The Lexington, Ky.-based National Partnership for Juvenile Services (NPJS) has named Wayne Bear to serve as its interim CEO, succeeding Carol Cramer Brooks.
Cramer Brooks had led NPJS since late 2011, and has stepped down to handle family issues. NPJS Managing Director Mike Jones said Cramer Brooks “remains supportive of NPJS and will be working on a couple of small training projects for us later this year.”
NPJS was established in 2004 as an umbrella organization for four membership organizations:
- Council for Educators of At-Risk and Delinquent Youth
- Juvenile Justice Trainers Association
- National Association of Juvenile Correctional Agencies
- National Juvenile Detention Association
The organization took a big financial hit in 2014 when the U.S. Office of Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention pulled the plug on the National Center for Youth in Custody, a federal project for which NPJS was the sole grantee.
Bear is a veteran juvenile justice practitioner in Pennsylvania, has been active within NPJS, and has experience overseeing professional membership groups. He will continue in his role as executive director for the state’s Juvenile Detention Center and Alternative Programs.