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Our Programs:
Community Resources for Justice 355 Boylston Street Boston, MA 02116 Phone: (617) 482-2520 Fax: (617) 262-8054 crj[@]crjustice.org |
Mark Your Calendars!
Wednesday Webinar Series: Using Science in Criminal Justice to Achieve Better Results
 CRJ Reopens Sargent House Community Resources for Justice is delighted to announce the reopening of Sargent House in Boston. Under a contract with the Massachusetts Department of Children and Families, the program is designed for young men between the ages of 18-22, a population that is often underserved. The house will be operated by our Social Justice Service Department (SJS) while staff training and clinical services will be provided by Community Strategies for Massachusetts Department.
Recent discussion of changes to the Massachusetts parole and probation systems has the Commonwealth’s criminal justice community abuzz and Community Resources for Justice is poised to contribute to the reformation process. Many of these issues were highlighted in the recent report published by The Boston Foundation,“Reentry and the Rising Costs of our Corrections System”. The report, authored by CRJ’s own Len Engel, found a higher rate of growth in the Commonwealth's probation budget than in other areas of the state budget, along with areas of redundancy and a lack of accountability in the supervision of offenders. Governor Deval Patrick’s latest address also acknowledged these redundancies and sees this as an opportunity to bring about overdue change here in Massachusetts. To follow these exciting developments and CRJ’s involvement in the process please read the press coverage below.
 CRJ's Brooke House Receives ACA Accreditation CRJ’s Brooke House received its Accreditation Certificate at the American Correctional Association (ACA) Conference in Tampa, Florida on Monday, January 25th. The final step of the process was a hearing at conference where Jessica Castro, Program Director of Brooke House, Yolanda Schmidt, Assistant Director, Susan Jenness Phillips, Department Director for Standards and Quality Assurance, Brenda O’Donnell, Deputy Department Director for Adult Services and Bill Coughlin, COO, presented the Brooke House Program and our Plan of Action before a panel of four ACA Accreditation Commissioners. With a score of 97%, everyone involved deserves congratulations, especially the dedicated staff at Brooke House.
 CRJ Opens New Residence in Leominster, MA Community Resources for Justice has opened a new program in Leominster, Massachusetts. The residence will be the home for five women and is funded under a contract with the Massachusetts Department of Developmental Disabilities. "It is a fantastic building and we have brought in a very talented staff to run it," said Eric Scharf, Department Director for the Community Strategies for Massachusetts (CSMA), the CRJ Department that will operate the program. "The home has been beautifully decorated by our QA Coordinator, Deb Williams," added Michelle McCormick, CSMA's Director of Business Operations. "It will be a great place for these women to live." This new program will be the 21st residence operated by CSMA. .jpg) Morgan Frye Named CRJ Volunteer of the Year Morgan Frye, the Chair of the Human Rights Committee for CRJ's Community Strategies for Massachusetts Department, was presented the first annual Volunteer of the Year Award at CRJ's recent holiday party. Ms. Frye, a Paralegal at Ellis and Associates in Worcester, MA, has dedicated countless hours to improving the lives of our consumers over more than 5 years as Chair of the committee.
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 Who Helped You? A celebration of the life-changing influence of a helping hand Please join Community Resources for Justice on Thursday, April 8 at the Winter Garden in Boston’s Back Bay at our annual 'Who Helped You?' Event. We will celebrate the work of CRJ and recognize three special people who have helped us to advance our important mission. We call them Community Heroes.
John Bergman, Senior Clinician for CRJ's Community Strategies for Massachusetts, has been busy in CSMA programs, but is also hard at work on a few projects that will contribute to learning in our field both in the U.S. and Europe.
 Larivee, Engel and Luedeman Article in Corrections Today CEO John Larivee, Len Engel, Senior Policy Analyst and Richard Luedeman, Research Assistant authored Reentry and Economic Crisis: An Examination of Four States and Their Budget Efforts that appeared in the December, 2009 issue of Corrections Today. The article examines the impacts of the near-universal budget crisis on the reentry reform measures in Michigan, Kansas, Washington and Connecticut. The article concludes that "The fiscal crisis has justifiably placed all corrections agencies and departments under scrutiny. This should be good for those states that have implemented evidence-based practices because they have or soon will have the data and evidence of success. Whether it will be enough to avoid the budget ax is another story and requires, as witnessed by some of the states in this examination, a concerted public relations effort to educate the citizenry and develop collaboration among lawmakers.
 It is never too late to join our Rodman Ride effort. Every gift directed toward our Rodman Challenge Grant goal will be matched with an additional 15%. Please give today! Help us to maximize your contribution and cushion the blow of reduced funding from other sources by making your contribution today. Visit our development page to make your contribution! Please direct your check or credit card gift to "Rodman Ride" either on the check or in the comment section of your online transaction. CRJ Publishes New Report for The Boston Foundation CRJ's Crime and Justice Institute recently published Priorities & Public Safety: Reentry and the Rising Costs of our Corrections System for The Boston Foundation (TBF) as part of TBF's Understanding Boston series. The report examines the growth of the cost of corrections in Massachusetts in contrast to government spending for other competing sectors, identifies programs that could be adopted here, and describes specific reforms to bring costs under greater control.
“Lighting the way: Improving Corrections Policies and Practices” outlines CJI's Integrated Model of Corrections Founded on Evidence-Based Practices. In collaboration with the National Institute of Corrections, CJI spearheaded the initial development of the Integrated Model of Corrections in 2002. Based on verifiable, evidence-based practices, this model is at work improving corrections practices in states and systems nationwide. For policy makers and corrections practitioners across the country, the CJI integrated model of evidence-based corrections is helping institutionalize organizational development and collaboration to implement strategies and practices proven to reduce offender risk and enhance public safety. Working with stakeholders in states and communities from coast to coast, CJI helps improve corrections policies and practices using research and proven methods. click here to view the booklet.
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CRJ CEO John Larivee appeared before the Legislature's Judiciary Committee this week to endorse legislation that would consolidate the state's probation and parole functions and locate the new Office of Community Supervision within the executive branch, a common practice in other states.
The Community Resources for Justice Board of Directors reelected Scott Harshbarger President at its annual meeting in December. Also reelected to officer positions were Gerald Kelley, Vice-President, Thomas DeSimone, Clerk, and Robert Watson, Treasurer. Re-elected to three-year terms were Michael O'Connor of Partners Health Care, Brian Callery of Baystate Planning Group, Annette Hanson of MetroWest Hospital and Peter Patch of the Summit Group Publishing Company. Congratulations to all!