Cambria County Reentry Service Center celebrated 65 participants for successfully completing the reentry program in a transition ceremony on May 31, marking their largest group of program graduates since opening in 2012. The ceremony was held at the RSC in Ebensburg, Pennsylvania, and featured the county’s Chief Public Defender, Marybeth Schaffer, as the keynote speaker.
Schaeffer spoke how the evidence-based practices at the DRC give probationers a better chance of success, according to an article published in The Tribune-Democrat. She also described her first experience working with a 16-year-old addict early in her career as a defense attorney, and how it opened her eyes to the importance of substance abuse treatment. “It was that day that I became [in favor of] saving one life at a time,” she said.
“Your lives are valuable,” Shaeffer said, addressing the program graduates and participants at the ceremony. “Your life is worth the fight for sobriety.”
While it’s a milestone for Cambria County as they set a new record at the RSC for their number of program graduates, the event represents a major milestone for the individuals completing the reentry program.
“It’s definitely a highlight event for participants and staff,” Cambria County RSC Program Manager Julie Boring said. “It’s a big deal to celebrate a graduation, so we like it to make it a big event and make it all about them. This is the perfect event for highlighting the impact of the program.”
The comprehensive reentry program operated by GEO Reentry Services follows a months-long regimen of regular reporting to the center, intensive individual and group therapy sessions and ongoing drug and alcohol testing. Participants move through multiple phases of the program and participate in several classes designed to address criminal thinking before they can officially graduate and transition to aftercare, where they continue to have regular check-ins or group therapy but are considered fully reintegrated back in their communities.
The Cambria County Reentry Service Center opened in 2012 to help alleviate overcrowding and tackle chronic recidivism with high-risk probationers. Since opening, Pennsylvania corrections officials have made a concerted effort to reform the Pennsylvania community corrections system and reshape reentry programs to follow evidence-based practices like those implemented in Cambria County.
As a result, reentrants in Pennsylvania have significantly improved LSI-R scores between intake and completion at the reentry centers. The LSI-R (Level of Science Inventory-Revised) score has been extensively studied and shown to accurately predict recidivism risk. GEO Reentry uses these scores when developing treatment plans for reentry participants. Because the score considers individual risks and needs, it can help determine the appropriate type of treatment and necessary amount of supervision an individual may need to successfully transition back to their community.
