Leadership

Board Biographies

President
Kevin J. Bowling

Kevin J. Bowling, JD, MSJA is the Trial Court Administrator and Attorney Referee for the 20th Judicial Circuit Court and the Ottawa County Probate Court in Ottawa County, Michigan.

His work in the judicial system spans 27 years with time spent as a court manager, an attorney, a judicial educator and a court consultant, including service in western Africa as Deputy Chief of Party for the Nigeria Justice Sector Assistance Project. Mr. Bowling also served in a variety of positions with the Michigan Supreme Court for 20 years, including as the State Judicial Educator and as a Regional Court Administrator. Other Michigan service included Staff Administrator for the Legislative Commission on Courts (a joint Commission of the Michigan House and Senate Judiciary Committees).

Additional Court experience includes internships with the Denver Juvenile Court and the North Dakota Supreme Court. Mr. Bowling received his B.A. in Political Science/Public Administration from Providence College, Providence, Rhode Island; a M.S. in Judicial Administration from the University of Denver College of Law; and a J.D. from Thomas M. Cooley Law School in Lansing, Michigan. He is a member of the State Bar of Michigan, the National Association of State Judicial Educators, the American Judicature Society, and the Ottawa County Bar Association. Mr. Bowling has served on the Board of Directors, National Association of State Judicial Educators; the Advisory Board of the Leadership Institute in Judicial Education, University of Memphis; the Advisory Board, National Judicial College - Courage to Live Program; and the Technology Law Advisory Board, Institute for Continuing Legal Education. Mr. Bowling is also a trained mediator and serves on the Board of Directors of the Ottawa/Allegan Center for Dispute Resolution. In addition to his service on the NACM Board of Directors as the General Jurisdiction Director, he is the Vice President of the Michigan Association of Circuit Court Administrators.

President Elect
Pamela Q. Harris

Pamela Q. Harris has held the Court Administrator position for the Circuit Court for Montgomery County, Maryland since 1989. Ms. Harris is committed to infusing evaluation-based practices into every aspect of court administration so that quality initiatives achieve intended results while meeting the needs of the Court’s personnel and clientele.  Ms. Harris has completed the Court Executive Development Program of the National Center for State Courts’ Institute for Court Management and is certified as a Fellow. She has taught national programs on ethics, leadership, differentiated case management, and is certified as ICM faculty for caseflow management. She also has worked extensively in the field of differentiated case management and court administration both nationally and internationally. 

She currently serves as President-Elect of the National Association for Court Management (NACM) and in that capacity serves as the Conference Development Committee Chair. Ms. Harris is also serving a 4 year term on the Board of Directors of the National Center for State Courts. She was also appointed as the NACM representative on the steering committee to revise the Conference of State Court Administrator’s (COSCA) Delay Reduction Standards.

She previously served as Chair of the NACM Code of Conduct Committee, Chair of the Membership Committee, Chair of the State Associations subcommittee and served on the Publications Committee and the Joint International Committee which established the International Association of Court Administration (IACA). She also served on the Professional Development Advisory Committee (PDAC) which developed the NACM Core Competencies and Curriculum Guidelines.

She currently serves as Member of the Maryland Conference of Circuit Court Judges; Member of the Maryland Technology Oversight Board; and member of the Maryland Integrated Statewide Case Management Committee.

She has been active internationally with rule of law initiatives and served on the Board of the Russian American Rule of Law Consortium (RAROLC). She worked for more than a decade promoting the rule of law and improving the capacity of local Russian legal institutions to implement reform. She also serves on the Board of the Maryland International Coordinating Council, Inc., (MICCI) and the Maryland Sister States Program Legal Affairs Committee within the office of the Secretary of State.

She has held executive board positions in the Mid-Atlantic Association of Court Management (MAACM), an organization committed to the fair and effective administration of justice through improved management of courts. She also has worked extensively in the field of differentiated case management and court administration both nationally and internationally.

Vice President
David W. Slayton

David W. Slayton is the Director of Court Administration for the Lubbock County, Texas, District Courts and County Courts at Law. He has served in that role since 2004 and has been employed by the judicial branch in various roles for over ten years. Previously, he served as Court Services Supervisor for the United States District Court, Northern District of Texas, in Dallas, Texas, and as a trial court coordinator for the 99th District Court in Lubbock County. David earned a Bachelor’s Degree in Political Science from Texas Tech University and a Master’s Degree in Public Administration from Troy University. He is a 2007 Graduate Fellow of the Institute for Court Management, where he was chosen to deliver the commencement address on behalf of his class in the United States Supreme Court. David received the 2008 Distinguished Service Award from the National Center for State Courts and the 2010 Robert O. Dawson Indigent Defense Distinguished Service Award. David has published an article entitled An Analysis of the Effective Use of Jurors in Lubbock County and was instrumental in the publication of the 2007 version of the National Association for Court Management’s Model Code of Conduct. He currently serves as an Officer on the National Association for Court Management’s Board of Directors and was formerly the Secretary on the Board of Directors for the Texas Association for Drug Court Professionals. In addition to the aforementioned organizations, David is a member of the Texas Association for Court Administration, the National Association for Drug Court Professionals, and the American Judicature Society.

Secretary/Treasurer
Michele Oken

Michele Oken is an Administrator for the Los Angeles Superior Court responsible for overseeing multiple units in the Central Civil Division including the Records Department which houses records for over 100 courtrooms in the downtown Stanley Mosk Courthouse. For the previous five years, she was responsible for overseeing the assignment and supervision of 400 court interpreters in more than 100 languages in 44 court locations. Prior to that assignment, she was a Managing Court Reporter, assisting in the management of approximately 650 court reporters. Michele spent 22 years as an official court reporter for both Municipal and Superior courts in Los Angeles and was a board member and officer of local and state court reporting associations. She has been a member of the National Court Reporters Association since 1978. 

Michele joined NACM in 2006 and has played an active role on all permanent and standing committees. For the past four years, she has been responsible for scheduling Hosts and Reporters for midyear and annual conferences. From 2009-2011, Michele served as Membership Services Committee Chair and was instrumental in overseeing the creation of the Mentor Program, Hardship Program, and NACM Recruitment and Marketing Videos. She was elected to the Board as NACM’s General Jurisdiction Director from 2008-2011 and most recently elected Secretary-Treasurer for the term 2011-2012. 

In 2005, Michele founded The Hope Connection, an auxiliary chapter of the City of Hope Medical Center, to raise money for cancer research, with a specific emphasis on pediatrics. 
 

Past President
Jude Del Preore

Jude Del Preore is Court Administrator in Burlington County, New Jersey. Mr. Del Preore is responsible for managing and coordinating the operations of a judicial district, including financial management, human resources, information systems, case coordination, case flow management, probation services (including child support enforcement), jury utilization, facilities, equipment, maintenance, records management and statistical analysis.

Responsibilities also include implementing major policies and decisions relating to the court, directing research and the preparation of detailed reports and memoranda, as well as supervising and/or staffing various committees relating to the Judiciary. Mr. Del Preore has been in the field of both court and corrections administration for over thirty years. During this period, he has maintained executive level positions in both court administration and the probation service.

Additionally, Mr. Del Preore has served on numerous judicial and legislative subcommittees, planning groups and advisory boards. He is a certified trainer and has served as an adjunct faculty member at Seton Hall Law School, two county colleges, the New Jersey State Police Academy, several county police academies and the New Jersey State Administrative Office of the Courts Training and Organizational Development Unit. Mr. Del Preore completed his undergraduate education at Rutgers University and a Master's degree program in Public Administration at Kean University. He has completed the Court Executive Development Program of the National Center for State Courts' Institute for Court Management and is certified as a Fellow. Mr. Del Preore has published several articles in the area of volunteer management. He was a contributing author to the American Correctional Associations treatise on the use of intermediate sanctions. Most recently, he contributed to Washington D.C.’s Center for Community Corrections series on creating the “Community Connection.”

He has delivered training programs on visionary leadership, executive decision-making, staff motivation and customer service in a government setting. For his outstanding achievements in the field, he has been recognized in Who’s Who in the East and Who’s Who in Law Enforcement. He has also served as president of the Mid-Atlantic Association For Court Management and was recently designated to serve on the Board of Directors of the National Association for Court Management in the capacity of Urban Court Director.

Large Court Director (2009-2012)
William Simmons

William (Will) Simmons is the District Court Administrator for the Sixth Judicial Administrative District, State of Georgia. The District is comprised of 14 counties and 19 Superior Court judges in West Central Georgia. Prior to his appointment to the Sixth District, he served as the Superior and State Court Administrator for the Clayton Judicial Circuit, and as Law Library Director for the Cobb County Superior Court. 

Mr. Simmons is the current President of the Georgia Council of Court Administrators. In 2007, he was selected to 40 Under 40, Georgia's Best and Brightest by the Georgia Trend's Business and Politics Magazine. He is the Associate Dean for the Evening Program at Bauder College, where he has served as an adjunct faculty member since 2007. 

Mr. Simmons serves on several boards, committees, and planning groups in both the judiciary and private sector. He has received numerous awards and recognition for his contributions to those organizations.

Mr. Simmons has been a member of NACM since 2003.

Small Court Director (2009-2012)
Stephanie Hess

Stephanie Hess is the Manager of the Case Management Section of the Supreme Court of Ohio, where she provides caseflow management support to courts of all jurisdiction types throughout the state of Ohio, which includes 719 judges in 382 courts. Ms. Hess also oversees the reporting and analysis of caseload statistical data and conducts caseflow management reviews and training for judges and court staff. Prior to joining the Supreme Court in 2006, Ms. Hess worked for the Franklin County Court of Common Pleas, General Trial Division as a bailiff for 7 years and as the Director of Human Resources and Training for over 3 years. 

Ms. Hess has a Bachelor’s Degree in Political Science and Professional Writing from Capital University and a Juris Doctorate from the Capital University Law School, both in Columbus, Ohio. 

Ms. Hess is licensed to practice law in the State of Ohio as well as the United States District Court, Southern District of Ohio. She is currently a member of the Ohio State Bar Association, the National Association for Court Management, the Ohio Association for Court Administration, the Ohio Association of Municipal / County Court Clerks and the Ohio Jury Management Association. Ms. Hess also serves as a faculty member for the National Center for State Court’s Institute for Court Management (ICM), and teaches Caseflow Management and CourTools for ICM’s Court Management Program in Ohio. Additionally, Ms. Hess serves as faculty for various Supreme Court of Ohio Judicial College courses including orientation for new judges as well as courses for administrative judges and court administrators.

Elected to the Board of Directors of the National Association for Court Management as the Small Court Director in 2009, Ms. Hess has served on the membership, conference development, and planning committees. She is currently the chairperson of the 2010 Justice Achievement Award subcommittee.

Judge Director (2011-2014)
Hon. Grant Brantley

G. Grant Brantley was elected Judge of the Superior Court in 1980. He is a Mediator, Arbitrator, Special Master and the Judicial Host in Judicially Hosted Settlement Conferences. He was admitted to the Trial and Appellate Courts of Georgia and to the U. S. District Court, Northern District of Georgia; 11th Circuit Court of Appeals and the U. S. Supreme Court. He was selected for the nomination process for the U. S. District Court during the first Bush Administration which expired when President Bush was defeated by Bill Clinton. Judge Brantley was transferred to the state retired list as a Brigadier General upon his retirement from the Georgia Air National Guard; U. S. Air Force Judge Advocate. He is now or was a former member of the Cobb County Bar Association; State Bar of Georgia; American Bar Association; Georgia Trial Lawyers Association; American Trial Lawyers Association; Lawyers Club of Atlanta; Atlanta Bar Association; and the Society for Professionals in Dispute Resolution (SPIDR). 

Judge Brantley was the President of the Georgia Civil Justice Foundation, and authored “Mediation: A Process,” Verdict Magazine, Summer 1998. He completed the General Jurisdiction Course, National Judicial College, and had an AV rating as a practicing attorney, Martindale Hubbell Law Directory. He served as a member of the board of directors of the Marietta Country Club and as member of the Administrative Board of the Marietta First United Methodist Church. He has served on the Board of Directors of CMAR Credit Union, and was Chairman, Board of Directors of the Georgia Guard Credit Union. Judge Brantley was the first recipient of the Crystal Gavel Award given for sensitivity in the handling of sexual abuse cases involving children. 

Mediation/Arbitration training includes Harvard Negotiation Project by Professor Roger Fisher; Alternate Dispute Resolution, National Judicial College; Pepperdine University: Advanced Mediation; 40 hours Commercial Mediation Course; 60 Domestic Mediation Court; estimated number of cases handled is 2,000. Judge Brantley received an Associate Degree from Emory at Oxford, and a B.B.A. (with concentration in Management) and J.D. from Emory University.

Clerk of Court (2010-2013)
Duane Delaney

Duane B. Delaney is the Clerk of the Court for the District of Columbia Superior Court. He has been employed by the District of Columbia Superior Court for 30 years and has served as the appointed Clerk of the Court for 16 years. As the Clerk of the Court, he is responsible for the daily operation of all divisions. The D.C. Superior Court is a general jurisdiction, urban court with over 800 employees and 112 Judges. 

Duane received his Juris Doctor Degree from Georgetown University Law Center in 1989 and a Master of Science Degree in the Administration of Justice with a concentration in Judicial Administration from American University in 1979. He graduated Magna Cum Laude in 1977 with a Bachelor of Arts degree from Howard University where he was inducted into Phi Beta Kappa. He is a member of the District of Columbia Bar and the Bar of the Supreme Court of the United States. 

Duane previously served on the NACM Board of Directors from 1999 to 2002. He currently serves on the Urban Court Managers Network and has been the Chair of the NACM Award of Merit Subcommittee since 2007. He has previously served as Chair of the Publication Committee and Host Committee in addition to serving multiple terms on the Membership Committee, Nominations Committee, Welcoming Committee and as NACM’s representative on the National Center for State Court’s Research Advisory Committee.

Rural Director (2010-2013)
Kelly C. Steele

Kelly C. Steele is the Policy Fiscal Analyst for the Administrative Office of the Courts of Georgia where she has been employed since 2005. 

Kelly obtained her Bachelor’s degree in Business and Economics from Agnes Scott College and has Master of Science degrees in International Affairs and Public Policy from the Georgia Institute of Technology. 

Currently Kelly is responsible for daily budget management for 14 statewide programs associated with the Judicial Council of Georgia. She is also responsible for representing the Council in budgetary matters with the state legislative and executive branches. Kelly also has experience in the areas of emergency preparedness, business process analysis for case management system development and grant management. She served as the Judicial Branch representative on the statewide Traffic Records Coordinating Committee and the Georgia Emergency Management Agency Hazard Mitigation Committee. She has also staffed several Judicial Council committees including Emergency Management, Recusal Rule Development and Judicial Workload Assessment. Kelly has been a member of NACM since 2005 and has served on the publications, website, and planning committees and has served as chair for the social Media and early career professional subcommittees.

General Jurisdiction Director (2011-2014)
Vicky L. Carlson

Vicky Carlson is the Court Administrator in Carver County, Minnesota, First Judicial District. A position she has held since 2007. She is responsible for all operations of the court including criminal, jury, family, civil, juvenile, traffic, and probate. Prior to her service in Carver County, she served for 22 years in Dakota County District Court in various roles including Court Administrative Manager where she managed the collections and accounting divisions as well as special projects and technology implementations. 

Vicky is the chair of the Membership Services Committee for the Minnesota Association for Court Management (MACM). She also serves on both the Education and Legislative Committees and has been a member of MACM since 2002. 

Vicky attended Metro State University and holds a Bachelor’s Degree in Public Administration. She is a Fellow of the National Center for State Courts, Institute for Court Management (2011). Vicky was elected to the National Association for Court Management (NACM) Board in 2011 as the General Jurisdiction Director. She is vice chair of the Membership committee and a member of the Conference Development committee.

Limited Jurisdiction Director (2010-2013)
Phillip Knox

Phillip Knox is the General Jurisdiction Courts Administrator for the Superior Court of Arizona in Maricopa County. In this position he is responsible for the operations of the court, including areas of civil, criminal, family, juvenile, probate/ mental health as well as the regional court locations. 

Mr. Knox assumed his most recent duties in April of 2007. Previously he spent four years as the Deputy Court Administrator, and six years as the Family Court Administrator. Prior to his assignment in Family Court he worked as a general court operations administrator for the Superior Court; deputy court administrator in the Maricopa County Justice Courts; Pretrial Director in Yuma County, Arizona; and as a supervisor with the Pretrial Services program in Harris County, (Houston) Texas. 

He is faculty for the National Center for State Courts, Williamsburg, VA and for the Arizona Courts ICM training program. Phil has served as consultant to the California AOC while assisting with the Unified Courts for Families Project in that state. Mr. Knox attended law school in Texas and holds master’s degrees in public administration and criminal justice management. 

He is a graduate Fellow of the National Center for State Courts, Institute for Court Management (May 2000). He is the recipient of numerous awards including the Child Advocates Inc. Speakers Bureau Appreciation Award, the Arizona Family Support Council President’s Award, and the National Center for State Courts Director’s Award of Merit for Applied Research for his study: Internal and External Barriers to the Implementation of an Integrated Family Court: A Look at Family Courts that Work. 

Phil has served on the NACM Planning Committee and was recently elected as a director to the NACM Board.

At Large (1) Director (2011-2014)
Scott C. Griffith

Scott Griffith is Deputy Judicial Administrator for Research and Development at the Louisiana Supreme Court. In this position, he provides lead staff support to the Supreme Court and other courts in connection with Louisiana’s Judicial Budget and Performance Accountability Act. The Act deals with judicial branch strategic planning, performance auditing and performance reporting. Mr. Griffith also provides lead staff support to the Supreme Court’s Judicial Council and its standing and ad hoc committees. 

Prior to his appointment as Deputy Judicial Administrator for Research and Development, Mr. Griffith served as the Director of the Louisiana Supreme Court’s Drug Court Program Office, where he oversaw disbursement of state and federal funds to 48 programs. Before that, he served as Judicial Administrator of the Jefferson Parish (LA) Juvenile Court. Previously, he developed and managed justice related research projects at the Metropolitan Crime Commission of New Orleans and the New Orleans-based Bureau of Governmental Research. A native of Massachusetts, Mr. Griffith has a law degree from Loyola University in New Orleans and a master’s degree in public administration from the University of New Orleans. He is past president of the Louisiana Court Administrators Association and serves on its Executive Board. 

Mr. Griffith has been a member of the National Association for Court Management (NACM) since 1998 and serves on NACM’s Planning, Ethics, and Publications committees. He also chairs the NACM National Agenda Subcommittee.

At Large (2) Director (2009-2012)
Paul DeLosh

Paul F. DeLosh has held the Director of the Department of Judicial Services position for the Office of the Executive Secretary of the Supreme Court of Virginia since 2004. He first came to Court in 1991 where he served in the Department of Information Technology as well as the Department of Technical Assistance. 

The Department of Judicial Services (DJS) serves as the liaison between the Judiciary’s administrative offices and the courts throughout Virginia, providing administrative services through publications, trainings, field visits, and the research and support of various programs. The Department serves 320 courts, 300 certified mediators, 100 certified interpreters and over 400 magistrates within the Commonwealth of Virginia through its seven divisions: Circuit Court Services, General District Court Services, Juvenile and Domestic Relations District Court Services, Dispute Resolution Services, Drug Treatment Court Services, Foreign Language Services and Magistrate Services. 

Paul attended Boston College and Virginia Commonwealth University. He holds a Bachelor’s Degree in Business Administration and a Masters of Science in Leadership. He currently serves on the Board of Directors for the National Association for Court Managers (NACM) as one of their At Large Directors as well as member of the Planning, Membership and Conference Development committees. He also serves on the Advisory Board for the Mid-Atlantic Association for Court Management (MAACM) and holds the position of Co-chair of their Communications Committee.