From the Ground Up: Implementation of the Program Tool among Community Partners

• In Event: Lessons from the Field: Implementing the RNR Simulation Tool from the Community to Prison

Abstract

North Carolina supervises over 150,000 individuals each year under community supervision (i.e., probation, post-release, parole). Over the last few years, North Carolina has been significantly increasing the use of evidence-based practices. They have developed and validated their own risk and need assessment (RNA), as well as implementing motivational interviewing, Effective Practices in Corrections (EPICS), and Carey Guides. As part of their progression with evidence-based practices, the North Carolina Department of Public Safety (NCDPS) is beginning the implementation of the Risk-Need-Responsivity (RNR) Simulation Tool in five pilot counties. As the first step in this process, they are working with community providers that work with their probation population to complete the Program Tool for Adults portal. This first step allows the agency to examine the overall quality and capacity of the current programming offered and understand where gaps in services currently exist. In this presentation, the strategic implementation strategies used by the NCDPS to complete the Program Tool will be discussed, as well as the larger policy and practice lessons learned to implement the tools on a larger scale.

Author

• David Edwards, North Carolina Department of Public Safety