AIR™ Benefits for Families
As we seek to create a better system, we must think of the community, the participants, and the families who benefit from a system that emphasizes human dignity and prioritizes rehabilitation.
The unintended victims of the criminal justice system – the family members of people who are “justice-involved” – have long experienced the hardship and devastation that accompanies incarceration. When a family member becomes involved with corrections programming, children grow up without parents, parents mourn the loss of time spent with children, and relationships are sometimes damaged beyond repair.
As we seek to create a better system, we must not only think of the community and monitoring program participants, but of their families and loved ones who also benefit from a system that emphasizes human dignity and prioritizes rehabilitation. The Corrisoft AIR approach, which uses phased accountability through technology as an alternative to incarceration, positively impacts participant families in several ways.
The Corrisoft AIR approach keeps families intact.
Corrisoft AIR is literally an alternative to incarceration. Our phased accountability structure allows agencies to connect with program participants using customizable devices and software. This means that participants can actively participate in rehabilitation and monitoring programs without being separated from their families.
The Corrisoft AIR approach helps participants achieve their rehabilitation goals by building meaningful connections with support officers.
For many participants in drug treatment courts, getting clean requires constant professional and personal support. The Corrisoft AIR approach allows agencies to create easy-to-access support functions, meaning critical resources are just one click away. Participants can immediately connect with their parole officers, sobriety partners or other critical support persons while staying with family members who support their sobriety. This helps program participants build strong interpersonal relationships that will support their lifelong recovery process. Families can be an integral part of this process and benefit from the more holistic approach to addiction recovery support.
The Corrisoft AIR approach destigmatized the reentry process by integrating more private and personal tools.
Through the development and use of smartphone technology solutions, we are working to destigmatize the monitoring process. Traditional monitoring devices are visible to the general public and immediately signal that a person is involved with the criminal justice system. Smartphones are widely used by people to connect, and immediately remove some of the assumptions that come with a physical monitoring device. Additionally, with the integration of two-way video conferencing, face-to-face virtual meetings between agencies and participants are possible. These virtual meetings in lieu of office visits allow participants to keep their normal work and childcare schedules and don’t require access to reliable transportation. This helps families by allowing program participants to find and maintain meaningful work, which is proven to reduce recidivism.
When we reimagine our community corrections monitoring and processes, we can consider how our systems impact families and our community more broadly. By dignifying the process and shifting our priorities toward rehabilitation, we help not only our program participants, but their families and the community as a whole. If your agency wants to support families, save money and streamline operations using technology,
