Partners in the Building Blocks for Youth Initiative

Youth Law Center
1010 Vermont Ave NW
Suite 310
Washington, DC 20005
Contact:
Mark Soler marksoler@aol.com
Mark Soler joined the Youth Law Center as a Staff Attorney in 1978, became Executive Director in 1980 and President in 1994. He has worked with public officials, agency administrators and staff, parents, community groups, attorneys and other children's advocates in more than 40 states on juvenile justice, child welfare, health and mental health and education issues. He has been the lead attorney in many major class actions on behalf of children whose rights have been violated in the juvenile justice system. In the D.C. office, he leads the Center's work with Congress and federal agencies on national juvenile justice policy issues. He received his B.A. from Yale College in 1968 and his J.D. from Yale Law School in 1973.

Marc Schindler mschindler.ylc@erols.com
Marc Schindler has been a Youth Law Center Staff Attorney since 1996. He has been involved with providing training, technical assistance, law reform litigation, and legislative and administrative advocacy in legal issues related to children, with particular emphasis on improving the conditions of confinement for institutionalized children. Prior to joining the Youth Law Center, he served as an assistant public defender in Baltimore. In 1996, Marc received the Cahill Award, presented annually to the outstanding public defender in the state of Maryland. Marc is a graduate of Yale University and the University of Maryland School of Law.

Liz Ryan lizryan.bby@erols.com
Liz Ryan currently serves as the Advocacy Director for the Building Blocks for Youth initiative, a project of the Youth Law Center to reduce to over incarceration and disparate treatment of youth of color in the juvenile justice system. Liz has over fifteen years experience working on children, youth and family policy, advocacy, and organizing efforts including legislative work for U.S. Senator Thomas R. Carper during his terms in the U.S. House of Representatives and as Governor, and as a lobbyist for the Children's Defense Fund. Liz's work at Youth Law Center involves campaign advocacy assistance at the national, state and local level to stop punitive juvenile justice legislation, close down large juvenile institutions, redirect funding to communities and increase youth, parent and community involvement in all aspects of decision making on juvenile justice. Liz has an undergraduate degree from Dickinson College and a Master's Degree from George Washington University, is a former VISTA volunteer, and serves on the Steering Committee as Fundraising & Special Events Chair of the Justice 4 DC Youth! Coalition and on the advisory board of Women Empowered Against Violence, Inc. (WEAVE) in the District of Columbia.
(202) 637-0377
(202) 379-1600 Fax

San Francisco Office:
417 Montgomery Street, Suite 900
San Franscisco, CA 94104
Contact:
Mamie Yee myee@youthlawcenter.com
(415) 543-3379
(415) 956-9022 Fax
http://www.youthlawcenter.com/

The Youth Law Center is a non-profit, public interest law office that has worked to protect abused and at-risk children since 1978. With offices in San Francisco and Washington, D.C., the Center works nationally to serve children, focusing particularly upon the problems of children living apart from their families in child welfare and juvenile justice systems. The goal of the Youth Law Center's work is to ensure that vulnerable children are provided with the conditions and services they need to grow into healthy, productive adults. Staff attorneys investigate reports of abuse of children in adult jails, juvenile detention facilities, state institutions, and child welfare systems, and use training, technical assistance, public education, administrative advocacy, legislative advocacy, work with national, state, and local organizations, and negotiation to bring about needed change. If abusive conditions or practices continue, the Center uses litigation as a last resort to protect children and ensure humane treatment.

The Justice Policy Institute
4455 Connecticut Ave., NW
Washington, DC 20008
Contact:
Vincent Schiraldi at vschiraldi@justicepolicy.org
(202) 363-7847
(202) 363-8677 Fax
Website: http://www.justicepolicy.org

The Justice Policy Institute, a project of the Tides Center is a Washington, DC-based think-tank that is committed to reducing society's reliance on incarceration. Vincent Schiraldi, former president and founder of the Center on Juvenile and Criminal Justice, formed the Justice Policy Institute in 1996. Since then, JPI has evolved into one of the nation,s most thoughtful and progressive voices for crafting workable solutions to age-old problems plaguing our juvenile and criminal justice systems.

Juvenile Law Center
1315 Walnut St.
4th Floor
Philadelphia, PA 19107
Contact:
Marsha Levick mlevick@jlc.org
Robert Schwartz rschwartz@jlc.com
(215) 625-0551
(215) 625-9589Fax
http://www.jlc.org/

Juvenile Law Center is a non-profit, public interest law firm which advances the rights of children involved with public agencies by working for the reform and coordination of the child welfare, juvenile justice, mental health and public health care systems. Founded in 1975 as a non-profit legal service, JLC is one of the oldest children's rights organizations in the United States. JLC works on behalf of children who have come within the purview of public agencies- for example, abused or neglected children placed in foster homes, delinquent youth sent to residential treatment facilities or adult prisons, or children in placement with specialized services needs. Although JLC primarily serves the children of Pennsylvania, we are also asked to lend our expertise to national child advocacy efforts.

American Bar Association
Juvenile Justice Committee
740 15th Street, NW, 10th Floor
Washington, DC 20005
Contact:
Patti Puritz ppuritz@aol.com
(202) 662-1506
(202) 662-1501 Fax
http://www.abanet.org/crimjust/juvjus/

The mandate of the ABA Juvenile Justice Center is to provide training, technical assistance, research, model program design and implementation, standards drafting, and advocacy, based upon the IJA/ABA Juvenile Justice Standards. The Center has focused on enhancing access to counsel for juveniles amd quality of representation, improving conditions of confinement for juveniles, and addressing the transfer of children to adult court. Building upon its earlier work to promote due process issues in delinquency proceedings, the Center recently received funding to establish the National Juvenile Defender Training, Technical Assistance, and Resource Center (Juvenile Defender Center.) The Center's primary goal is to build the capacity of the juvenile defense bar in terms of management, training, courtroom practices and organization.

Minorities in Law Enforcement
1817 Capitol Avenue
Sacramento, CA 95824
Contact:
Regis Lane mile4kids@aol.com
(916) 812-9541
(916) 789-1453Fax

Minorities in Law Enforcement (MILE) is a non-profit organization dedicated to reducing disproportionate minority confinement (DMC) through policy advocacy and community action. MILE is a unique coalition of ethnic and women law enforcement groups dedicated to helping California and the nation's urban youth. MILE's Executive Board consists of representatives from the Los Angeles Black Peace Officers Association, the Latino Peace Officers Association, the California Women's Peace Officers Association, the California Correctional Peace Officers Association, and the Asian Peace Officers Association. MILE goes the extra mile to effectively impact juvenile crime by making sure there is a long-term commitment to both prevention and intervention programs for at-risk youth -- to ensure our criminal justice system's policies and practices do not adversely contribute to DMC.

National Council on Crime and Delinquency
1970 Broadway, Suite 500
Oakland, CA 94612
Contact:
Michael Jones mjnccd@aol.com
(510) 208-0500
Fax: (510) 208-0511 http://www.nccd-crc.org/

The National Council on Crime and Delinquency (NCCD) conducts research and initiates programs and policies to reduce crime and delinquency. NCCD seeks to influence public policies that affect the nature of crime and delinquency and the future of the justice system. The Council encourages citizen involvement in effective, humane, fair, and economically sound solutions to criminal justice problems. NCCD conducts research and initiates programs and policies to reduce crime and delinquency, seeks to influence public policies that affect the nature of crime and delinquency and the future of the justice system, and encourages citizen involvement in effective, humane, fair and economically sound solutions to criminal justice problems. NCCD's programs provide innovative and cost-efficient strategies to help administrators and criminal justice professionals manage corrections systems more effectively. NCCD's goal is to build a safer society for future generations by helping to improve the criminal justice system and meeting the needs of at-risk children and families.

Pretrial Services Resource Center
1010 Vermont Avenue, NW Suite 300
Washington, DC 20005
Contact:
Jolanta Juszkiewicz jj@pretrial.org
phone: 202-638-3080
fax: 202-347-0493
http://www.pretrial.org/

The Pretrial Services Resource Center is an independent, non-profit clearinghouse for information on pretrial issues and a technical assistance provider for pretrial practitioners, criminal justice officials, academicians, and community leaders nationwide. The Resource Center offers assistance regarding pretrial services agencies, pretrial services programming and management, and jail overcrowding. Since its inception in 1976, the Resource Center has helped criminal justice professionals achieve the often conflicting goals of maintaining the rights of defendants, ensuring public safety, and maintaining the integrity of the criminal justice system by providing information, publications, training, and assistance on pretrial services at the Federal, State, and local levels.

Core Working Group

James R. Bell, Director W. Haywood Burns Institute for Juvenile Justice, Fairness and Equity 180 Howard Street Suite 320 San Francisco, CA 94105 Phone: (415) 321-4100 Fax (4l5) 321-4140 jbell@Burnsinstitute.org Deborah Clark Campaign Director Justice Policy Institute 4455 Connecticut Ave. NW, Suite B-500 Washington, DC 20008 202-363-7847, ext. 312 202-363-8677 (fax) 202-276-7051 (cell) http://www.justicepolicy.org Judge Ernestine Gray Chief Judge National Council of Juvenile and   Family Court Judges Orleans Parish Juvenile Court 421 Loyola Avenue New Orleans, LA 70112 Phone: (504) 565-7326 Fax: (504) 565-6078 egray@opjc.new-orleans.la.us Michael H. Guilfoyle Executive Director Tribal Justice Programs Route 2, Box 28 Shirrod Road Genesee, ID 83832 Phone: (208) 285-1271 Fax: (208) 285-1271 Mguilfoy@JBS1.com Alan Henry Pretrial Services Resource Center 1010 Vermont Ave., N.W., Suite 300 Washington, DC 20005 Phone: (202) 638-3080 Fax: (202) 347-0493 DAH@Pretrial.org Rachel Jackson Youth Force Coalition 1357A Fifth Street Oakland, CA 94607 Phone: (510) 451-5466 x302 Cell: 415/828-1848 rachel@youthec.org Jolanta Juszkiewicz Pretrial Services Resource Center 1010 Vermont Ave., N.W., Suite 300 Washington, DC 20005 Phone: (202) 638-3080 Fax: (202) 347-0493 Jj@pretrial.org Regis Lane 2636 LaCroix Drive Roseville, CA 95661 Phone: (916) 223-0120 Fax: (916) 789-1453 MILE4Kids@surewest.net Marsha Levick Juvenile Law Center 1315 Walnut St., 4th floor Philadelphia, PA 19107 Phone: (215) 625-0551 Fax: (215) 625-2808 Mlevick@JLC.org Valerie McDowell Youth Law Center 1010 Vermont Ave., N.W., Suite 310 Washington, D.C. 20005 Phone: (202) 637-0377 x110 Fax: (202) 379-1600 vmcdowell.ylc@erols.com

Patti Puritz American Bar Association Juvenile Justice Center 740-15th St., N.W., 10th Floor Washington, DC 20005 Phone: (202) 662-1515 Fax: (202) 662-1501 Ppuritz@aol.com Marcia Rincon-Gallardo Ollin Associates 1171 San Andreas Road Watsonville, CA 95076 Phone: (831) 728-7005 Fax: (831) 768-0269 Mrincon4@earthlink.net Liz Ryan Building Blocks for Youth 1010 Vermont Ave., N.W., Suite 310 Washington, DC 20005 Phone: (202) 637-0377 x112 Fax: (202) 379-1600 lizryan.bby@erols.com Joseph Scantlebury Youth Law Center 1010 Vermont Ave., N.W., Suite 310 Washington, D.C. 20005 Phone: (202) 637-0377 x113 Fax: (202) 379-1600 Jscantlebury.ylc@erols.com Marc Schindler Youth Law Center 1010 Vermont Ave., N.W., Suite 310 Washington, DC 20005 Phone: (202) 637-0377 x115 Fax: (202) 379-1600 mschindler.ylc@erols.com Vincent Schiraldi Executive Director Justice Policy Institute 4455 Connecticut Ave., NW Suite B-500 Washington, DC 20008 (202) 367847, ext. 311 vschiraldi@justicepolicy.org http://www.justicepolicy.org Bob Schwartz Juvenile Law Center The Philadelphia Building 1315 Walnut Street, 4th Floor Philadelphia, PA 19107 Phone: (215) 625-0551 Fax: (215) 625-2808 Rschwartz@jlc.org http://www.jlc.org Mark Soler Youth Law Center 1010 Vermont Ave., N.W., Suite 310 Washington, DC 20005 Phone: (202) 637-0377 x114 Fax: (202) 379-1600 Marksoler@aol.com Francisco Villarruel Michigan State University 203 Human Ecology East Lansing, MI 48824 Phone: (517) 353-4505 Fax: (517) 432-2953 Fvilla@msu.edu