Reintegration Center for Women Opens at Niantic Correctional Facility

As part of the Second Chance Society initiatives to reduce recidivism and lower crime, the Connecticut Department of Correction opened a Reintegration Center at the York Correctional Institution, the state’s only correctional facility for female offenders.

The facility is currently housing 56 female offenders and has the ability to place up to 68 offenders in the program.

The York Correctional Reintegration Center becomes the third such facility in the state, according to a prepared statement from Governor Dannel P. Malloy.

“Our overall prison population is at its lowest rate in about 20 years, and our crime rate is at its lowest level in nearly 50 years,” he said. “However, over the past five years, our female population has remained relatively steady. This new center aims to change that – to bring about a reduction in the female population to match the improvements we have seen in the male offender population.”

Similar to the Cybulski Community Reintegration Center for male offenders, which opened in April 2015, and the Veterans Unit for military veterans, which opened in November 2015, the York Correctional Reintegration Center will house female offenders who are nearing the end of their sentences and prepares them to reintegrate into society. The center expands and consolidates reintegration programs into one facility, leading to greater efficiency and reduced recidivism.

“The goal of our efforts here is to tackle the systemic issues that result in a cycle of crime and poverty,” Malloy said. “We’re changing our approach to criminal justice from within our prison walls so that we can lower crime outside of them.”

Given the name “Keys to Success,” the program encompasses multiple pathways, which are designed to provide specialized focus in certain areas of interest and are unique to each offender.

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Some of the pathways include education/vocation, recovery, family connection/relationships, faith and spirituality, and community service. The program will assist the inmates in addressing the issues that led them to incarceration, while simultaneously taking responsibility for their actions.

They will be given the opportunity to acquire knowledge and skills that are crucial in preventing recidivism.

“Re-entry programs, giving offenders the tools to stay on the right path, and investing in rehabilitation is smart strategy – it’s working and should be expanded,” Lt. Governor Nancy Wyman said. “It’s appropriate that as offenders reach the end of their sentences, the focus shifts to prevent recidivism. Ex-offenders must achieve stability and independence in our communities – it will us a safer and more productive state.”

In January of this year, Malloy introduced his “Second Chance 2.0” series of legislative proposals that builds upon his “Second Chance Society” reforms adopted in the previous year.

The proposal is designed to ensure that Connecticut continues to be at the forefront of implementing cutting-edge strategies that tackle the cycle of crime and poverty and ensure that Connecticut’s already decreasing crime rates continues to drop, Malloy said.

(Photo: State of CT)