Family Services of NW PA Second Chance Community-Based Adult Reentry Program

Family Services of NW PA proposes to implement the Second Chance Community-Based Adult Reentry Program. The purpose is to develop a program that encompasses a combination of evidence-based practices and traditional case-management to assist individuals in successfully entering the community after incarceration. The caseworkers will develop individual plans with each reentrant that targets their strengths and needs and seeks to remove barriers to success. The program will offer a menu of options that can be identified for each person. The services will assist the client with reunifying with their families, address the impact their incarceration has had on their family members, and begin to build their skills to help break the cycle of recidivism. The goal of Reentry is to strengthen communities by improving reentry outcomes for individuals who have been incarcerated and reducing recidivism. Expected outcomes are improved stability, increased community supports, engaged family supports, and lowered recidivism rates. The program has three main approaches of delivery. One includes the referral and assessment process through bio-psychosocial assessment, IORNS assessment, and a Family Group Decision Making Conference that identifies an Individual treatment plan and family support plan. The second approach includes family support services, parent-education classes (Parenting Inside Out), parent support groups, spousal/significant other support groups, and coordination with other services. The third approach includes integrative case management and psycho-educational counseling with individual treatment planning to assist with building healthy communication, conflict management, coping skills, decision-making skills, anger management, emotion regulation, identifying and addressing home safety concerns, and educational and vocational improvement. Services will be offered in three counties in Pennsylvania: Mercer, Crawford, and Venango. The individuals will be exiting state correctional institutes and/or local county facilities. These are rural counties that have limited access to reentry services. The Black, Latino, and bi-racial portions of these counties are over-represented in the criminal justice population. Reentry will address the disparities and the challenges faced in these counties include difficulty finding employment, housing, access to MH, limited educational opportunities and lack of informal and formal supports. Reentrants are the intended beneficiaries of the project. Additionally, fathers, mothers, siblings, spouses, children, and the family unit will benefit from a healthier, more stable parent and partner as they return to the family. The community benefits from reduce recidivism by having reduced costs on the system and a reduction in crime and more productive contributing citizens.