Siegel Scholars Announced (and Other News)

The scholarship is designed to support students who have overcome adversity and are interested in a career in public service. The winners of the 2015 Siegel scholarships are three seniors at John Jay:

• Hernan Carvente, who is using his own experience in the juvenile justice system to advocate for reforming the system.
• Milton Pelotte, a future attorney who attributes his dedication to social justice in part to his own family members’ struggle with addiction and imprisonment.
• Connie Velasquez, who arrived in this country at age fourteen speaking no English and now hopes to become a social worker.

The recipients of the Siegel scholarship exemplify Alfred Siegel’s love of New York City and his commitment to helping others.

In other news:

• The New York Times covered the Center for Court Innovation’s work with prosecutors and police to create new diversion opportunities for teenagers arrested for minor crimes in Harlem and Brownsville.
• The Christian Science Monitor wrote about community courts across the country. According to Denise O’Donnell, the director of the US Department of Justice’s Bureau of Justice Assistance, "It’s really critical we focus on what we can do to reduce unnecessary incarceration and improve recidivism rates in the country, and community courts just have a really good track record of doing that."
• The Center for Court Innovation submitted testimony to President Obama’s Task Force on 21st Century Policing highlighting strategies for fostering stronger connections between police and local communities.