The Implementation and Evaluation of the Effective Practices in Community Support Model for Influencers

The Encouraging Innovation: Field-Initiated (FI) Program is funded under the Edward Byrne Criminal Justice Innovation program and a carve out from the Byrne Justice Assistance Grant Program that is aimed at combating extraordinary or precipitous increases in crime. The FI Program furthers the Department’s mission by trying new approaches, addressing gaps in responses, building or translating research knowledge, or building capacity to address the issues that bring fresh perspectives and ideas to enhance practices and prevent crime in the field.

The University of Cincinnati will utilize grant funds to help ease the reentry process in Franklin County through implementing and evaluating the application of a new model designed to train offender support networks in core correctional practices. Effective Practices in Community Support for Influencers (EPICS-I), builds on the pre-existing knowledge base of what works with offender populations for use with support members. Research shows that relapse prevention programs that trained significant others and family members in cognitive-behavioral approaches are three times as effective as programs that did not. The goal of EPICS-I is to identify prosocial support in an offender’s life and teach core skills including building relationships, identifying and restructuring risky thinking, using structured skill building, and teaching problem solving. CA/NCF