Tribes Working Together to Create Tribal Management Information Systems. Development Objective. Addresses 8/19/2011

Tribes

 

Working

 

Together

 

to

 

Create

 

Tribal

 

Management

 

Information

 

Systems

Prepared

 

by:

 

Shawn

 

Soulsby

The Technology Alliance of Indigenous Women of the 

Americas

Development Objective

•

To

 

create

 

a

 

customized,

 

scalable,

 

web

‐

based

 

solution

 

to

 

offer

 

Tribal

 

Organizations

 

the

 

ability

 

to

 

leverage

 

existing

 

court

 

data

 

and

 

relevant

 

agency

 

relationships,

 

create

 

and

 

follow

 

exceptional

 

processes,

 

and

 

offer

 

LMS

 

based

 

blended

 

training

 

solutions

 

to

 

address

 

the

 

existing

 

need

 

in

 

Indian

 

Country

 

for

 

a

 

simplified

 

Tribal

 

Court

 

Data

 

Solution

 

in

 

a

 

comprehensive

 

and

 

cost

 

effective

 

manner.

Addresses

•

Accountability

 

Potential End User Interfaces (and 

data collection from):

•

Who

 

are

 

they

 

and

 

how

 

could

 

they

 

use

 

this

 

database?

Examples: 

•

Tribal

 

Courts

•

Prosecutors

•

Public

 

Defenders

•

Departments

 

of

 

Motor

 

Vehicles

•

Police

 

Departments

•

VOCA

 

Probation

 

Offices

•

Child

 

Welfare

 

Offices

•

Domestic

 

Violence

 

Shelters

 

etc.

Processes for potential inclusion in 

one centralized system:

• Cruiser Units – Names, addresses,  identifiers, location, 

witnesses, descriptions of scene, evidence logging.

• Police Departments – Input data, search warrants, incident 

reports, initiate new charges, perpetrator bonded or 

incarceration status

• Prosecutors – Verify data, update data, gap identification

• VOCA – Update victim/witness information, victim impact 

statements, VOCA payments, impact panels

• Tribal Court – Arraignments, hearings, motions, dispositions

• Other Agencies – Treatment, probation adherence, drug 

courts, child welfare, public defender

• State and Federal Offices

• Ryan White compliance

Potential Benefits of Centralized 

System

• No lost cases

• Instant access to current case status

• Identification of correct perpetrators

• Reduction in data entry and man hours

• Creates continuity of information for all organizations

• Ability to quickly identify and monitor trends

• Simplifies fine collection and audits

• Correct and up‐to‐date information on warrants

• Background history

• Aiding in informed decisions from the bench

3 Step Solution

1. Research,

 

Focus

 

Groups,

 

Collaboration

 

on

 

Step 1 – Organization (1 Year)

• The formation of a consortium of organizations that would 

perform research, site visits, and focus groups to insure that 

the system is comprehensive and effective for Tribal Courts, 

supporting agencies and offices.

• This group would be responsible for collecting information 

and recruiting individuals who are highly involved with 

existing Tribal Courts and who have a high degree of technical 

capabilities to form the advisory board that would work with 

the Technical Development Staff in the high level system 

outline.

Consortium Creation/Task Division

•

Potential

 

Consortium

 

Members

 

(organizations 

that already provide T&TA directly or indirectly to 

Tribal Organizations)

Specialized Technical Development 

•

One

 

of

 

the

 

keys

 

to

 

successful

 

software

 

based

 

solutions

 

is

 

to

 

have

 

the

 

development

 

staff

 

involved

 

in

 

the

 

research

 

process

 

to

 

define

 

objectives

 

and

 

direct

 

research

 

efforts

 

to

 

make

 

Transition to Step 2

• Once the information has been gathered, organized, 

categorized, and prioritized the development process 

would begin. The results would be built into the 

following overall database schema structure. 

• Though the system would be comprehensive, the 

Tribal organizations would have a variety of 

customizations available based on the gathered 

research and needs defined by the advisory board.

Overall Database Schema

Master Control Database

Tribe 1 Tribe 2 Tribe 3 Tribe 4

Customized Controls for Tribal Organizations to Customized End User Interface Tribe 5 Tribe 6

Controls and 

Tracking

Support and 

Master Control Database

Tribe 1 Tribe 2 Tribe 3 Tribe 4

Customized Controls for Tribal Organizations to Customized End User Interface Tribe 5 Tribe 6 User Controls User Controls User Controls User Controls Tribal  Court Police  Dept VOCA DV  Shelter Tribal  Court Police  Dept Tribal  Court Police  Dept Prosecutor Public  Defense Tribal  Court Prosecutor Drug  Court Tribal  Court Police  Dept Prosecutor Child  Welfare Controls and  Tracking Support and  Training Tribal  Court Police  Dept Child  Welfare VOCA User Controls User Controls TAIWA 

The central system would be designed, updated, maintained, 

hosted, backed up and monitored in a top security level, with the 

training modules being available from an LMS. This system can be 

designed for minimum input, maximum output and in a 

sustainable manner, created in an across the board cost effective 

plan.

This particular diagram shows the high level administration. The 

next diagram shows the next level of control, which would be at 

the individual tribal level, followed by the end user interfaces. Technical Development Staff Research Partners

Master Control Database

Tribe 1 Tribe 2 Tribe 3 Tribe 4

Customized Controls for Tribal Organizations to Customized End User Interface Tribe 5 Tribe 6 User Controls User Controls User Controls User Controls Tribal  Court Police  Dept VOCA DV  Shelter Tribal  Court Police  Dept Tribal  Court Police  Dept Prosecutor Public  Defence Tribal  Court Prosecutor Drug  Court Tribal  Court Police  Dept Prosecutor Child  Welfare Controls and  Tracking Support and  Training Tribal  Court Police  Dept Child  Welfare VOCA User Controls User Controls

Local

 

Tribal

 

Court

 

Administration

Master Control Database

Tribe 1 Tribe 2 Tribe 3 Tribe 4

Customized Controls for Tribal Organizations to Customized End User Interface Tribe 5 Tribe 6 User Controls User Controls User Controls User Controls

Tribal  Tribal  Tribal  Tribal  Tribal 

Controls and  Tracking Support and  Training Tribal  User Controls User Controls

End

 

Users

Development Goals

• Comprehensive System Development • Easy End User Interfaces

• Customizable forms and informational fields

• Extensive reporting capabilities, with options of using 

data collected for internal purposes or the choice of 

sharing information with Federal Organizations • Extensive training options using blended learning 

techniques with a combination of e‐learning modules 

and live training seminars

Master Control Database

This will provide Tribal Courts the following Controls 

and Tracking  options

• Assign and Manage “no‐cost” user accounts • Provide customized banners, forms, for each 

participating organization (as well as supporting 

organizations such as CASA, tribal police depts. etc) • Provide per user “security controls” to Tribal Court 

staff to ensure protection of confidential information • Provide real‐time statistics and automated feedback, 

reports and alarms

Master Control Database

End

 

User

 

Support

 

and

 

Training

User Controls

Three

 

levels

 

of

 

controls

 

would

 

be

 

necessary

•

Overall

 

Database

 

Administrator

•

Tribal

 

Account

 

Managers

•

End

 

Users

 

(Judges,

 

court

 

clerks,

 

police

 

officers,

 

etc)

Tribal Account Managers

•

Choose

 

modules

 

or

 

features

 

they

 

would

 

like

 

to

 

use

 

for

 

their

 

particular

 

system

–Possible software options

•Court dockets

•Fee Collection

•Orders of the court

•Counseling Services 

•Offender tracking

–Would determine account access limitations and 

information availability

End User Interface

•

Must

 

be

 

easy

 

to

 

understand

 

and

 

use

•

Must

 

be

 

secure

•

Must

 

have

 

available

 

comprehensive

 

training

•

Must

 

have

 

immediate

 

access

 

to

 

technical

 

Training Options

• A blended learning solution would be implemented. This would combine  live training sessions with eLearning modules.  • The eLearning modules could be developed and administered by the  research consortium organization utilizing a comprehensive Learning  Management System where training can be quickly developed, easily  administered and produce quantitative data and accountability of end  user results allowing for quick adjustments to the intensity and depth of  available training. • This system could be capable of administering software simulation  training, which can be very beneficial for visual or tactile learners.  • Also, this system can track integrated training and can be used to schedule  and administer leader lead training as well as creating a truly  comprehensive overall training program. 

Development Timeline

This would be a three year initiative. 

Year 1: Research and investigation of need performed primarily 

by the consortium organizations.

Year 2: Software Development, Testing and Training 

Development performed primarily by technical development 

staff.

Year 3: Live Rollout and Extensive Training Delivery. Year 3, the 

rollout and training would shift back primarily to the 

consortium, with support from the technical development 

staff.

Continued sustainability: could be achieved in several ways, fee 

based, percentage sharing etc. 

Conclusion

• This scalable solution could be available to tribal courts across