The National Institute of Corrections (NIC) was privileged to provide a brand new training to probation officers from three Texas counties (Denton, Dallas, and Tarrant) on March 19 and 20, 2025. This pilot training was hosted by the Denton County Community Supervision and Corrections Department in their Denton office.
NIC has a long history of working on issues that affect women in both incarcerated and community supervision settings. While men still account for the majority of people incarcerated and on supervision in the criminal justice system, the proportion of women has been growing steadily over the past several decades. Between 1980 and 2021, the number of incarcerated women increased by more than 525%, rising to a total of 168,449. There are approximately 976,000 women currently under the supervision of the criminal justice system. NIC seeks to give staff more information about the inherent risks, needs, and strengths that are present when working with women that may enhance successful interaction with them and may improve their outcomes.
NIC’s Working with Women training was designed to address the characteristics of women who are currently in the criminal justice system. This includes women in jail, prison, and on community supervision. The training highlights the various pathways that lead women to the criminal justice system, which may involve their physical and psychological development, exposure to adverse life experiences and trauma, and other complex dynamics.
NIC will soon pilot the incarcerated settings version of this training. Once the piloting has been completed, NIC will release this training to be available at no cost for all agencies throughout the country.
Early evaluations of the training were very positive and help to build a track record for the success of future programs.
