Policy Recommendations for NYS DOCS

June 23-26, 2005

Third Annual 3-Day NYS Prison Families Conference
Lake George, NY

• A new “pro-family” agency policy (with the understanding that confinement is DOCS’ #1 concern)
• Recognition that the NYS prison families community has valuable information and expertise that can assist NYS DOCS and the NYS Division of Parole in lowering the rate of recidivism, easing transition from prison to community and improving the quality of life for prisoners’ families and children.
• Entry adjustment program for families—orientation for families who volunteer to participate
• More literature about prison family resources in visiting rooms, visitor centers
• Standards for visitor processing and visiting room procedures
• CO training on how to respond to visitors with physical disabilities, assistive devices, etc.
• At least minimally-equipped children’s areas in all prisons
• Toys and games in all visiting rooms—reaching out to groups that can donate these and provide supervision for children as well
• Children’s centers in more prisons (Osborne model)
• Many more parenting classes
• Video and/or e-mail programs that can help children have “something to hold onto” from their incarcerated parents.
• Organized family/couple activities
• Keeping incarcerated members of same family in same hub to make visiting easier
• Discharge planning with family involvement
• Occasional extended visiting hours, more flexibility
• Prisoners closer to home—esp. with regard to those from upstate (e.g. prisoner from Buffalo is kept in Wende hub, not Sullivan or Green Haven)
• Community advisory board to work with DOCS on wide range of family and community issues and to make essential connections with local and state-wide human services and religious networks which can offer services to prison families and those returning from prison
• Marriage and family counseling—meetings with a knowledgeable therapist every 6 months
• Post-release family counseling or meetings
• DOCS staff allowed to write letters of reference for those prisoners whom they have supervised/worked with
• Furloughs during last year of incarceration-for family reunification
• More work release
• More family programs at Albion
• Concern was expressed at lack of conformity among prisons of various security levels—this makes for great confusion for visitors. While no one wants conformity to the most restrictive policy, it was suggested that better communication and looking at prisons to some extent from the family/visitor perspective would reveal many inconsistencies and small changes that would make big differences to families.