NCJ Number
251670
Date Published
October 2017
Length
1 page
Annotation
This fact sheet summarizes the features and benefits of the federal Innovations in Supervision Initiative (ISI) and briefly describes two ISI "success stories."
Abstract
The ISI, which is administered by the U.S. Justice Department's Bureau of Justice Assistance (BJA), funds and provides technical assistance to state, local, and tribal community corrections agencies for their development and implementation of effective and evidence-based probation and parole practices that address individuals' needs and improve supervision success rates. Through the ISI, BJA has awarded $27 million to 44 jurisdictions since FY2012. ISI has helped community supervision agencies to implement and test evidence-based or innovative strategies for building agency capacity. It has assisted researchers by awarding agencies that work closely with research partners to determine which policies and practices of community supervision are effective in achieving agency goals. ISI has promoted the development of partnerships among criminal justice and community service organizations to provide treatment, reentry services, and alternatives to incarceration. For policymakers, the ISI model for probation and parole policies and practices assists them in examining existing strategies, protocols, and procedures. One of the ISI success stories involves a partnership between the Connecticut judicial branch and the Central Connecticut State University. They co-developed scripts to provide probation and parole officers with a practical approach to the restructuring of clients' criminal thinking. They succeeded in reducing recidivism among medium-risk and high-risk offenders. In a second success story, the South Carolina Department of Probation, Parole, and Pardon Services developed a multi-component program for training staff, expanding the use of assessment tools, and increasing access to treatment.