NCJ Number
149417
Date Published
1994
Length
13 pages
Annotation
This paper provides on overview of the history, structure, program elements, and recidivism rate for the Veterans Residential Therapeutic Program at New York State's Groveland Correctional Facility in Sonyea, New York.
Abstract
The program is providing services to more than 120 incarcerated U.S. military veterans, mostly from the Vietnam War. The unique nature of this program is the involvement of the U.S. Veterans Administration in the therapeutic content and direction of the program. The veterans live together in a separate unit and participate in all activities together. Program services, primarily therapeutic intervention along with training and practice in relapse prevention and related skills, are implemented through a full-time, 1-year program that focuses on chemical dependency and post-traumatic stress syndrome for combat veterans. In New York State, 51.85 percent of offenders re-enter the system with new convictions within 66 months. Among military veterans with no special therapeutic programs, the return rate is 40.75 percent. Among participants in the veterans program, the return rate was 6.1 percent, with a projected rate of return over 66 months of 8.89 percent. At this stage, the program is the most successful of its type in the New York State system, a judgment supported by both qualitative and quantitative assessment. Evaluation criteria for the program are outlined in this paper, and information is provided on program staffing, program cycles, skills training for participants, and housing.