Vol. 39, Number 9 — September 2007

2007 Director’s Awards Recognize Work of Judiciary Employees

An outstanding group of federal court employees has been recognized with the 2007 Director’s Awards. The annual awards are given in the categories of leadership, excellence in court operations, and extraordinary actions.

“I admire the dedication shown by each of the 2007 winners,” Administrative Office Director James C. Duff said. “Their enterprise and creativity are what make the federal court system work.”

2007 Director’s Award for Outstanding Leadership

The 2007 Director’s Award for Outstanding Leadership recognizes managerial employees who have contributed their leadership skills on a national level.

Michael W. Dobbins

Michael W. Dobbins, clerk of court for the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Illinois, received the 2007 award for his “vision, leadership, and accomplishments” in leading national endeavors to improve the federal Judiciary. Dobbins directed the implementation of a software program that electronically reads judges’ financial disclosure reports into the Case Management/Electronic Case Files (CM/ECF) financial conflict checking program, saving time and effort. His resourceful updating of the court’s facilities led to his participation at Harvard’s “New American Courthouse” seminar. He improved services to the public, with enhanced customer service training for employees, expanded hours of operation, and a drop box. He facilitated the court’s transition from manual to mandatory e-filing, developed a pro-se self-help assistance program, led an initiative to develop and execute an online personnel program for court employees, and directed the development of an online job application program, among many other achievements. “His leadership in assisting our court and other courts across the country to engage in efforts to save money and to improve services,” wrote Chief Judge James F. Holderman, “has brought our court in 2006 to new levels of efficiency, conservation and cutting-edge services.”

Kenneth S. Gardner

Kenneth S. Gardner, clerk of court for the U.S. Bankruptcy Court for the Northern District of Illinois, received the 2007 award for leadership in a number of areas. Gardner chaired the Administrative Office’s Bankruptcy Clerk’s Advisory Group, which assisted the AO as the courts dealt with the changes required by the Bankruptcy Abuse Prevention and Consumer Protection Act of 2005. He currently serves as the president of the National Conference of Bankruptcy Clerks, and has served on the AO’s Court Compensation Study, Human Resources Advisory Council, and Ad Hoc Committee on Bankruptcy Staffing. He has been an able administrator of resources and manager of people and has improved court service to the public, creating customer surveys, a pro-se help desk, and a user-friendly website. He has provided employees with opportunities for personal development, a program of tuition reimbursements, and feedback on their work strengths. His “Bright Idea” program has, for example, resulted in a new procedure for maintaining computer hard drives. “I have seen Ken implement, in countless ways, his vision of the court as an organization that provides service of high quality through committed employees,” Chief Bankruptcy Judge Eugene Wedoff wrote. “Ken’s leadership, both locally and nationally, has indeed been outstanding.”

Gary H. Wente

Gary H. Wente, Circuit Executive for the First Circuit Court of Appeals, won the 2007 leadership award for demonstrating “an unparalleled commitment to the Judiciary on both local and national levels,” wrote Chief Judge Michael Boudin. “On a national level, in 2006, Gary took a leading role in many AO committees, working groups and advisory groups, incorporating the full spectrum of administrative work, budget, personnel, space and facilities and automation,” Boudin said. Wente served on the Budget and Finance Advisory Council, the FAS4T working group, the Information Technology Systems Delivery Alternatives Group, the Appellate Council Advisory Group, and the Rent Cap Advisory Group.

He has led efforts to enhance efficiency, reduce costs, and consolidate resources. Recognizing the issue of elevated General Services Administration (GSA) rent charges, he was one of the first to initiate a survey of market rents, and he spearheaded efforts for GSA reappraisals, which resulted in rebates in First Circuit courthouses. He led efforts with district courts in the circuit to pool resources. “It is a given that he runs our circuit with unflawed efficiency,” Boudin noted.

Director’s Award for Excellence in Court Operations

The Director’s Award for Excellence in Court Operations recognizes achievements in operating with economy and efficiency, innovations that improve service, or programs that enhance the public’s awareness of the Judiciary. The 2007 winners were recognized within this category for excellence in court technology, court support, and mission requirements.

Front: Jonivonn B. DeGusman, Nam Q. Huynh, Dzung P. Pham, Back: Wallce Johnson, Luis Dimagiba

A five-person team from the Central District of California and the District of New Jersey won a 2007 Director’s Award for excellence in court operations: Court Technology. From the Central District of California, they are Luis Dimagiba, director of Information Technology in the U.S. Pretrial Services Office, and Jonivonn B. DeGuzman, director of Information Technology, systems manager Nam Q. Huynh, and automation programmer Dzung B. Pham from the U.S. Probation Office. Award-winning systems manager Wallace Johnson is in the U.S. Pretrial Services Office for the District of New Jersey.

The team has worked collaboratively on many projects over the past three years. The most recent was the development of the Kiosk-based reporting system for defendants and offenders. The system utilizes fingerprint biometrics to authenticate the reporting defendant/offender’s identity and access his/her case file information from the Probation and Pretrial Services Automated Case Tracking System (PACTS) database. Automated reporting forms can be completed on a touch-screen system, and the responses are automatically uploaded to the PACTS chronological notes database. This streamlines the reporting process, permitting the officer to spend more time interacting with the defendant/offender and less time keying in information. The Kiosk system is currently used by over 1,000 defendants and offenders in three offices in the two test districts of New Jersey and the Central District of California. It is available for use by all federal court districts. The cost of the project was only $65,000 and has resulted in an application for national use.

Karen Hillebrand

Karen Hillebrand, judicial secretary in the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Michigan, received the Director’s Award for Excellence in Court Operations: Court Support. As her court began its transition to the CM/ECF system, Hillebrand designed a training program and developed a manual with step-by-step instructions on the system for case managers, law clerks, and judicial officers. She arranged for classes on forms development, which were critical to the implementation of CM/ECF, and has subsequently created more than 25 forms, greatly increasing the efficiency of the docketing staff and case managers in chambers. When it became necessary to reassign cases to create caseloads for judges, Hillebrand created a customized CM/ECF notice form that reduced to two days a process that normally took several weeks. Staff were able to docket 700 notices of reassignment, without the need to scan, copy, or mail the notice. She transformed prisoner civil rights and habeas forms into PDF-format forms that can be reviewed and processed on-line. Annually, more than 3,500 documents are generated associated with prisoner case processing. The revamped process eliminates redundancy, and reduces processing steps, as well as printing and copying costs.

Marc Pearce

Marc Pearce, law clerk to Judge Warren K. Urbom, U.S. District Court for the District of Nebraska, was recognized with a Director’s Award for Excellence in Court Operations: Mission Requirements. He successfully developed a disaster management program for the District of Nebraska’s district and bankruptcy courts. Pearce’s work as chair of a Continuity of Operations subcommittee led to an in-depth analysis of avian flu-related issues and a plan for chambers’ response in the event of a pandemic. His report’s recommendations and plans were subsequently adopted by the Nebraska Judicial Council, and they also are being used by the Administrative Office’s Judiciary Emergency Preparedness Office to frame the scope of a pandemic response template. Pearce is now a member of the Nebraska COOP Disaster Management Team and serves as a successor disaster manager.

Director’s Award for Extraordinary Actions

The Director’s Award for Extraordinary Actions recognizes Judiciary employees who have responded in an outstanding manner to emergencies and other critical situations, exhibiting bravery and concern for others, displaying creativity and resourcefulness, and ensuring that the Judiciary’s mission is met during an adverse or critical situation.

Michael Pentangelo and Eric D. Odegard

U.S. Probation Officers Michael Pentangelo and Eric D. Odegard, from the District of Alaska, received the 2007 Director’s Award for Extraordinary Actions for their persistence and professionalism in tracking down and assisting an offender with a history of depressions and suicidal tendencies. The offender had threatened to commit suicide after failing to show up for drug testing. Armed only with the Internet routing address from an email, Officers Pentangelo and Odegard worked tirelessly with two telecommunications carriers and local law enforcement authorities to locate the offender in San Francisco, California, where he was taken into custody.