Corrections Officer and Staff Safety and Wellness Center

Corrections personnel safety and wellness programs, properly conceived and effectively executed, have the potential to disable the vicious cycle of stress and burnout that faces our nation’s correctional officers and the staff that play a pivotal supportive role in the corrections system. Well-trained, informed, supported, mentally healthy personnel will react appropriately to stressors, adjust more quickly after traumatic events, and combat the growing rate of post- traumatic stress disorder in the corrections occupation.

The goal of the Corrections Officer and Staff Safety and Wellness Center (Center) is to partner with the Bureau of Justice Assistance (BJA) and identify, prioritize, and develop resources to ensure officer and staff safety, wellness, and resilience. The Institute for Intergovernmental Research (IIR) is submitting this proposal for supplemental funding to BJA to both continue to conduct and expand activities that will further enhance the program. With supplemental funding, IIR, in partnership with BJA, will continue to identify, prioritize, and develop training and other resources to address gaps in current training, policies, and practices to ensure officer and staff safety, wellness, and resilience. IIR will work in collaboration with correctional institutions and jails to devise, test, and document correctional policies and practices that improve staff safety, wellness, resilience, and retention.

The supplemental funding of $1,000,000 for the period of October 1, 2023, to September 30, 2024, allows for IIR to increase data gathering activities including the creation of observation teams along with an on-site observation protocol, and the scheduling of on-site visits of training-centered facilities as needed or at the request of BJA. Additionally, these activities may also involve the development and use of questionnaires, interviews, listening sessions, and information gathered from observations with the goal of identifying key skills and knowledge needed to support the safety and wellness of the current corrections workforce. Lastly, supplemental funding will be used for other activities to further enhance the program through continued guidance and coordination with BJA and the continued goal of having the Center serve as the central information repository and resource center for correctional agencies across the nation.