Challenges of Improving Reentry Programs

• In Event: Improving Reentry Programs

Abstract

The use of quality improvement processes to improve system and program issues has gained momentum in criminal justice in recent years. Quality improvement efforts are designed to advance processes to improve offender outcomes, increase efficiency, and reduce costs by making changes to the way a program operates. Existing tools identify processes or components that can be improved (i.e. the RNR Program Tool, the CPC, or the CPAI). Quality improvement techniques such as the PDSA or NIATx quality improvement models guide the change process, but programs struggle to successfully implement changes to their services. During the change process, programs go through several phases: learning about the features of effective programs; identifying areas of weakness; deciding what to change; developing and testing different plans; and implementing plans. This paper discusses the influence of internal and external organizational factors that two reentry programs confront during these processes, including financial limitations, staff resistance, and the delicate nature of partnerships with other agencies. They demonstrate the systematic impact of implementing incremental changes over time. This paper addresses how reentry programs address these organizational factors and the impact these changes have on their service delivery.

Authors

• Amy Murphy, George Mason University

• Stephanie Ainsworth Maass, George Mason University

• Faye Taxman, George Mason University