June 14, 2011
NCSC Webinar Helps Court Personnel Navigate Certification Opportunities
The National Center for State Courts (NCSC) has developed three major certification opportunities to meet the continuing education needs of Ohio court personnel who are not judges and is offering a free webinar next week for people interested in learning how to pursue certification.
Through NCSC, court personnel can be certified at three levels: Certified Court Manager (CCM), Certified Court Executive (CCE), or ICM Fellow. To answer questions on becoming certified, the Institute for Court Management will host an hour-long webinar 2 to 3 p.m, on June 23 during which each level of court certification will be reviewed as well as how professionals can complete most of the required certification courses online. (To learn more, register for the webinar by clicking here: https://cc.callinfo.com/r/13gbq0l4buxh9.)
Court Administrator Don Colby of the Lucas County Common Pleas Court chose to earn his CCM, in 2009 through the Court Management Program offered in partnership with NCSC and the Supreme Court of Ohio’s Judicial College.
“I first learned about the program as part of my membership with the Ohio Association for Court Administration,” Colby said. “I saw this as a great opportunity to get national-level training without the expense and time of leaving Ohio.”
The program contains six courses that cover the National Institute for Court Management’s “core competencies,” including purposes and responsibilities of courts, court performance standards, fiscal administration, case flow management, human resources, and information technology. In Ohio, participants take two modules per year for three years; however, all certification can be taken online solely through NCSC.
At the time of his program, Colby was deputy court administrator at the Toledo Municipal Court. “The court administrator, Pam Roberts, had already gone through the program, so she was aware of the benefits,” he says. “CMP helped me with ‘big picture’ items. Because it was an overview of the court system, it allowed me to look more at how everything in a very complex system goes together.” He said he also appreciated the networking opportunities it provided. While Colby is unsure how much being a part of the program played a factor, before the last class in his program, he secured his current position.
Now he’s taking courses to become a CCE, which is also offered through Judicial College. “I wanted to go forward because of the known quality of the training from the CMP program,” Colby said. “I explained to my administrative judge the benefits to me and to the court if I went through the program. I think my judges realize that the court administrator can only be helped by attending more training. Plus, the costs of the program are very reasonable.”
The CCE program, which someone can only participate in if they have earned their CCM, also contains six courses that are offered in Ohio twice per year for three years, including essential components, education, training and development, communication, leadership, visioning and strategic planning, and a concluding seminar. To gain this level of certification and qualify for the ICM Fellows Program, students also have the option of completing a three-week in-residence program in Williamsburg,VA.
The third level of certification, the ICM Fellows Program, has two phases. First, it requires participants to go through an ICM Fellows Project Phase, where they must design and complete an independent research project and present a written report approved by the dean of the program. Upon successful completion, participants are eligible to attend the program presentation phase, a four-day master class held in Washington, D.C. Successful participants are recognized at a graduation ceremony at the U.S. Supreme Court and awarded certification as a IMC fellow.
If you’re interested in being a part of Ohio’s Class of 2014 CMP program, contact the Judicial College at 614.387.9445 or cmp@sc.ohio.gov.