The National Reentry Resource Center, a project of the CSG Justice Center, has created recidivism reduction checklists to help state leaders implement reentry initiatives. These user-friendly checklists provide information on the policies and practices that go into an effective reentry plan and key issues related to recidivism reduction. There are checklists for executive and legislative policymakers, state corrections administrators, and state reentry coordinators.
In recent blogs, we highlighted elements from the executive and legislative as well as the state administrator checklists. This blog features the checklist for state reentry coordinators, which includes many tips relevant to their oversight of recidivism-reduction implementation activities. It is by far the longest of the three checklists. This is because state reentry coordinators are in a position to ensure recidivism-reduction policies and practices are effectively implemented, both in corrections settings and in the community. The five goals outlined on this checklist overlap with the goals enumerated on the checklists for executive and legislative policymakers and state corrections administrators:
- Make recidivism reduction an agency priority and set reduction goals for specific programs or policy changes.
- Focus resources on the individuals most likely to reoffend.
- Establish programs and practices that have been shown to reduce recidivism and ensure they are implemented with fidelity.
- Implement community supervision policies and practices that promote successful reentry.
- Measure recidivism-related outcomes and establish a reporting process that promotes accountability for results.
This checklist differs from the other two in that it lays out more tasks to complete each goal, and can be used to record information about implementation leads and implementation status. Reentry coordinators should identify implantation leads – including program managers and line staff supervisors – that can help them ensure policy and performance expectations are being implemented. Once reentry coordinators identify these leads, they should work closely with them to assess the extent to which these expectations are being implemented.
BI Incorporated and GEO Reentry Services, as part of GEO Community Services, support correctional agencies nationwide to implement programs focused on reducing recidivism. Visit www.bi.com for more information about our recidivism reduction strategies.