3 AMERICAN PROBATION AND PAROLE ASSOCIATION “One size fits all” has never been true, and anyone who has supervised a probation or parole caseload is acutely aware of how different people can be. It is in part because of such individual differences that most of the authors in this issue state or imply that the responsivity component of the risk-need-responsivity (RNR) model has been given short shrift. The authors have tried to fill this gap. They do an excellent job of sharing insights and knowledge in specific areas. Reading these will broaden your perspective on the barriers we face and what is important in meeting responsivity goals. Many authors have touched on the need to consider personal identity in designing supervision strategies. Indeed, developing the best interventions requires insight into those under community supervision—culture and identity, personal characteristics, abilities, motivation (or lack thereof), learning styles, and so forth. When reading the articles, you, too, might be intrigued by the various perspectives of the authors. Simera and Bonfine discuss responsivity for those with mental illness, while Sperber helps increase our awareness on how to interact with those who have endured trauma. Magnusun and Menefee give us grounding on how understanding—and adapting to— individual differences in information processing capacity during supervision planning can be the difference between success and failure. Day and Woldegabreal share their expertise on the complex factors brought into play by racial and cultural identity, and Roig-Palmer and Lutz provide an excellent outline of issues about justice-involved LGBTG+ youth and adults. Finally, Batastini and her colleagues explain why focusing on the multi-layered experiences of discrimination (termed “intersectionality”) is vital in community supervision regarding improved responsivity and program effectiveness. For those who commence community supervision with considerable personal “baggage” and barriers, a sense of feeling understood and validated can be crucial. How can we, as corrections professionals, break down barriers and speak to these individuals instead of at them so that we can help them move forward? Attempting to understand what they have experienced can be the key. This edition should force all of us to reflect on our shared goal – positive outcomes – an increasingly achievable goal as we acquire more empirical information and become more adept at effective interventions. These authors recognize the merits of the RNR model of offender rehabilitation, but we must still work together to continue assessing, fine- tuning, and sometimes reconstructing our rehabilitation models. There is always more to be learned. With that in mind, reading articles like these that challenge our assumptions is always a plus. Being asked to ponder difficult questions, such as whether the potency of discrimination is matched by the potency of our work, is always a plus. And being presented with concrete and well-considered recommendations is always a definite plus. VERONICA CUNNINGHAM, M.S. EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR/CEO, APPA Executive Director/CEO’s message4 PERSPECTIVESVOLUME 46, NUMBER 3 Thank you to everyone who was able to attend the summer institute, whether in person or virtually. Without your attendance, support, and participation we could have not achieved such a great event. Also, special thanks to Veronica Cunningham and other dedicated APPA staff for all of their hard work to ensure that the institute was successful and provided an excellent learning opportunity for all those who attended. From our Ukrainian friends to Joe Roberts, the CEO of Skid Row, the institute was jam packed with great speakers covering the gamut of relevant topics. However, what stuck out the most to me was the overwhelming interest of attendees in continuing to learn, grow, and develop skills that will ensure they are maximally equipped to help people on supervision find their pathways forward. What we do is difficult. We are often working with people who’ve been repeatedly failed by social service systems, leaving just one system left to respond, the criminal justice system. You and I know that what community supervision officers do across this country is vital to the success of our nation. Despite this, our efforts all too often flies under the radar. We sidestep opportunities to talk about the positive contributions we make. We go about our jobs quietly as we help people transition their lives and find successful paths forward. The time has come to speak out! We need to start sharing the great work we do to help people improve. We need to enlighten criminal justice stakeholders and the general public regarding our significant impact, sharing stories about the people we have helped. Every day, community supervision officers make a difference in people’s lives—helping them overcome significant barriers to be successful. We should not wait until Pretrial, Probation, and Parole week to celebrate such successes. We should be celebrating them now. To help us get the word out, APPA has set up an email account where you can send success stories in any form, whether letters, emails, newspaper/online articles, or publications, so that we can start to share the great work that we do across the country. The email address receive your stories! I look forward to hearing from you about your great work, and please enjoy the great lineup of articles Kim and Jason have put together to help us better understand the responsivity principle. president’s message BRIAN LOVINS, Ph.D PRINCIPAL, JUSTICE SYSTEM PARTNERS BOARD PRESIDENT, APPA5 AMERICAN PROBATION AND PAROLE ASSOCIATION Assessment is a fundamental piece of the Evidence- based Practices puzzle. The Perspectives audience would be hard-pressed to find any version of correctional principles that does not include the actuarial assessment of risk and needs as a cornerstone. Without accurate determinations of risk and needs, corrections agency staff are unable to use their limited resources effectively. When agencies are unable to use their resources effectively, they are unable to reduce recidivism and address client needs to the degree that corrections science promises. Indeed, assessment is an essential starting point of identifying effective interventions. We devote this issue of Perspectives to examining recent advances in this topic. The National Institute of Corrections recently commissioned a paper on best practices in risk and need assessment. Two articles feature components of this paper. In the first, titled “The Future is Now: Establishing State of the Art Standards in Risk Needs Assessments (RNA)”, the authors (Dr. Bret Bucklen, PA Department of Corrections; Dr. Grant Duwe, Minnesota Department of Corrections; and former Perspectives Co-Editor Dr. Faye Taxman, George Mason University) of the paper provide us with a summary version. The second, “Talking about the Way We Talk: Understanding Assessment Tool Communications to Improve Core Correctional Practices” by current Perspectives Co- Editor Dr. Kim Kras (University of San Diego), Dr. Shannon Magnuson (Justice System Partners), and Dr. Faye Taxman hones in on an often-overlooked aspect of assessment best practice—communicating assessment processes and results to clients. We feel this focus will help practitioners use assessments in ways that to go beyond mere resource allocation to support better understanding by clients. The superiority of assessments over clinical judgment alone with regard to accuracy is well-established in the literature. Intuitively, it seems much more likely that structured decision-making will produce less-biased results than unstructured decision-making. Even so, the focus on bias in assessment is a topic of contemporary concern. Janis Bane examines problematic policies in this regard related to risk-assessment with a focus on the pre-sentence intercept in a piece called “Observations on Risk Assessment and Racial Equity.” She concludes by imploring the corrections industry to do better in regard to developing, adopting, and implementing risk and need tools. We agree, and we take comfort in knowing that there are promising practices that can help us to do just that. To this end, we are pleased to present an article, “Modernizing Needs Assessments,” by Baylee Allen, Addison Kobie, and Dr. Zachary Hamilton. In addition to exploring the relationship between dynamic needs and static risk, the authors provide a discussion of the statistical methods used to identify bias in assessment and consequently how to mitigate it. We thank Perspectives editorial board members Katie Meyer, David Sattler, and Mark Stodola for their efforts in assembling this issue. Katie led the effort of this team, and they did a notable job of attaining excellent content. Additionally, Mark led an initiative to survey how agencies use assessments. Albeit informal, the findings of this effort are intriguing. We think that our audience will be interested in seeing where they and their respective agencies stand in relation to their peers. Despite their flaws, the evolution of risk and need assessments suggests promise for the future. As risk and need assessments are essential in our endeavors to create safer communities through reduced recidivism and addressing individual’s areas of need, the future of these tools is in progress toward resolving the critiques about them. As we continue to improve, we hope that you fully utilize the assessments available to you in ways that optimize their utility and offer the most accurate and least biased results. editor’s notes JASON STAUFFER ASSESSMENT AND CLASSIFICATION SERVICES SUPERVISOR, TREATMENT SERVICES DIVISION, BUREAU OF REENTRY COORDINATION, PENNSYLVANIA DEPARTMENT OF CORRECTIONS KIMBERLY R. KRAS ASSISTANT PROFESSOR, SCHOOL OF PUBLIC AFFAIRS, SAN DIEGO STATE UNIVERSITY6 PERSPECTIVESVOLUME 46, NUMBER 3 Perspectives disseminates information to the American Probation and Parole Association’s members on relevant policy and program issues and provides updates on activities of the Association. The membership represents adult and juvenile probation, parole, and community corrections agencies throughout the United States and abroad. Articles submitted for publication are screened by an editorial committee and, on occasion, selected reviewers, to determine acceptability based on relevance to the field of criminal justice, clarity of presentation, or research methodology. Perspectives does not reflect unsupported personal opinions. Articles must be emailed to in accordance with the following deadlines: • Unless previously discussed with the editors, submissions should not exceed 12 typed pages, numbered consecutively, and double-spaced. All charts, graphs, tables, and photographs must be of reproduction quality. Optional titles may be submitted and selected after review with the editors. • All submissions must be in English and in American Psychological Association (APA) Style. • Authors should provide a one-paragraph biography, along with contact information. • Notes should be used only for clarification or substantive comments, and should appear at the end of the text. • References to source documents should appear in the body of the text with the author’s surname and the year of publication in parentheses, e.g., to (Mattson, 2015, p. 73). • Alphabetize each reference at the end of the text using the following format: • Mattson, B. (2015). Technology supports decision making in health and justice. Perspectives, 39(4), 70-79. • Hanser, R. D. (2014). Community corrections (2nd ed.). Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage. While the editors of Perspectives reserve the right to suggest modifications to any contribution, all authors will be responsible for, and given credit for, final versions of articles selected for publication. Submissions will not be returned to contributors. instructions to authors Academy of Criminal Justice Sciences American Correctional Association Association of Paroling Authorities International Association of Women Executives in Corrections AZ Chief Probation Officers Association Chief Probation Officers of CA Confederation of European Probation Correctional Leaders Association Dismas Charities, Inc. IJIS Institute International Community Justice Association Interstate Commission for Adult Offender Supervision MN Association of Community Corrections Act Counties MN Association of County Probation Officers National Association of Pretrial Services Agencies National Association of Probation Executives National Crime Prevention Council New England Council on Crime and Delinquency New York State Probation Officers Association New Zealand Association of Probation Officers NY State Council of Probation Administrators OH Chief Probation Officers Association PA Association of Probation, Parole and Corrections Probation and Community Corrections Officers Associations Probation Association of New Jersey Probation Officers Association of Wielkopolska Probation Officers Professional Association of IN VA Probation and Parole Association affiliate members7 AMERICAN PROBATION AND PAROLE ASSOCIATION features departments PRODUCTION STAFF Veronica Cunningham Editor in Chief Kimberly Kras Perspectives Co-Editor Jason Stauffer Perspectives Co-Editor Travis Johnson Production Coordinator Kayla Ford Desktop Publisher APPA DIRECTORY APPA Main (859) 244-8204 Publication Orders (859) 244-8204 General Training Institute (859) 244-8204 Information Clearinghouse (859) 244-8204 Membership (859) 244-8212 Request for Training (859) 244-8206 Resource Expo (859) 244-8206 Advertising (859) 244-8206 Grants/TA (859) 244-8236 BOARD OF DIRECTORS Brian Lovins President Susan Rice President-Elect Marcus Hodges Vice President Tom Gregory Treasurer Audrey Rigsbee Secretary Tim Hardy Immediate Past President Scott Taylor Second Past President Isabel Perez-Morina Affiliate Rep Tania Appling Member At-Large Representative Alyza Gonzalez Line Staff Representative Herb Sinkinson Region 1 Representative Corinne Brisco Region 2 Representative Dena Davis Region 3 Representative Gene Cotter Region 4 Representative LaTasha Jones Region 5 Representative Veronica Cunningham Executive Director/CEO Communications should be addressed to: American Probation and Parole Association c/o The Council of State Governments 1776 Avenue of the States, Lexington, KY, 40511 Phone: (859)244-8204, Website: Perspectives is published four times annually by the American Probation and Parole Association through its secretariat office in Lexington, Kentucky. ISSN 0821-1507 Reprint permission. Direct requests for permission to use material published in Perspectives in writing to © 2022 The Council of State Governments CO-CHAIRS JASON STAUFFER Assessment and Classification Services Supervisor, Treatment Services Division, Bureau of Reentry Coordination Pennsylvania Department of Corrections 1920 Technology Parkway Mechanicsburg, PA 17050 Phone: (717) 361-4300 KIMBERLY R. KRAS, PHD, San Diego State University Department of Criminal Justice School of Public Affairs 5500 Campanile Drive San Diego, CA 92182 Phone: (619) 594-1158 MEMBERS: Eileen Ahlin, PhD, Penn State Harrisburg Ansley Dille, Utah Administrative Office of the Courts Lauren Duhaime, Bureau of Justice Assistance/George Mason University Phillip Galli, University of Wisconsin-River Falls Lily Gleicher, PhD, Robina Institute/DePaul University Shelley Johnson, PhD, University of North Carolina Charlotte Jennifer Lanterman, PhD, University of Nevada Reno Sarah Manchak, PhD, University of Cincinnati Katie Meyer, CAIS/JAIS Program Manager Carrie Ross, Yavapai County Adult Probation David Sattler, Washington State Administrative Office of the Courts Reveka Shteynberg, PhD, California State University San Bernardino Renea Snyder, Public Health Advisor Mark Stodola, NHTSA Probation Fellow David Taylor, Montgomery County (OH) Probation Reyna Cartagena Vasquez, CSOSA Jill Viglione, PhD, University of Central Florida Melissa Waldock, Kansas Department of Corrections Susan Wright, Pennsylvania Counseling Services editorial board The American Probation and Parole Association is an affiliate of and receives its secretariat services from The Council of State Governments (CSG). CSG, the multibranch association of the states and U.S. territories, works with state leaders across the nation and through its regions to put the best ideas and solutions into practice.9 AMERICAN PROBATION AND PAROLE ASSOCIATION Corrisoft Emily Houp, Marketing Manager 1648 McGrathiana Pkwy, Suite 225 Lexington, KY 40511 Phone: (859)553-1506 Email: Website: Geo Care Monica Hook, VP, Communication 4955 Technology Way Boca Raton, FL 33431 Phone: (800) 241.2911 x 1230 Email: Website: Feildware, LLC Ken Tomlinson, Director Customer Engagement 13012 Harmony Parkway Westminister, CO 80234 Phone: (312)258-1000x 331 Email: Website: Honest Jobs Melissa Dickerson, Chief of Staff 1019 S Hempstead RD, Westerville, OH 43081 Phone: (614) 741.5454 Email: Website: Intoxalock Linda Vadel, Affiliate Outreach Coordinator 11035 Aurora Avenue, Des Moines, IA 50322 Phone: (515) 251.3747 Email: Website: Journal Technologies Adam Senter Senior Account Executive 843 South 100 West, Logan, UT 84321 Email: Website: National Curriculum and Training Institute Gary Bushkin, President 319 East McDowell Road, Suite 200 Phoenix, AZ 85004-1534 Phone: (602) 252.3100 Email: Website: Abbott Vani Sugumaran, Marketing Managaer 3650 Westwind Blvrd, Santa Rosa, CA, 95403 Phone: 678.662.6465 Attenti Kerri Ryan, Strategic Marketing Manager 1838 Gunn Highway, Odessa, FL 33556 Phone: (813) 749.5454 x 1275 Averhealth Jacquie Sheehey, Director of Marketing & Partner Relations 2916 W. Marshall Street, Suite A Richmond, VA 23230 Phone: (848) 992.3650 Axon Zach Austin, Director of Sales, Corrections 17800 North 85th Street, Scottsdale, AZ 85255 Phone: (917) 789-0916 Buddhi Ed Harrison Director of Sales & Service Buddi US, LLC 2710 Alt 19 North, Palm Harbor, FL 34683 Phone: (727) 309-6190 Care Guide Services LLC Happye Dyer, Director of Reentry Services The Change Companies Baton Rouge, LA 70808 CoreCivic Shannon Carst, Managing Director 5501 Virginia Way, Ste 110, Brentwood, TN 37027 Phone: 303-842-8301 Corrections Software Solutions James Redus, President 316 North Lamar Street, Austin, TX 78703 Phone: (512) 347.1366 Fax: (512) 347.1310 Corporations with an interest in the field of probation, parole, and community corrections are invited to become APPA corporate members. Corporate members receive benefits such as enhanced visibility among APPA’s international network of community corrections professionals, as well as shared information on the latest trends and issues that specifically affect community corrections. appa corporate membersNext >