Murfreesboro native Deborah Taylor Tate is helping to shape the Juvenile Justice System in Tennessee.

The former FCC Commissioner who became the Director of the Administrative Office of the Supreme Courts for Tennessee in 2015, is part of the task for picked to study and evaluate the juvenile justice system for the Volunteer State.

The Joint Ad-Hoc Tennessee Blue Ribbon Task Force on Juvenile Justice is directed to study, evaluate, analyze, and undertake a comprehensive review of the state's juvenile justice system using a data-driven approach, and to develop evidence-based policy recommendations for legislative, administrative, and budgetary considerations that will:

• protect public safety;
• effectively hold juvenile offenders accountable;
• contain costs; and
• improve outcomes for youth, families, and communities in Tennessee.

Members of the Task Force include Judge Dan Michael, Shelby County Juvenile Court, Judge Vicki Snyder, Henry County Juvenile Court, and Director Deborah Taylor Tate, Administrative Office of the Courts. Members held their second meeting today to discuss process and timelines.

About Deborah Taylor Tate from Murfreesboro:

Tate, who was twice nominated by President George W. Bush and unanimously approved by the U.S. Senate to the FCC, began her professional career in Tennessee state government. She served as assistant legal counsel and senior policy advisor to two former Tennessee governors: Don Sundquist and Sen. Lamar Alexander.

Tate also served as both Chairman and director of the Tennessee Regulatory Authority, led the health facilities commission and was a director at Vanderbilt University Institute of Public Policy.

Tate, a licensed attorney, is a Tennessee Supreme Court Rule 31 Listed Mediator, Nashville Bar Foundation Fellow, and served in private practice representing families and juveniles in juvenile court as a guardian ad litem. She was also president of the Court Appointed Special Advocates (CASA) board.

Tate is a fifth generation Tennessee native.