The Division of Offender Rehabilitative Services is responsible for the development of programs for offenders that address medical and behavioral health issues, education, vocational training and workforce development, and reentry services.
Education
The Department of Corrections Division of Offender Rehabilitative Services provides education services in classroom settings. Adult education serves offender students whose skill levels range from early elementary to high school in the areas of reading, math, language, science and social studies. Correctional education provides small classes, enabling each teacher to tailor lessons to the offender students at appropriate levels. The education program follows the guidelines set by the Department of Elementary and Secondary Education, using the Test of Adult Basic Education as the official assessment tool and the HiSET as the official high school equivalency test.
Facility corrections managers, acting as school principals, are responsible for the day-to-day operations and administrative functions of the schools. Certified teachers provide the classroom instruction. Offenders who have high school diplomas or equivalency certificates work as tutors in the classrooms, offering support and mentoring for peers.
Academic Education
A basic education is an integral part of the rehabilitative process. In order to prepare inmates for successful reintegration into society and to reduce recidivism, offenders without a high school diploma or equivalent (HSE or High School Equivalency) certificate are required by statute to participate in Adult Basic Education classes. The academic education section offers the following programs to offenders:
- Assessment and Evaluation: Staff at intake centers screen and properly diagnose all offenders prior to school assignments.
- Adult Basic Education: Classes that assist the offender in working toward the HSE certificate.
- Literacy: Classes providing specific materials and instruction for those with limited reading skills.
- Title I: Provides supplemental instructional services for educationally disadvantaged students under age 21.
- Special Education: Provides appropriate education for offenders with disabilities through the age of 21. (Procedural Safeguards for Children & Parents)
Vocational Education
We train Missourians to enter the workforce. The Department of Corrections Division of Offender Rehabilitative Services offers efficient and effective career and technical educational services inside correctional institutions. These programs form a bridge to a successful transition to our communities.
- Career and Technical Programs: Vocational training programs offered throughout the prison system include automotive repair, electrical wiring, residential carpentry, plumbing, small engines, welding, diesel mechanics and industrial technology, culinary arts, cosmetology and more.
Medical Services
Health care for offenders is required by Missouri Statute 217.230. It was determined that the 8th and 14th amendments of the U.S. Constitution further established this right.
The Medical Services section oversees the comprehensive medical care provided on a contract basis. This is a managed-care system, which stresses health care education, disease prevention, immediate identification of health problems and early intervention to prevent more debilitating chronic health problems. Medical units are staffed with nurses and physicians who provide care 24-hours a day at every correctional center. Medical units provide care ranging from regular sick call to Infirmary Care Unit admission. The following ancillary medical services are also provided at all our correctional centers, unless otherwise specified:
- X-rays
- Blood draws and other laboratory analysis
- Dental Care
- Optometric Care
- Oral Surgery at selected sites
- Audiology Screenings
- Physical Therapy
- Ear, Nose, and Throat Clinics at selected sites
- Minor Surgical Procedures
- Chronic Care Clinics
- Telemedicine
- Endoscopy and Colonoscopy at selected sites
- Emergency Care until transport to community Emergency Room, if required
All facilities utilize community hospitals and clinics for emergency care, consultation and inpatient treatment. Consultation agreements are also in place with community specialists. Mammography is provided at the Women's Eastern Reception, Diagnostic and Correctional Center.
The contract monitoring staff of the Medical Services section of the Division of Offender Rehabilitative Services ensures that offenders receive medical care that is equivalent to the community standard and that all mandates of the contract are fulfilled.
The goal is to return offenders to the community as medically stable as possible, so they may become productive citizens of the state.
Behavioral Health
Mental Health Services
The Department of Corrections provides a full range of mental health services through a contracted provider. These services are audited by Division of Offender Rehabilitative Services' mental health contract monitoring staff to ensure that mental health care meets both current standards and contract requirements. All offenders are evaluated during the intake process at the reception and diagnostic centers. Mental health screening and testing are utilized to determine if treatment is needed. Screening also helps determine what assistance offenders will need while incarcerated. In addition to those screened with mental health needs, any offender may request mental health services at any time during incarceration.
The department also offers specialized programming for those with severe mental illness and developmental disabilities. The Farmington Correctional Center is the site of our Social Rehabilitation Unit, a 100-bed housing unit for mentally ill offenders, designed to offer a long-term structured setting. A similar program for females, the Women's Social Rehabilitation Unit, is available at the Chillicothe Correctional Center in Chillicothe. Farmington also has the Correctional Treatment Center, a 20-bed unit for those who need a more protected environment. The Jefferson City Correctional Center has the Secure Social Rehabilitation Unit which provides treatment to a variable number of mentally ill offenders in maximum security. At Potosi, the department has the Special Needs Unit, a 46-bed unit for offenders with developmental disabilities. Mental health services are available at all Department of Corrections institutions.
Mental health staff members also work closely with community providers and reentry coordinators to ensure continuity of care upon release.
Substance Use & Recovery Treatment Services
Substance Use Disorder Screening conducted by the department indicates that 83 percent of offenders were engaged in substance misuse within 12 months prior to their incarceration. In order to meet their service and treatment needs, the department has developed a wide range of substance use disorder services for offenders in institutions and strategies to support individuals under supervision in the community, to provide the earliest possible intervention and the most effective treatment.
Department Institutional Treatment Centers (ITC) provide structured comprehensive substance abuse treatment for incarcerated, parole, and probation violators. ITCs operate in numerous correctional center locations in Boonville, Bowling Green, Chillicothe, Farmington, Fordland, Fulton, Maryville, St. Joseph and Vandalia. ITCs offer a more therapeutic alternative to traditional incarceration. Offenders are held accountable for their behavior and are required to successfully complete treatment interventions prior to release. The department partners with the Department of Mental Health's Division of Behavioral Health to provide treatment services in the community for offenders and facilitate the continuity of care from institutions to treatment and recovery support services in community settings.
Treatment beds are located throughout the state from minimum- to maximum-security institutions. Long-term substance use disorder treatment (12 months) for chronic and progressive addictions is provided at Ozark Correctional Center, Maryville Treatment Center, Chillicothe Correctional Center, and Women's Eastern Reception, Diagnostic and Correctional Center. Six month treatment is provided at Maryville Treatment Center, Western Reception, Diagnostic and Correctional Center, Farmington Correctional Center, Chillicothe Correctional Center and Women's Eastern Reception, Diagnostic and Correctional Center. Short-term treatment (approximately 84 days) is provided at the facilities in Boonville, Chillicothe, Fulton, Farmington, St. Joseph and Vandalia.
The Department of Corrections provides substance use assessment services at units in four regional reception centers, and provides services at the Northeast Correctional Center and Fulton Reception Diagnostic Correctional Center, which serve offenders mandated for treatment with ambulatory and other special needs that prevent their access to other programs. A program tailored to meet the needs of parole violators is provided at the Western Reception and Diagnostic Correctional Center.
Drug screening via urinalysis is an important part of the department's zero tolerance approach toward drug use by offenders. In 2001, the department began drug testing for incarcerated offenders and offenders on probation and parole supervision. On a monthly basis, 5 percent of all offenders are randomly selected for urinalysis testing and 5 percent of offenders who have previously tested positive are selected for "targeted testing." Drug testing assists corrections professionals in their work to assess, evaluate and refer offenders to appropriate substance use disorder programs within the institutions and the community.
To further combat the illegal use of drugs in prison, the department has enhanced interdiction efforts to intercept drug transactions and deliveries. The combination of drug intervention, drug screening and treatment strategies enforces the department's zero tolerance standard for offender drug use.
Missouri Sex Offender Program (MOSOP)
The director of the Department of Corrections is mandated (RSMo 589.040) to develop a program of treatment, education and rehabilitation for sexual assault offenders. By department policy, the successful completion of the Missouri Sex Offender Program (MOSOP) is mandatory for a release prior to an inmate's sentence completion date. MOSOP, consisting of approximately 12 months of therapy, is provided at the Farmington Correctional Center for men and at the Women's Eastern Reception, Diagnostic and Correctional Center in Vandalia for females. The groups for special medical needs, non-English speaking offenders, and those in protective custody are currently held at the Eastern Reception, Diagnostic and Correctional Center.
Sex Offender Assessment Process
The Sex Offender Assessment Process (SOAP) at the Farmington Correctional Center completes evaluations related to sex offender treatment needs for probation-eligible offenders. This information is then shared with the court for community or institutional treatment considerations.
Missouri Vocational Enterprises (MVE)
The Missouri Vocational Enterprises (MVE) program operates industries and programs to produce a variety of products and services for state agencies, city and county governments, political subdivisions, state employees and not-for-profit organizations. The goal of this program is to increase employment and training opportunities for offenders assigned to correctional centers to promote productive and law-abiding conduct after release to the community. Currently, 22 industries are operated in 12 correctional centers statewide. These industries employ approximately 1,400 offenders each month. Products and services include Chemical Products, Industrial Laundry, Clothing Factory, Furniture Factory, Graphic Arts, Engraving License Plate Factory, Office Systems manufacturing and installation, Shoe Factory, Forms Printing, Warehouse/Distribution network, Plastic Bags manufacturing, Cardboard Carton manufacturing, Toilet Paper manufacturing, Metal Products, Signs, and Toner Cartridge Recycling.