What is the Regional Training Initiative (RTI)?
In an era of rapidly increasing numbers of correctional employees who must be trained quickly, the RTI enables correctional agencies to bring more correctional training on-line without significant budget increases. It is a cost-effective means of increasing training resources, training capacity, and information dissemination among training professionals from jails, prisons, community corrections, and the Federal Bureau of Prisons.
How is it Managed?
The RTI is supported by the NIC Academy Division and relies on volunteer correctional trainers to provide professional development, resource sharing, and networking opportunities to their peers in local, state, and federal correctional agencies throughout the nation.
What are the Goals?
The purpose of the program is to build networks across traditional boundaries among correctional agencies in order to share training resources and information, and to participate in joint training efforts. The goals are:
- Provide opportunities for more juvenile and adult correctional staff to participate in training programs and access training resources;
- Provide relevant staff development based on regional needs and interests;
- Promote the sharing of information, training, and other resources across traditional boundaries among juvenile and adult disciplines, and local, state, and federal correctional agencies;
- Increase the dissemination, use, and impact of correctional curriculum packages and training technologies developed among agencies throughout the country;
- Maximize the use of federal funding available for correctional training for local, state, and federal prisons, jails, community corrections, and juvenile justice agencies.
How is it Organized?
The program organizes states and territories into four regions consisting of the Northeast, Western, Southern, and Central regions. Each region has approximately ten Regional Field Coordinators (RFCs) drawing from prisons, jails, community corrections, juvenile justice agencies, and the Federal Bureau of Prisons. Each year, with NIC support, RFC’s come together to plan and organize correctional training and capacity building initiatives within their respective regions.
RFCs and NIC Academy staff coordinate communication within each region, between regions, and between all regions and the NIC Academy in order to carry out projects, training programs, and resource sharing throughout an activity year.
How are Regional Field Coordinators (RFCs) Selected?
RFCs are ideally agency training directors, administrators, coordinators, or senior trainers with experience in developing, delivering, and/or coordinating training in their home agency.
RFCs are selected through an annual application process that includes endorsement by their chief administrators to assure they will have agency support in carrying out their duties as an RFC. The NIC Academy accepts applications for RFCs on a year round basis.