Under the leadership of Chief Justice Michael Heavican, the Through the Eyes of the Child Initiative is a multidisciplinary network of local teams that work to improve systems processes. It creates a forum for local child welfare and juvenile justice stakeholders to collaborate with each other in their efforts to improve issues in their communities' juvenile court systems as well as communicate with other teams and stakeholders across the state to identify systemic barriers and work on solutions.

Federally funded by the Nebraska Court Improvement Project, the Through the Eyes of the Child Initiative is comprised of over 25 local teams across Nebraska, each led by a lead judge. The local teams are guided by the Resource Guidelines published by the National Council on Juvenile and Family Court Judges (NCJFCJ), which sets out best practice standards for the juvenile court processes.

Each team selects its own projects and goals based on the needs of its community and court system. The Court Improvement Project staff, under the guidance of Project Co-Chairs, Judge Roger Heideman and Judge Randin Roland, provide technical assistance to the local groups, data collection and reporting, develop resources for the local teams, and work on a statewide basis to address concerns within the juvenile court system. The Initiative also holds events, such as annual regional conferences, lecture series, webinars and trainings open to the public, court staff training, and a statewide Children's Summit every three years.

Click here for more information about the Through the Eyes of the Child teams.

CHIEF JUSTICE | Michael Heavican
Nebraska Supreme Court Chief Justice Michael Heavican is the leader of the Through the Eyes of the Child Initiative. The Chief Justice will protect the vision of the Initiative and provide direction to its members to ensure that the goals and objectives continue to be pursued.

PROJECT CO-CHAIRS | Judge Roger Heideman, Judge Randin Roland
Project Co-Chair Roger Heideman is a judge with juvenile court jurisdiction appointed by the Chief Justice.  Co-Chair Randin Roland is a judge of the county court in the 12th Judicial District. The project co-chairs act as primary advisors to the Chief Justice, and are the faces of the Initiative to the public and other entities. The project co-chairs are consultants for local lead judges and teams and are the primary liaisons with other organizations.

LEAD JUDGES
Each local team is led by a Lead Judge. The Lead Judge leads local progress and works with the project chair and other judges for support and consultation. A principle tenet of the Through the Eyes of the Child Initiative is that Nebraska's judges must take an active leadership role in improving the court process in child protection cases. Judges have great ability to improve the lives of foster children through systems change and procedural improvements within their courts.

• Team 1 – Judge Linda Bauer
• Team 2.1 –  Vacant
• Team 2.2 – Judge David Partsch
• Team 2.3 – Judge Sarah Moore
• Team 3 – Judge Shellie Sabata and Judge Elise White
• Team 4 – Judge Matt Kahler
• Team 5.1 (Hamilton) – Judge C. Jo Petersen and Judge  Lynelle Homolka
• Team 5.1 (Seward) – Judge C. Jo Petersen and Judge  Lynelle Homolka
• Team 5.1 (York) – Judge C. Jo Petersen and Judge  Lynelle Homolka
• Team 5.2 – Judge Denise Kracl
• Team 5.3 – Judge Stephen Twiss
• Team 6.1 – Judge Thomas Klein
• Team 6.2 – Judge Edward Matney
• Team 7 – Judge Ross Stoffer
• Team 8.1 – Judge James Orr
• Team 8.2 – Judge Kale Burdick
• Team 8.3 – Judge Tami Schendt
• Team 9.1 – Judge Arthur Wetzel and Judge Alfred Corey
• Team 9.2 – Judge John Rademacher
• Team 10W – Vacant
• Team 10C – Judge Michael Mead
• Team 10E – Judge Michael Burns
• Team 11.1 – Judge Jeffrey Wightman
• Team 11.2 – Judge Edward Steenburg
• Team 11.3 – Judge Anne Paine
• Team 11.4 – Judge Joel Jay and Judge Roberts-Connick
• Team 12.1 – Judge Aaron Conn
• Team 12.2 – Judge Randin Roland
• Team 12.3 – Judge James Worden and Judge Kris Mickey
• Team Winnebago – Vacant
• Team Omaha Tribe - Vacant

TEAM COORDINATORS
Each local team has designated a team coordinator. The team coordinator manages the team by arranging meetings, preparing meeting agendas, and monitoring progress of team projects. The team coordinator maintains active communication with team members and works with state staff.