New Mexico Corrections Department Career Pathways Initiative

The Edward Byrne Memorial Discretionary Grants Program, administered by the Office of Justice Programs' (OJP's) Bureau of Justice Assistance (BJA), furthers the Department's mission by assisting state and local jurisdictions in improving the criminal justice system and assisting communities in preventing drug abuse and crime. In fiscal year 2007, the Edward Byrne Memorial Discretionary Grants Program will focus on funding local, regional, and national efforts within six major categories: 1) targeting violent crime; 2) preventing crime and drug abuse; 3) enhancing local law enforcement; 4) enhancing local courts; 5) enhancing local corrections and offender reentry; and 6) facilitating justice information sharing. All categories combat, address, or otherwise respond to precipitous or extraordinary increases in crime, or in a type or types of crime.

The New Mexico Corrections Department (NMCD) will utilize the award to support its Career Pathways Initiative (CPI), which is a series of connected education and training programs and support services that enable individuals to secure employment within a specific industry or occupation after being released from prison. The goal of CPI is to promote offender reentry success in New Mexico by building institutional and community corrections organizational capacity and efficiency. Strategies are designed to sustain the project into the future and include the creation of a statewide advisory board, the expansion of data management capacity, and the adoption of evidence-based practices to include dynamic risk and needs assessments to target the offender population. This award will provide train-the-trainer sessions for educators and parole officers which focus on motivational interviewing and cognitive-behavioral practices and will also include training for corrections staff on the NIC Offender Workforce Development Initiative in an effort to improve the capacity of the department to offer meaningful insight to and problem solving with offenders as they approach the time for transitioning from prison to the community. Grant funds will be used for equipment purchases, travel and training expenses, and other costs necessary for the completion of the project.

CA/NCF