BRIDGETON
-- Attorney General Paula T. Dow today announced
the distribution of $1 million in federal
grant funding for jail-based prisoner re-entry
programs that support ex-offenders’
return to their communities.
The
grant funding, the first of its kind to
be offered by the Office of the Attorney
General and made available through the federal
American Recovery and Reinvestment Act (ARRA),
will assist four county correctional facilities
institute programs targeted at those returning
to the community from jail. The four facilities
were selected via a competitive grant application
process. Each site will receive up to $250,000
in grant funding.
“Providing
assistance to those transitioning out of
jail through a holistic programmatic approach
including: mental health counseling, substance
abuse treatment, housing assistance, employment
readiness assessments and other needed services
pays dividends by lowering the recidivism
rate and increases safety to our neighborhoods,”
said Attorney General Dow. “Programs
like these provide hope to ex-offenders
who aim to break the cycle of recidivism
and stride towards becoming productive law-abiding
citizens.”
According
to Attorney General Dow, each of the winning
grant recipients offered various local-based
strategies to address their specific prisoner
re-entry needs.
The
four winning applications were submitted
by:
-
Hudson County: Hudson
will expand its existing re-entry program
by hiring two community case managers
who will assist transitioning inmates
in finding housing, medication, photo
IDs and transportation for those ineligible
for public assistance and/or lack other
resources. Hudson’s program will
serve up to 115 inmates annually with
a goal of preventing up to 90 percent
of those served from returning to custody;
-
Cumberland County: Cumberland’s
program will provide social, economic
and health-related services to up to 150
inmates per year upon release into the
community. The Cumberland team will utilize
assessment tools to determine inmate needs,
life skills and
employment readiness assistance and a
referral system for inmates to a local
health care facility for post-release
treatment;
-
Camden County: Camden
will provide discharge planning for up
to 725 returning inmates each year. The
discharge plan will include an evaluation
of the inmate conducted by a case manager,
referrals to community resource agencies
for aftercare services, and information
regarding post-release support groups,
housing, family reunification services
and substance abuse treatment centers.
Camden also anticipates offering short-term
housing to a limited number of inmates
with a designated need and vocational
training;
-
Atlantic County: Atlantic
targets so-called “frequent flyers,”
those who have returned to custody five
or more times in a year and who are diagnosed
with a substance abuse dependency disorder.
These inmates will be evaluated by an
advanced nurse practitioner and follow-up
medical/mental health appointments upon
release, counseling from a Certified Alcohol
Drug Counselor both inside jail and after
release and employment specialists who
will work with employers and program participants
to make firm employment connections in
the community. Roughly 200 inmates will
be served each year under the program.
The
Attorney General’s announcement was
made at a press conference held at the Cumberland
County Courthouse in Bridgeton, New Jersey.
“The
commitment of funds to the State’s
county correctional facilities reflects
our commitment to expand our re-entry assistance
efforts to the local level,” said
State Prisoner Re-entry Director Wanda Moore.
“We are committed to evidence-based
strategies at the local level that demonstrate
successful results in lowering recidivism
among the formerly incarcerated.
Through
collaboration with the Robert Wood Johnson
Foundation, who funds The Community Oriented
Correctional Health Services (COCHS), the
OAG was able to secure technical assistance
at no cost to the grantees and reflects
an ongoing effort to expand outreach and
partnership with non-profit organizations
interested in working with at-risk individuals.
COCHS is a non-profit organization, established
to help communities around the country connect
the health care provided in local correctional
centers with health care provided in the
community.
Today’s
announcement builds on additional community
justice funded programs being offered by
the Attorney General’s office. These
programs focus on outreach and engagement
with those who are at-risk of, and/or are
currently engaged in, the criminal justice
system. This includes ex-offenders, inmates
approaching release, and youth/young adults
who are most at risk of becoming involved
with gangs and criminal activity.
Among
the programs being funded by the Attorney
General’s Office are:
-
FORGE (Female Offender Reentry
Group Effort), a program led
by the State Parole Board that, through
a $200,000 pass-through of ARRA funds
from OAG, is expanding into Camden and
Passaic Counties. Approximately 100 female
parolees will be served each year through
this funding;
-
Justice-Involved Services (JIS)
Program: OAG has provided the
Division of Mental Health Services with
$1.2 million to expand its jail-based
mental health screening program in Burlington,
Middlesex, Monmouth and Morris Counties.
JIS screens soon-to-be released inmates
for mental health disabilities and, where
appropriate, refers inmates to service
providers upon release. Funding will allow
counties to hire or elevate 4-8 employees
to full-time positions and serve roughly
180 inmates per year.
-
Project HOME (Helping
Offenders by Mentoring Effectively), a
$300,000 initiative with the Department
of Corrections to expand their existing
mentoring program which links interested
inmates with DOC-approved mentors. Mentors
provide guidance and assistance in areas
such as educational and vocational training,
mental health counseling, job placement
and family counseling. This grant will
help DOC serve up to 200 inmates per year.
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