Over the past 3 years, the National Institute of Corrections (NIC) has worked collaboratively with Justice System Partners to review, modify, and redesign NIC’s Probation and Parole Executive Orientation curriculum to create and pilot a virtual Community Supervision Leadership Learning Lab. The lab includes the most up-to-date material needed to assist community corrections leaders in developing probation and parole agencies that can effectively implement evidence-based interventions.
The 9-month lab uses a combination of virtual connections, including virtual instructor-led trainings, self-paced and independent learning, and leadership coaching. The training includes 6 months of coaching to help participants develop a capstone project. The capstone project begins by helping participants identify, develop, and implement a new organizational change strategy within their agency and concludes with an in-person capstone project that provides participants an opportunity to grow their skills as leaders.
Beginning in 2022, the curriculum was piloted with 62 cross-positional leaders from three sites: Brazoria County Texas Community Supervision and Corrections Department (Adult Probation), Michigan Department of Corrections, and Kansas Parole Services. This pilot provided invaluable feedback with regard to the training’s curriculum content, mode of delivery for activities, practical assignments, the capstone project, and planning processes.
