Judge Lawrence Gendler (ret.) was Sarpy County’s (NE) first, full-time juvenile prosecutor and only the second juvenile court judge appointed in the county (1992). Since his appointment, he has served on several committees and initiatives across NE. In 2006, he was appointed to the NE Supreme Court Judicial Ethics Committee, became Vice Chair in 2010, and was appointed Chair in the final year of his term. Judge Gendler is an inaugural member of the Supreme Court Committee on Problem-Solving Courts and oversaw the establishment of NE’s first juvenile drug court. In 2006, the Supreme Court established a statewide project called “Through the Eyes of the Child.” Judge Gendler was the Project Chair (from its inception until his retirement in 2021) overseeing the establishment and ongoing work of 25 judge-led, multidisciplinary teams across the state, focused on improving outcomes for youth and families in the court system. As Project Chair, he was appointed as an initial member of the Supreme Court Commission for the Protection of Children in 2006. As part of his Commission duties, he chaired an education subcommittee. Seeking to improve educational outcomes for court-involved youth, the subcommittee designed and implemented an education court report form, which has become a mandatory part of all child welfare and juvenile justice court reports.