It gives me great pleasure to welcome you to the official Web site of the Office of Community Programs.
The New Jersey Department of Corrections (NJDOC) contracts with
private non-profit agencies for the provision of residential community
release services to eligible inmates. Contracts are awarded through the competitive bid process and monitored for contract compliance by the Office of Community Programs. The Office of Community Programs contracts with 25 Residential Community Release Programs (RCRPs) throughout the State of New Jersey, including two assessment and treatment centers. We currently have contracts
for 2,744 residential community release beds.
The mission of this office is to provide the framework for the
provision of community release services to inmates, provide oversight
and monitoring for delivery of services, and track the movement
of RCRP inmates through the continuum of care. The overarching goal
of the Office of Community Programs is to provide assessment-driven
services and programming for inmates preparing to return to the
communities, through the provision of performance-based residential
community release program placement. Assignment to a community program provides the opportunity for eligible inmates to reintegrate to the community, through a structured, supervised residential program. Research has shown
that inmates who are afforded the opportunity to participate in
community programs are less likely to commit additional crimes and/or
be returned to prison.
The New Jersey Reentry Roundtable's Final Report noted that it
is critical that all transition planning should include community
corrections participation; "New Jersey's long-term goal should be to ensure
that every state prisoner transitions to community living through
a community corrections placement, as is done in the federal system".
Please click on the link below to find the complete report.
http://www.njisj.org/reports/cominghome_report.html#transition
It is my hope and expectation that you will find our Web site informative
and interesting. I would like to acknowledge and thank the incredible
staff in the Office of Community Programs, whose clear vision and
commitment has advanced this office in the direction of the dreams
we share as we continue to grow and improve.
