific examples of times when your nominee has demonstrated zealous representation in their work.
2. Knowledge of the Law/Uses Legal Tools Effectively. Please describe your nominee’s knowledge of the law and effectiveness in using legal tools on behalf of his or her clients. Does your nominee regularly bring evidence before the court, make objections in court, file motions, seek mediation and actively prepare for and participate in mediations, etc.? Does your nominee know how to get the best results (that is, when to be collaborative and when to use the adversarial process)?
3. Compassion/Empathy. Describe how the nominee demonstrates compassion and empathy for his or her clients and for other parties in the case (particularly parents and children).
4.Integrity/Professionalism/Respect. How does your nominee demonstrate integrity, professionalism, and respect toward colleagues and the Court?
5. Responsiveness. How does your nominee show that he or she “has her client’s back?” For example, does he or she respond to phone calls/emails/texts promptly? Meet regularly with clients between court hearings (not just in the court hallway before a hearing)? Other?
6.***For Children’s Court Attorneys only: Scrupulous Fairness. In what ways does your nominee ensure scrupulous fairness toward the other parties, especially Respondents?
Behavioral Health Worker For any area below please describe, using specific examples that will illustrate your nominee’s distinctive qualities, why you think your candidate deserves the award of excellence as a Behavioral Health worker on behalf of the children, youth, and families of New Mexico.
1. Empathy Describe a specific time or times when your nominee demonstrated and/ or modeled empathy for the children, youth, families, and other community partners with whom they work.
2. Engagement Describe one or two recent situations in which you nominee created and or encouraged an atmosphere of engagement with children, youth, families, and other community partners?
3. Advocacy Provide a recent example of a time when your nominee advocated for children, youth, families, and the community as a whole, and/or encouraged children, youth and families in self advocacy.
4. Knowledge Using specific examples of their practices, describe how the nominee demonstrates a high degree of knowledge in their practice through proper assessment, use of specific skills and techniques, providing the appropriate level of care, being trauma informed, and having a working understanding of the systems of care.
5. Professionalism Using specific examples, describe how your nominee shows a level of professionalism appropriate to their position through their actions and word, abides by their ethical code of conduct, and understands and practices privacy laws and confidentiality norms. Tell us about a time their professionalism shined.
6. Relationships Tell us about a time the nominee built and modeled appropriate relationships and boundaries with the children, youth, and families with whom they work.
7. Leadership Provide examples of times your nominee has shown leadership in their field and/or community which was focused on improving practice in the community or awareness of the needs of the child welfare community to policy makers and/or the broader public.
8. Collaboration Describe the specific ways in which the nominee successfully collaborates with children, youth, families, schools, CPS, JJS, and other community partners to assist in achieving positive outcomes for the children, youth, families, and communities in New Mexico. Provide examples of individual and or community collaboration.
CASA Volunteer For any area below please describe, using specific examples that will illustrate your nominee’s distinctive qualities, why you think your candidate deserves the award of excellence as a CASA Volunteer on behalf of the children, youth, and families of New Mexico.
1. Open mindedness Please describe with specific examples how your nominee exhibits the ability to think critically and rationally, is able to consider other perspectives and is able to step out of his/her comfort zone to implement/consider new and diverse concepts.
2. Exceptional commitment CASA Volunteers exhibit strong intent and focus to promote the best interests of children who have experienced abuse or neglect. Please describe your nominee’s exceptional commitment to the children they serve using specific examples of your nominee’s extra effort, perseverance, or creative problem-solving on behalf of a child or children.
3.Integrity Nominees exercise integrity and ethical behaviors, some of which are: maintaining confidentiality, credibility, and reliability by conducting all interactions in a fair and respectful manner. Please describe the nominee’s professional integrity in his or her work and provide recent examples of times the nominee acted with integrity.
4. Independent thought Nominees exercise independent thought, some examples of which are: the ability to listen to other opinions, to recognize connections between ideas, and to challenge others to rethink positions when opinions differ. Please provide us with specific examples that will illustrate your nominee’s distinctive qualities as a CASA Volunteer in this area.
5. Impartiality CASA Volunteers must demonstrate impartiality which is demonstrated by remaining fair, unbiased and objective to all parties on the case. Please give specific examples of instances in which your nominee acted with impartiality.
6. Significant Contributions Describe one or two significant contributions the nominee has made to the CASA organization, to the child welfare system, and/or to the families/youth they serve, and include a description of the impact their contributions have made.
Former Foster Youth/Young Adult For each area below please describe, using specific examples that will illustrate your nominee’s distinctive qualities, why you think your candidate deserves the award of excellence as a Protective Services case worker or Tribal Social Services case worker on behalf of the children, youth, and families of New Mexico.
1. Leadership Please describe a recent situation in which your nominee was a role model for other children, youth or young adults in the child welfare system and/or a recent example of how your nominee demonstrated leadership amongst other youth/young adults in child welfare.
2. Commitment Provide a specific example of when your nominee has shown commitment to others who are currently or who were previously involved in the child welfare system.
3. Self-Advocacy Please provide a recent example of a time when your nominee effectively advocated for themselves.
4. Resiliency Describe a current example of when your nominee showed great resiliency when they had to deal with a difficult situation.
5.Improving the child welfare system Please describe how your nominee has made a difference for other Protective Services/Tribal children, youth and families. Please provide a specific situation where your nominee used their experiences during foster care to improve the child welfare system. Please provide examples of the skills your nominee utilizes with others to increase positive outcomes in the child welfare system.
Former Juvenile Justice Youth/Young Adult For each area below please describe, using specific examples that will illustrate your nominee’s distinctive qualities, why you think your candidate deserves the award of excellence as a Youth or Young Adult who was previously involved with the Juvenile Justice system.
1.Leadership Please describe a recent situation in which your nominee was a role model for other children, youth or young adults involved in or at risk of involvement in the Juvenile Justice system. Describe specific ways in which they have made a difference for others involved in the Juvenile Justice system either by their actions, or by sharing their experiences in the system, and/or provide an example of how this youth/young adult has excelled in a leadership role for system-involved or at risk children, youth or young adults.
2. Advocacy Provide an example of a recent time when the nominee effectively advocated for themselves and/or for others in their community.
3.Resiliency Describe a recent time when the nominee showed great resiliency when they had to deal with a difficult situation.
4. Hope/Growth Describe a recent time when the nominee expressed hope for their or their family’s future, and the positive growth the nominee experienced as a result
Foster Parents For each area below please describe, using specific examples that will illustrate your nominee’s distinctive qualities, why you think your candidate deserves the award of excellence as a Foster Parent on behalf of the children, youth, and families of New Mexico.
1. Exceptional Dedication Nominees demonstrate exceptional dedication in the duties of fostering children, some of which are: compassion for children and families, flexibility with demanding schedules and last minute demands, and the willingness to learn the individual needs of the children in their care. Please provide specific examples that will illustrate your nominee’s exceptional dedication to the children for whom they provide care.
2. Integrity and Ethical Behaviors Please give a specific example of a time the nominee demonstrated a high level of ethical behavior in a challenging situation and describe the nominee’s professional integrity in his or her work.
3. Prudent Parenting Foster parents are trained in the area of prudent parenting so that the children in their care can be provided with as much normalcy as possible. Please provide specific examples of sensible parental decisions made by your nominee that encouraged a child’s or children’s emotional and developmental growth.
4. Supporting Family, Community and Cultural Connections Nominees demonstrate a commitment to preserving children’s cultural identity while caring for children in foster care, some of which are: supporting biological families during reunification, advocating for children to remain connected to their family and community when separated, and/or supporting sibling relationships when divided? Please provide specific examples of times when your nominee made extra efforts to support these connections.
Juvenile Justice Worker For each area below please describe, using specific examples that will illustrate your nominee’s distinctive qualities, why you think your candidate deserves the award of excellence as a Juvenile Justice worker on behalf of the children, youth, and families of New Mexico.
1. Empathy Please describe a specific time when your nominee demonstrated and modeled empathy for the youth, families, and other community partners with whom they work.
2. Engagement Describe one or two recent situations in which your nominee created and or encouraged an atmosphere of engagement with youth, families, and other community partners.
3. Advocacy Provide a recent example of a time the nominee effectively advocated for youth, families, and the community as a whole and/or encouraged youth and families in self advocacy.
4. Balance Describe the specific ways in which the nominee has been able to balance advocating for youth and families while also holding them accountable to orders of the Court and their community.
5.Hope Describe the specific ways in which the nominee shows hope, and fosters hope for the youth and families with whom they work
6. Relationships Describe the ways in which the nominee has built and modeled appropriate relationships with the youth and families with whom they work and tell us about a time they did this well.
7. Leadership Provide recent examples of situations in which your nominee showed leadership, and situations in which they helped create leadership opportunities for the youth and families with whom they work.
8. Collaboration Provide a recent example of a time when the nominee successfully collaborated with youth, families, attorneys, the Court, schools, CPS, and or other community partners to assist in achieving positive outcomes for the youth, families, and communities in New Mexico.
Non-profit service provider For each area below please describe, using specific examples that will illustrate your nominee’s distinctive qualities, why you think your candidate deserves the award of excellence as a Non-profit Service Provider on behalf of the children, youth, and families of New Mexico.
1. Dedication Nominees demonstrate a deep and ongoing commitment to providing important, effective services to children, youth, and families affected by the child welfare and/or juvenile justice system. Please give one or two examples of your nominee’s efforts to improve the quality and/or availability of the services they provide to promote the health, well-being and strength of our families.
2. Leadership Nominees have a record of providing outstanding leadership to their peers and others in their field. Please give one or two examples of your nominee’s exceptional level of performance, their efforts to help other providers achieve a high level of performance, and/or their collaboration with other individuals and agencies or service on committees or other public forums that influence policy or practices that promote the welfare of children, youth and families.
3. Knowledge Nominees exhibit a deep knowledge of the challenges faced by children, youth and families and the ways their professional experience can best be used to help others. Please give one or two examples of your nominee’s efforts to enhance their own knowledge through participation in training relevant to their area of service and/or their participation in activities that further the knowledge of others.
4. Significant contributions Nominees have made significant and effective contributions in their field and/or for the families/youth they serve, such as development of innovative solutions to identified needs and/or improved procedures, practices or methods which have facilitated positive outcomes for children, youth, families, their own service provision, or the services provided by other non-profit service providers. Please give one or two examples of your nominee’s contributions to the field in which they work and/or for the families/youth they serve.
5. Integrity Nominees demonstrate the highest integrity, ethical conduct, and respect for others. Please give one or two examples of instances in which the nominee demonstrated exemplary ethical behavior and/or treatment of clients, co-workers, or other individuals under challenging circumstances.
Parent/Guardian For each area below please describe, using specific examples that will illustrate your nominee’s distinctive qualities, why you think your candidate deserves the award of excellence, as a system-involved Parent or Guardian, on behalf of the children, youth, and families of New Mexico
1. Dedication/Leadership Nominees demonstrate a deep and ongoing commitment to using the knowledge and experience they have gained through involvement in the child welfare and/or juvenile justice system to continue to improve their lives and the lives of other parents and children. This can be demonstrated by providing support for or advocacy on behalf of other parents, a willingness to share their experiences to facilitate stakeholders’ understanding of the strengths and needs of parents/guardians affected by the child welfare and/or juvenile justice system, and/or service on committees or working groups tasked with assessing and proposing improvements to local, state, or national child welfare policy or practice. Please give examples of your nominee’s efforts to use their knowledge and experience to improve the child welfare system for themselves and others.
2. Knowledge Nominees exhibit a commitment to enhancing their knowledge of the challenges faced by families and the ways their personal experience can best be used to help others. Please give one or two examples of your nominee’s actions to gain insight in to their own and other parents/guardians challenges and knowledge about services or interventions to help to address those challenges and/or actions to improve their own ability to use the knowledge of their lived experience to assist other parents/guardians in the child welfare or juvenile justice systems.
3. Significant contributions Nominees have made significant contributions to the child welfare or juvenile justice systems and/or families in which they are engaged. Please give one or two examples of the impact the nominee has had on these systems or on positive outcomes for a family, themselves, or their peers.
4. Integrity Nominees demonstrate the highest integrity, ethical conduct, and respect for others. Please give one or two examples of instances in which the nominee demonstrated exemplary ethical behavior and/or treatment of peers, agency or court personnel, service providers, or other individuals under challenging circumstances related to their involvement in the child welfare or juvenile justice system.
Protective Services Worker or Tribal Social Services Worker For each area below please describe, using specific examples that will illustrate your nominee’s distinctive qualities, why you think your candidate deserves the award of excellence as a Protective Services case worker or Tribal Social Services case worker on behalf of the children, youth, and families of New Mexico.
1. Empathy Please provide a specific time when your nominee demonstrated empathy for children, youth, parents, and/or foster and adoptive care providers in child welfare.
2. Engagement/Teamwork Describe a recent situation in which your nominee meaningfully and productively engaged children, youth, parents, foster and adoptive providers and/or other partners in the child welfare system. This is exemplified by explaining information in a family friendly manner that children, youth, parents, foster and adoptive parents and other partners understood; engaging children, youth, parents, foster and adoptive parents and other partners in case planning; engaging a parent, guardian, custodian and child or youth to achieve timely permanency; engaging a parent, guardian or custodian to maintain a child or children in the home, or to prevent a child or children from coming into care; or engaging a child or youth to maintain their placement.
3. Accountability Describe a recent situation in which your nominee accepted responsibility for their actions in a difficult situation within their work with children, youth, birth/biological parents, foster or adoptive parents and/or other partners in the child welfare system.
4. Assessment Provide an example of a specific time when your nominee assessed safety in a difficult or unique situation that impacted a child, youth and/or family in a positive manner.
5. Advocacy Provide a current example in which your nominee strongly and effectively advocated for children, youth, parent, guardian, custodians and/or foster or adoptive parents.
6. Leadership Provide a recent example of a situation in which your nominee showed leadership skills in their work with children, youth, parents, guardians, custodians and/or foster or adoptive parents.
7. Professionalism Provide a recent example of a time when your nominee showed a high level of professionalism by acting with patience, respect, courtesy, and fairness in their interactions with a child, youth, parent, guardian, custodian, foster or adoptive family and/or service providers in a difficult situation.
8. Collaboration Please provide a specific example of when your nominee collaborated with a child, youth, parent, guardian, custodian, foster or adoptive parent, or child welfare partner to assist in achieving positive outcomes for New Mexico children, youth, and families.
SCAC Volunteer For each area below please describe, using specific examples that will illustrate your nominee’s distinctive qualities, why you think your candidate deserves the award of excellence as an SCAC Volunteer on behalf of the children, youth, and families of New Mexico.
1. Dedication/Knowledge Nominees demonstrate a high level of commitment to the work of the SCAC, including consistent participation in meetings and other SCAC activities, insuring that they are knowledgeable about the mission and goals of SCAC and about the processes and participants in the child welfare system, work to stay informed about developments in assessing the needs of and services for children, youth and families, and to stay informed about developments in child welfare law. Please provide specific examples of ways in which your nominee has demonstrated a commitment to and understanding of the work of SCAC.
2. Leadership Nominees demonstrate leadership by being a positive role model, mentoring and encouraging other volunteers, taking on additional responsibilities within the organization, and being a positive representative of and advocate for the organization to other professionals and participants in the child welfare system. Please provide specific examples of ways in which your nominee has demonstrated leadership in their work as an SCAC volunteer.
3. Integrity Nominees act with integrity towards all parties, are honest and ethical, and are diligent about maintaining the confidentiality of the information they receive regarding children, youth, and families in their SCAC role. Please provide specific examples of challenging situations in which your nominee has acted with integrity in their work in the child welfare system.
4. Professionalism Nominees act in a professional manner, including by: treating the other volunteers, professionals, and families with whom they work with respect and courtesy; not personalizing others’ responses or projecting personal values or judgments on others; following through with commitments; being timely and organized. Please provide specific examples of the ways in which your nominee acts in a professional manner in their work as an SCAC volunteer.
5. Independent and open-minded Nominees are open-minded and exercise independent thought. For example, they are able to think critically and rationally, to listen to other opinions and consider other perspectives, to recognize connections between ideas, to challenge others to rethink positions when opinions differ, and to step out of their comfort zone to consider new and diverse concepts. Please give one or two specific examples of times when your nominee has demonstrated independent thought and open-mindedness in their work in the child welfare system.
State or Tribal Judge For any area below please describe, using specific examples that will illustrate your nominee’s distinctive qualities, why you think your candidate deserves an award of excellence as a state or tribal judge.
1. Impartiality/Fairness. How does your nominee demonstrate impartiality and fairness to all parties?
2. Respect. Please provide an example of how your nominee treats everyone with respect, especially the parents and children.
3. Communication/Engagement of the Parties. How well does your nominee communicate with all of the parties? Does your nominee explain things in a way that parents, children, and volunteers can understand? How does the nominee engage all of the parties in the courtroom? Please give specific examples of how your nominee communicates with and engages the parties.
4. Court/Docket Management. Please provide example(s) of ways your nominee manages the courtroom and the docket so that everyone is heard and no one’s time is wasted.
5. Holding others accountable. In what ways does your nominee set high expectations of everyone in the case and hold participants accountable (parties, professionals, and volunteers)?
6. Knowledge and application of the law. Does your nominee understand the law, stay up to date on the law, and apply the law appropriately? Please provide examples.
Other: For any area below please describe, using specific examples that will illustrate your nominee’s distinctive qualities, why you think your candidate deserves an award of excellence. Please reference values of Leadership, Integrity, Dedication, Knowledge, Fairness, and Accountability.
Other submission:
What else should the committee know about your nominee that has not yet been revealed? Please do not summarize or echo above qualities.
Optional Upload If you prefer, you may respond to the above questions in a word document and submit it here.
