PRESS RELEASE
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Circuit Court of Cook County to hold Domestic Violence Symposium

Released On 09/17/2003

Cook County Chief Judge Timothy C. Evans and Second Municipal District Presiding Judge Nancy Sidote Salyers announced that Jeffrey Edelson, Ph.D., a national authority on domestic violence, will present the symposium, Reflections on Emerging Practices with Children Exposed to Domestic Violence, on Tuesday, September 23, 2003, from 8:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. at the Oakton Community College Campus, 1600 East Golf Road in Des Plaines. The symposium is offered to those whose work and interests encompass the cultural dynamics of domestic violence.

A professor at the University of Minnesota School of Social Work, Dr. Edelson is the director of the Minnesota Center Against Violence and Abuse. He has also worked with the National Council of Juvenile and Family Court Judges. Part of Dr. Edeslon’s presentation will feature an explanation of two key policy documents, Effective Intervention in Domestic Violence and Child Maltreatment Cases: Guidlelines for Policy and Practice (commonly know as the "Greenbook"), and the federally funded Greenbook Initiative.

Other topics to be covered by Dr. Edelson at the symposium include the following:

the impact of adult domestic violence on child development;

guidelines to define and assess continued risk and endangerment;

the barriers to collaboration and integration of services;

emerging programs, practices, and prevention efforts; and

the integration of "Greenbook" recommendations into child welfare, domestic violence, and court practices.

The symposium registration fee is $25 for those who register for Continuing Education Credits, and $15 for those not seeking credit. The fee includes a box lunch (for special dietary needs call 847.470.7214). To register, call Oakton’s Alliance for Lifelong Learning at 847.635.1808.

The symposium is one in a series jointly sponsored by the Second Municipal District’s Family Violence Coordinating Council and Oakton Community College’s Alliance for Lifelong Learning to serve communities located in northern Cook County. The Second Municipal District’s Family Violence Coordinating Council is part of a statewide effort that brings together judges, community advocates, law enforcement representatives, attorneys, and court staff to address domestic violence issues.