The Administrative Office of the Courts (AOC) awarded nearly $220,000 in grants from the Parent Education and Mediation Fund (PEMF) to organizations that provide court-related assistance to low-income parties. The 16 organizations that received funding for the 2009-2010 fiscal year provide services such as mediation and interpreter services for low-income parties, courses to improve dispute resolution skills among families, and offering a safe atmosphere for children when exchanged between parents.
The PEMF is funded through a portion of marriage license fees. The grant money is then awarded as part of Public Chapter 889, known as the Tennessee Parenting Plan Law, which was enacted by the Tennessee General Assembly enacted the law in 2000. In developing this legislation, the general assembly “recognize[d] the fundamental importance of the parent-child relationship to the welfare of the child, and the relationship between the child and each parent should be fostered unless inconsistent with the child's best interests.” (T.C.A. §36-6-401.) The legislation also provided for funding to be distributed by the administrative office of the courts “for the specific purpose of funding the parenting plan requirements pursuant to this part, through the divorcing parent education and mediation fund, which funding includes the costs of court-ordered mediation, parenting education programs and any related services to resolve family conflict in divorce, post-divorce, and other child custody matters.” (T.C.A. §36-6-413.)
The following organizations received a grant from the Parent Education and Mediation Fund:
* 1st Judicial District Court Clinic - serving Carter, Johnson, Unicoi, and Washington counties
* 4th Judicial District Court Clinic, Community House Cooperative – serving Cocke, Grainger, Jefferson, and Sevier counties
* Community Mediation Center, Knoxville – serving Knox county
* Community Health of East Tennessee – serving Campbell, Anderson, and surrounding counties
* 10th Judicial District Parenting Plan Coordinator – serving Bradley, Polk, McMinn, and Monroe counties
* 11th Judicial District Parenting Plan Coordinator – serving Hamilton county
* Legal Aid of Middle Tennessee and the Cumberlands – serving Grundy, Franklin, Coffee, Bedford, Lincoln, Moore, and Warren counties
* Sumner County Government Parenting Plan Coordinator – serving Sumner county
* Sumner Mediation Services – serving Sumner county
* Metropolitan Government of Nashville – serving Davidson county
* The Exchange Club Family Center, Nashville – serving Davidson county
* Hickman County Bar Association
* The Mediation Center, Columbia – serving Maury county
* Active Living, LLC – serving Crockett, Gibson, Dyer, and Haywood counties
* The Exchange Club Family Center, Memphis – serving Shelby county
* The University of Memphis, Dept. of Psychology –serving Shelby county
For more information on the PEMF fund, please contact Catherine Homra, AOC Programs Manager, at 615-741-2687 or at catherine.homra@tncourts.gov.