In the News: Parole Series Documents Inspire Ongoing Corrections Community Discussion

Beginning December 5, 2011, NIC Correctional Program Specialist Robbye Braxton-Mintz will engage in a series of discussions about parole and parole decisionmaking on the NIC Corrections Community. Using the 32 principles outlined in Core Competencies: A Resource for Parole Board Chairs, Members, and Executive Staff, she will author 32 unique discussions on topics in parole. The series will run on the first and third Monday of every month.

In the October 2011 issue of Corrections from the Field, Mintz and former Correctional Program Specialist Cathy Banks began discussing the importance of core competencies for parole board members. These competencies comprise the bulk of the Parole Essentials series, a collection of documents from NIC whose purpose is to equip parole board members with the skills they need to make informed parole decisions.

Mintz says the purpose of the Corrections Community discussion series is about communication. "We want to begin the conversation about where parole boards are and where we want them to be. We would like to see more parole boards using more of the evidence-based practices and using more of the things that we know work." NIC encourages the use evidence-based practices in all aspects of corrections. These practices can be tools, concepts, or programs that research has proven to be effective over time.

The parole decisionmaking discussion series coincides with new upcoming NIC training specifically designed for parole board members and chairs. Information about the free training is now available on the NIC website. Applications for the March and July 2012 parole board members trainings are now being accepted.