Establishing your jurisdiction's Dosage Probation Policy Team is a critical step in preparing for implementation. This section helps you understand the purpose of the policy team and guides you in establishing and kicking off the team's activities and preparing for the next steps.

The Policy Team's Role and Responsibilities

The policy team is the jurisdiction's formal, multidisciplinary decision-making council that prepares and plans to implement the dosage probation model. The policy team comprises, at minimum, key stakeholders representing the judiciary, prosecution, defense, probation, law enforcement, and people harmed by crime. In addition, the policy team oversees the jurisdiction's implementation and evaluation efforts to ensure that the model's desired impacts (e.g., recidivism reduction, desistance from crime) are achieved.

When established and managed with intentionality, the policy team effectively collaborates with the probation agency's Dosage Probation Workgroup to develop and revise policies and practices that align with the dosage probation model, such as those related to sentencing, supervision, and discharge. Following implementation, the policy team continues working closely with probation to safeguard the effectiveness of the dosage probation model by monitoring progress regularly and recommending data-driven policy and practice adjustments as appropriate. Throughout these processes, the policy team actively ensures their colleagues receive the communication, education, and support required to integrate the new policies and practices into their professional duties and responsibilities, for example, enrolling all judges in dosage probation to help ensure their fidelity to the policy team's sentencing and discharge decisions.

The Policy Team's Core Activities

• The policy team's primary activities throughout implementation include those listed below. The Dosage Probation Toolkit will lead the team through these activities.

• Develop and approve a dosage probation logic model in collaboration with the Dosage Probation Workgroup.

• Develop dosage probation policies and procedures by gathering and reviewing relevant data, current policies and practices, input from the workgroup on behalf of the probation agency, and other information—such as feedback from colleagues—and discussing and reaching an agreement on the Dosage Probation Policy Questions. The policy questions relate to sentencing, early discharge, performance measures and other data needs, stakeholder education or training, communications strategies, and the continuous quality improvement and sustainability of dosage probation.

• Provide input on the policy decisions made by the workgroup on behalf of the probation agency.

• Review data regarding the implementation and evaluation of dosage probation and recommend policy adjustments in collaboration with the probation agency as appropriate.

It is recommended that the policy team meet for at least 90 minutes monthly to accomplish their work and maintain a progressive and steady implementation pace. Ultimately, the policy team must agree on the frequency and duration of their meetings. The team should have sufficient time each month to share information, delve into discussions, and make informed policy decisions.

The policy team may also, at its discretion, establish ad hoc subcommittees to streamline the team's efforts. Subcommittees are often useful for gathering more information about a topic or issue, diving more deeply into discussions, or developing policy recommendations for the team's review and approval. For example, a communications subcommittee can create and offer to the policy team a protocol for responding to a dosage probation case that results in an unwanted, and perhaps public, outcome.

Secure Commitment from Your Policy Team Members

The first steps in mobilizing your Dosage Probation Policy Team are to garner support from the required stakeholders and confirm their willingness to serve as policy team members. At a minimum, the policy team must include the following key stakeholders:

• Your local chief judge

• Your local chief public defender

• Your local elected district attorney

• Your local chief of probation

• Your local chief law enforcement officer (police and/or sheriff)

• A local representative of people harmed by crime

Each key stakeholder should have been interviewed during the readiness assessment to determine their level of support for dosage probation and willingness to serve as a policy team member. All key stakeholders are essential to successfully implementing dosage probation and must have already agreed to join the policy team. It is not recommended that you implement dosage probation without the support and policy team participation of all key stakeholders. As some time has typically passed since the interviews, it is recommended that you follow up with each stakeholder accordingly to confirm their membership.

Some policy teams choose to include additional stakeholders as permanent members or temporary guests, depending on the policy question or issue being addressed. For example, other criminal justice system officials—such as another judge, assistant/deputy personnel, or a communications specialist—might have expressed interest in or be invited to join at the policy team's discretion. Some policy teams also choose to assign delegates should members be absent from a meeting. The policy team typically consists of no more than 10 members—a group size that is large enough to bring diverse backgrounds, experiences, and perspectives to the table but not so large that the number of people hinders the team's efficiency in making policy decisions and moving forward other implementation activities.

All policy team members must be champions of dosage probation. Experience demonstrates that the most effective policy teams consist of people who embrace their role as advocates and leaders of the dosage probation model for their jurisdiction. They make policy decisions impacting system stakeholders across various disciplines and continuously educate, enroll, and support their colleagues in implementing those policies. They also demonstrate positivity and optimism, respond to questions and inquiries, share information, collaborate with and gather input from others, spotlight successes, and resolve challenges for their jurisdiction.

Prepare and Conduct Your Policy Team Kickoff

Getting your policy team off to a good start requires preparation. The kickoff meeting is designed to lay a strong foundation of knowledge and collaboration to support the policy team's decision making and other activities moving forward.

You may start preparing by reviewing the Dosage Probation Policy Team Kickoff Agenda Template (.doc). It includes the recommended meeting goals, topics, and discussion points to be covered and the time frames for each, totaling two hours. You must customize the [bracketed] information and may make further adjustments to meet the needs of your policy team or jurisdiction. For example, you may not want to allocate time for introductions if the policy team members know each other already. Or, you may decide to hold the meeting over two one-hour sessions instead of one two-hour session.

You may also begin by reviewing the Dosage Probation Policy Team Kickoff Presentation Template (.ppt). The presentation follows and expands on the information in the agenda and contains suggested talking points and approaches to discussions and activities. You must customize the slides with [bracketed] information and may make further adjustments to meet the needs of your policy team or jurisdiction. The modifications you make to the presentation may require changes to the agenda and vice versa.

The following handouts supplement the information in the agenda and presentation: Dosage Probation Model Fundamentals, Dosage Probation Policy Team and Workgroup Leadership Roles and Responsibilities, and Dosage Probation Policy Questions. The presentation slides specify when each handout should be reviewed with the policy team during the kickoff. You may also include the National Institute of Corrections' dosage probation monographs: Dosage Probation: Rethinking the Structure of Probation Sentences and Dosage Probation: A Prescription Based on Two Pilot Sites' Experiences.

Develop Your Policy Team Charter

The next step in laying a strong foundation for your policy team is to develop a charter. A charter is a document that clarifies the policy team's purpose, goals, roles, and responsibilities and establishes the ground rules to be followed as the team carries out its activities. It is a source of information for team members and others to understand the direction and focus of the policy team and can help reduce confusion and duplication of efforts.

You may use the Dosage Probation Policy Team Charter Template (.doc) to develop your policy team's charter. The template includes your team's vision, mission, and values for the dosage probation initiative (see below); purpose; activities; meeting frequency and duration; membership; meeting norms; and roles and responsibilities. It also includes appendices with supplemental information. You must customize the [bracketed] information and may make further adjustments to meet the needs of your policy team or jurisdiction. For example, your jurisdiction may have other initiatives that complement or overlap with dosage probation. In this case, you could describe in your charter how dosage probation aligns with, and how the policy team can help avoid duplicate work, across the initiatives.

The policy team should have the opportunity to review and approve the final charter.

Craft Your Policy Team's Vision, Mission, and Values

A critical component of the charter is the policy team's vision, mission, and values statements. Together, they articulate what the team aspires to accomplish—where the team wants to go—and establish a clear direction and focus for achieving those goals—how the team intends to get there. When agreed upon, the vision, mission, and values represent the policy team's shared commitment to achieving its goals and act as a touchstone for collaboration and ongoing activities.

The policy team should begin developing its vision, mission, and values statements in a meeting soon after the kickoff and should strive to complete them within six months. It is also recommended that the policy team revisit the statements before implementation to ensure they are most salient.

Get Ready for Next Steps

Once the policy team is established and completes the kickoff, the policy team chairperson should begin preparing team members for their involvement in developing a dosage probation logic model. The logic model is the blueprint or roadmap for all activities leading to implementation. It establishes a shared understanding of the plans for change, drives how changes will be implemented, serves as a tool to assess progress, and ensures the desired results are achieved. While the Dosage Probation Workgroup will lead the logic modeling activities, the policy team should be knowledgeable and ready to share their input on the logic model's various components.

The Dosage Probation Policy Team chairperson should also begin guiding the policy team through the process of developing dosage probation policies and procedures. The policy team can start answering their assigned dosage probation policy questions and memorializing their decisions as soon as they finish their kickoff discussions. In contrast, the Dosage Probation Workgroup does not typically begin to concentrate on this process until the third (planning) phase of implementation. By then, the policy team will likely have remaining policy decisions and implementation activities to complete. The team will also diverge its attention to provide input on the dosage-specific policies and procedures developed by the workgroup.

Establishing your jurisdiction's Dosage Probation Policy Team is a critical step in preparing for implementation. This section helps you understand the purpose of the policy team and guides you in establishing and kicking off the team's activities and preparing for the next steps.

The Workgroup's Roles and Responsibilities

The workgroup acts as your probation agency's core leadership in preparing and planning to implement the dosage probation model. The workgroup may also oversee implementation and subsequent policy and practice adjustments, depending on how your agency structures its implementation and evaluation efforts.

When established and managed with intentionality, the workgroup effectively guides the probation agency through the implementation process by developing and revising policies and practices and leveraging resources (within the probation agency, local criminal justice system, and community) to align with the dosage probation model. In addition, the workgroup actively provides all probation staff with the communication, education, engagement, and support needed to ready themselves for the new policies and practices they will be expected to incorporate into their daily work.

While primarily responsible for leading implementation efforts for your probation agency, the workgroup is also responsible for ensuring its policy and practice decisions align with those of system stakeholders, including judges, prosecutors, defense counselors, representatives of people harmed, law enforcement, and possibly others impacted by probation. For these reasons, the workgroup must engage collaboratively among themselves, with their peers, and with your jurisdiction's Dosage Probation Policy Team (comprised minimally of the system stakeholders mentioned above).

The Workgroup's Core Activities

The workgroup's primary activities throughout implementation include those listed below. The Dosage Probation Toolkit will lead the workgroup through these activities.

• Develop a dosage probation logic model in collaboration with the Dosage Probation Policy Team, create related action plans, and use them to drive the agency's activities leading up to implementation.

• Develop dosage probation policies and procedures by gathering and reviewing relevant data, current policies and practices, input from the policy team, and other information—such as feedback from probation staff—and discussing and reaching an agreement on the Dosage Probation Policy Questions. The policy questions relate to communications, early discharge, case planning and management, counting dosage, behavior management, cognitive behavioral programming delivered by probation and community-based service providers, training and coaching for fidelity, performance measures and other data needs, and the sustainability of dosage probation.

• Share available data, current probation policies, and other information to assist the policy team in making informed policy decisions about dosage probation for your jurisdiction.

• Identify local community-based service providers with whom to partner around dosage probation, and establish partnerships to align community-based services with the dosage probation model.

• Ensure probation staff receive, before implementation, appropriate and sufficient training and coaching on evidence-based supervision policies and skills.

• Collect, analyze, and share data with the policy team (and possibly others) regarding the implementation and evaluation of dosage to adjust probation policies and practices accordingly.

It is recommended that the workgroup meet two hours monthly, at minimum, to accomplish their work and maintain a progressive and steady implementation pace. Ultimately, the workgroup must agree on the frequency and duration of their meetings. The group should have sufficient time each month to share information, delve into discussions, and make informed policy decisions.

It is also recommended that the workgroup establish and regularly convene ad hoc subcommittees. Establishing subcommittees typically occurs after the workgroup develops their jurisdiction's dosage probation logic model—when more groundwork is needed to create and carry out specific action plans and other implementation activities.

Decide on Your Workgroup Members

The first step in mobilizing your Dosage Probation Workgroup is to invite interest and decide who will serve on the workgroup. You may speak with potential members individually, hold lunch-and-learns, or meet in another way to share information about dosage probation, the implementation model, and expectations of workgroup membership. Those who participated in the readiness assessment should be familiar with the information and may have already expressed interest in becoming more involved.

The workgroup typically consists of 12–15 probation staff—a group size that is large enough to bring diverse backgrounds, experiences, and perspectives to the table but not so large that the number of people hinders the workgroup's efficiency in making policy decisions and moving forward other implementation activities. Some jurisdictions choose to involve others in the workgroup as permanent members or temporary guests, depending on the policy question or issue being addressed. For example, some workgroups may invite advocates of people harmed by crime, communications specialists, data analysts, or people with lived experience on probation.

Regardless of affiliation, all workgroup members must be ambassadors of dosage probation. Experience demonstrates that the most effective workgroups consist of people who embrace their role as leaders and champions of the dosage probation model. They continuously educate, enroll, and support their peers and other stakeholders (those in the local criminal justice system and community) in the implementation process. They demonstrate positivity and optimism, respond to questions and inquiries, share information, collaborate with and gather input from others, spotlight successes, and resolve challenges.

All workgroup members must also be willing and have the time to undertake the legwork needed to reach implementation. Membership involves more than monthly meetings and policy decisions. Workgroup members develop and carry out action plans, write official policies and procedures, produce manuals, create educational materials and other new resources, and complete additional tasks to meet their agency's and jurisdiction's needs. These activities are usually done through individual, subcommittee, or workgroup efforts, or some combination thereof, depending on the decided course of action.

Prepare and Conduct Your Workgroup Kickoff

Getting your Dosage Probation Workgroup off to a good start requires preparation. The kickoff meeting is designed to lay a strong foundation of knowledge and collaboration to support the workgroup's policy decision making and other activities moving forward.

You may start preparing by reviewing the Dosage Probation Workgroup Kickoff Agenda Template (.doc). It includes the recommended meeting goals, topics, and discussion points to be covered and the time frames for each, totaling two hours. You must customize the [bracketed] information and may make further adjustments to meet the needs of your probation agency or workgroup. For example, you may wish to skip introductions if the workgroup members already know each other. Or, you may decide to hold the meeting over two one-hour sessions instead of one two-hour session.

You may also begin by reviewing the Dosage Probation Workgroup Kickoff Presentation Template (.ppt).The presentation follows and expands on the information in the agenda and contains suggested talking points and approaches to discussions and activities. You must customize the slides with [bracketed] information and may make further adjustments to meet the needs of your probation agency or workgroup. The modifications you make to the presentation may require changes to the agenda and vice versa.

The following handouts supplement the information in the agenda and presentation: Dosage Probation Model Fundamentals (.pdf), Dosage Probation Policy Team and Workgroup Leadership Roles and Responsibilities (.pdf), and Dosage Probation Policy Questions (.pdf). The presentation slides specify when each handout should be reviewed with the workgroup during the kickoff. You may also include the National Institute of Corrections' dosage probation monographs: Dosage Probation: Rethinking the Structure of Probation Sentences (.pdf) and Dosage Probation: A Prescription Based on Two Pilot Sites' Experiences (.pdf) .

Develop Your Workgroup Charter

The next step in laying a strong foundation for your workgroup is to develop a charter. A charter is a document that clarifies the workgroup's purpose, goals, roles, and responsibilities and establishes the ground rules to be followed as the group carries out its activities. It is a source of information for group members and others to understand the direction and focus of the workgroup and can help reduce confusion and duplication of efforts.

You may use the Dosage Probation Workgroup Charter Template (.doc) to develop your workgroup's charter. The template includes your group's vision, mission, and values for the dosage probation initiative (see below); purpose; activities; meeting frequency and duration; membership; meeting norms; and roles and responsibilities. It also includes appendices with supplemental information. You must customize the [bracketed] information and may make further adjustments to meet the needs of your probation agency, workgroup, or jurisdiction. For example, your agency or jurisdiction may have other initiatives that complement or overlap with dosage probation. In this case, you could describe in your charter how dosage probation aligns with, and how the workgroup can help avoid duplicate work across, the initiatives.

The workgroup should have the opportunity to review and approve the final charter.

Craft Your Workgroup's Vision, Mission, and Values

A critical component of the charter is the workgroup's vision, mission, and values statements. Together, they articulate what the workgroup aspires to accomplish— where the group wants to go—and establish a clear direction and focus for achieving those goals— how the group intends to get there. When agreed upon, the vision, mission, and values represent the workgroup's shared commitment to achieving its goals and act as a touchstone for collaboration and ongoing activities.

The workgroup should begin developing its vision, mission, and values statements in a meeting soon after the kickoff and should strive to complete them within six months. It is also recommended that the policy team revisit the statements before implementation to ensure they are most salient.

Get Ready for Next Steps   

Once the workgroup is established and completes the kickoff, the workgroup chairperson should begin preparing members to develop a dosage probation logic model. Completing the logic model—in collaboration with the policy team—is one of the workgroup's core activities during the second (preparation) phase of implementation. The logic model is your blueprint or roadmap for all activities leading to implementation. It establishes a shared understanding of your plans for change, drives how changes will be implemented, serves as a tool to assess your progress, and ensures you achieve the expected results.

The workgroup chairperson should also establish a subcommittee to take charge of all activities related to identifying and aligning community service provider partners around dosage probation. As these activities require strategizing spanning the second (preparation) and third (planning) phases of implementation and will likely continue into the fourth (implementation and evaluation), it is recommended that the subcommittee start as soon as possible.

A critical step in preparing for implementation is identifying which community service providers the probation agency wants to partner with to deliver dosage-eligible programming. To count as dosage, community-based programs must target one or more of the five most influential criminogenic needs—antisocial cognition, antisocial personality or temperament, procriminal companions, family/marital relationship challenges or stressors, and substance abuse—using cognitive behavioral interventions demonstrated by the research to reduce recidivism.

This section describes the scope of work for establishing a dosage probation partnership with providers and offers guidance in identifying your community service provider partners. The information in this section builds on your probation agency’s community service provider activities during the readiness assessment, specifically to assess service providers' capacity to deliver evidence-based dosage hours.

What Does "Partnership" with Community Service Providers Mean?

Under the dosage probation model, community service providers must deliver quality evidence-based programming that meets the needs of your dosage probation population. To achieve this goal, your probation agency must identify providers with whom to partner, establish a high level of collaboration with them, and support them as they help your jurisdiction implement dosage probation.

Partnering with community service providers to implement dosage probation involves two steps, each containing a set of activities:

1. Identify your community service provider partners. This step is completed during the dosage probation implementation model's second (preparation) phase. The step’s activities (explained below) generally include establishing a community service provider subcommittee, gathering information about the programs offered in the community, collecting relevant data, and determining which providers are best suited to partner around dosage probation.

2. Align community-based services with the dosage probation model. This step is completed during the dosage probation implementation model's third (planning) phase. The step’s activities generally include establishing partnership expectations, developing collaborative policies and procedures (such as those related to referrals, information sharing, and counting dosage), conducting an evidence-based practices fidelity assessment (such as the Correctional Program Checklist (CPC) or equivalent) of providers’ programs, and developing a follow-up process to assist community providers in strengthening their delivery of recidivism-reduction programming.

Establish Your Community Service Provider Subcommittee

The first step in mobilizing your partnership with community service providers is establishing a community service provider subcommittee. The subcommittee is responsible for leading and carrying out the above activities and other relevant tasks identified through your jurisdiction's dosage probation logic model.

Subcommittee members are your jurisdiction's resident experts on partnering with your community providers and the primary contact points for providers throughout implementation. The subcommittee typically comprises Dosage Probation Workgroup members or a combination of workgroup members and other probation staff with experience or interest in working with local community service providers.

Subcommittees may start with only a few members or several, depending on the probation agency's resources. Membership number and composition will likely evolve as the subcommittee continues its activities. Depending on the issue or challenge being addressed, the subcommittee may invite others as temporary guests. For example, other probation staff, a community liaison from the health and human services department, or someone from a local nonprofit coordinating community-based services may help gather information from or engage local providers.

Prepare for Subcommittee Meetings

It is recommended that subcommittee members accomplish the following agenda items during their first meeting or two, although these may be adapted to meet the subcommittee’s needs:

1. Identify your subcommittee’s leadership

   • Decide on a chairperson to develop the subcommittee’s meeting goals and agendas, facilitate discussions and decisions, delegate tasks as needed, and oversee activities and progress

   • Decide on a meeting coordinator to schedule the subcommittee’s meetings, arrange the meeting location and needed technology, and ensure that members have the information, resources, and assistance needed to participate in meetings and complete their work

   • Decide on a meeting recorder to take notes and prepare the subcommittee’s meeting records

2. Develop a shared understanding of the community service provider information and activities presented in the Dosage Probation Toolkit 

3. Identify your subcommittee’s next steps regarding the community service provider information and activities presented in this section of the Dosage Probation Toolkit

4. Agree on a regular meeting time

The subcommittee's subsequent efforts focus on the activities listed below:

• Develop a shared understanding of the work to be accomplished by the subcommittee according to your jurisdiction's dosage probation logic model (when available)

• Create a logic model action plan including the goals, tasks, timelines, persons responsible, etc., for completing the logic model’s relevant activities and the community service provider steps and activities described above

• Complete the relevant logic model action plan tasks according to the decided timelines

• Provide progress updates and gather input from the Dosage Probation Workgroup and Dosage Probation Policy Team as appropriate

• Adapt or update the action plan as needed (e.g., based on feedback from the Dosage Probation Workgroup, Dosage Probation Policy Team, and community service providers, or based on challenges or lessons learned)

• Leverage resources to ensure your probation agency and community service providers can partner around delivering evidence-based dosage hours

• Address barriers or challenges to partnering with community service providers

The subcommittee should adapt its work to meet the needs of the probation agency, community service providers, and jurisdiction. The subcommittee should meet regularly and will likely assign interim work to be completed by individual members or small subsets of the committee. A progressive and steady work pace must be maintained to ensure the probation agency and its community service provider partners are well-prepared on the date of implementation (as agreed upon by the policy team and workgroup).

Gather Information from Community Service Providers

The next step toward identifying your community service provider partners is gathering information about the programs they offer to people in your community who are justice-involved. The community service provider subcommittee should take charge of these efforts.

The goal of information gathering is to develop an inventory of programs delivered by community providers interested in partnering with your agency and to understand the intricacies of these programs. For example, it may be clear which providers offer treatment for people with a substance use disorder, but it may not be readily apparent whether the programming also addresses, for example, antisocial cognition, or how much of the programming time is spent on criminogenic needs versus administrative or other tasks such as check-ins, paperwork, and so on. Let's say a program dedicates 15 minutes to housekeeping or checking in, 45 minutes to the intervention, and 15 minutes to debriefing or completing administrative tasks. In this case, only 45 minutes of the total time can be counted as dosage.

Information gathering is also an opportunity to educate, engage, and strengthen relationships with local providers around recidivism-reduction practices and dosage probation. Providers are experts at delivering services that align with the disease or medical treatment model and often need to become more familiar with the recidivism-reduction model. While they learned about recidivism-reduction interventions during their readiness assessment orientation, they may benefit from continued learning and reinforcement of these concepts. In addition, a critical part of educating and engaging providers involves sharing more information about what they can expect from the fidelity assessment process—participating in the CPC (or equivalent) and subsequent action planning to strengthen their programs based on the assessment’s results—in which they will need to partake should they decide to partner around dosage probation.

Subcommittee members may begin by familiarizing themselves with the Community Service Provider Inventory Template (.xls) The spreadsheet contains the organizational and program elements valuable for understanding the landscape of programs in your community and identifying the providers best positioned to partner with your agency around delivering dosage-eligible programming. The spreadsheet also contains prompts for when to complete relevant tasks, such as collecting materials and conducting observations. Your subcommittee may modify the spreadsheet to address the unique dynamics or needs of your agency or community providers.

Community providers who attended the dosage probation orientation—delivered during the readiness assessment phase of implementation—will have already received information about their next steps in exploring a dosage probation partnership with your agency. For example, providers may have been invited to contact someone in your agency with their interest, provide preliminary information about their programs, or a combination of the two. The subcommittee should follow up with interested providers accordingly.

Subcommittees typically correspond with and gather information from providers by phone, email, meetings (virtual or in-person), electronic forms, group observations, or some combination thereof, depending on how the subcommittee and providers prefer to engage in the process.

Gather Risk/Needs Assessment Data

Gathering information about community-based programming is critical but insufficient to determine the community service providers best positioned to partner with your agency around dosage probation. In addition to understanding the intricacies of community-based programs, the subcommittee must also gather data to understand the needs of the expected dosage probation population and how the programs in the community align or misalign with these needs.

You may not have to start from scratch if relevant data was collected during the readiness assessment. Additionally, if you have data analysts or support specialists, it could be helpful to seek their assistance.

The subcommittee may start by reviewing the available risk/needs assessment data. The data should meet the criteria listed below:

• Include people on active, non-administrative probation supervision

• Include people sentenced to two or more years

• Exclude people with disqualifying conditions, such as non-resident or transfer cases, detainers through ICE or other jurisdictions, etc.

• Exclude people with offenses that the Dosage Probation Policy Team has determined are ineligible for early discharge through dosage probation

You may run preliminary data and need to conduct a secondary data pull once all listed fields are known. The data should ultimately indicate the following:

• The number of people expected to be eligible for early discharge through dosage probation with a moderate, moderate/high, and very high likelihood of recidivism

• Percentages reflecting the most influential or highest-scoring criminogenic need areas for each risk level

Data collection is fluid. It is not uncommon for probation agencies to change or modify how and what data is collected. If your probation agency lacks the data you want to collect, now is the time to begin planning how those data needs will be met. If you have the data but, upon review, you suspect its accuracy (e.g., people with a high likelihood of recidivism have low-scoring needs in antisocial cognition or antisocial personality or temperament), now is a good opportunity to identify the cause. For example, the issue could be the method of data collection or analysis or the administration of the assessment. Discuss the issue with others (e.g., probation leadership, data analysts, or IT staff) as needed and add it to your jurisdiction’s dosage probation logic model for improvement.

Risk/needs assessment data is crucial for performance measurement, but don’t let a lack of data be a showstopper. Take this opportunity to assess your agency’s data capabilities, and use the logic model action planning process to strategize how your agency will build its data capacity during the implementation process and beyond.

Choose Your Community Service Provider Partners

When completed, the subcommittee's inventory of community-based programs and review of risk/needs assessment data will provide the information needed to examine which community service providers are willing and able to partner with your probation agency around dosage probation.

The entire subcommittee should convene to interpret the results and agree on the community service provider partners to recommend to the Dosage Probation Workgroup for review and input. Each subcommittee member should review the completed inventory and risk/needs assessment data beforehand. The complexity of the discussion will depend on the number and quality of evidence-based programs offered in your community and the estimated needs of your dosage probation population, among other considerations.

At a minimum, your community service provider partners should have the willingness and ability to:

• Deliver evidence-based programs—using structured curricula—that teach cognitive behavioral techniques and/or prosocial skill building

• Offer programming that meets one or more of your dosage probation population's most influential criminogenic needs

• Provide accessible programming to the people on probation in your area

• Engage in developing a memorandum of understanding, contract, or something similar with your agency to agree on partnership expectations

• Engage in regular fidelity assessments and participate in action planning to strengthen programs, as identified by the assessment

Every community is different. Some have access to an abundance of evidence-based treatment programs, others are critically limited, and most face service delivery challenges and difficulties. With input from the Dosage Probation Workgroup or other interested stakeholders, your subcommittee will likely need to consider the unique challenges of community service providers and the quality of programs in your area when weighing the potential for and deciding on future partnerships.

Get Ready for Next Steps

Once you have identified your community service provider partners, you can align community-based services with the dosage probation model. The community service provider subcommittee will work hand in glove with your agency’s provider partners to establish an infrastructure to support and sustain the implementation of dosage probation (i.e., putting into place memorandums of understanding, contracts, or something similar; establishing policies and procedures; and completing a fidelity assessment to strengthen the delivery of quality cognitive behavioral programming in the community).

The subcommittee will also want to start planning how to manage other community service providers who may express interest in a dosage probation partnership. As providers often share information with each other, additional providers may become interested in and want to learn more about dosage probation.

Developing a dosage probation logic model is essential in preparing for implementation. The logic model is your jurisdiction’s blueprint or roadmap for implementing dosage probation and reflects the areas for advancement identified by your Dosage Probation Policy Team and Dosage Probation Workgroup. It illustrates current resources and activities supportive of implementation, the immediate changes expected from the activities, and desired long-term impacts. In other words, the logic model establishes a shared understanding of the plans for change, drives how changes will be put in place, serves as a tool to assess progress, and ensures the expected results are achieved.

The workgroup and policy team will work together to develop the logic model. The workgroup should expect to develop the logic model, and the policy team should expect to provide input. In fact, both the workgroup and policy team have already started the logic modeling process by completing the “What Does Success Look Like?” activity during the kickoff meetings (more on that below).

The policy team and workgroup chairpersons should formally begin the logic modeling process with their team and group members after completing their kickoff discussions. From start to finish, the process typically takes 4–6 months—approximately 3–4 months for the workgroup to develop the logic model and 1–2 months to “finalize” it, assuming both the workgroup and policy team meet monthly. The workgroup will then establish subcommittees responsible for developing and carrying out action plans based on the logic model during the following two implementation phases.

This section guides the collaborative development of a dosage probation logic model for your jurisdiction, action planning, and preparation for the next steps. The chairpersons of the Dosage Probation Policy Team and Dosage Probation Workgroup are encouraged to familiarize themselves with all the information in this section to ensure a comprehensive understanding of the logic modeling process and effective collaboration.

Complete Logic Modeling with the Policy Team

The Dosage Probation Policy Team chairperson(s) will lead their team members’ logic modeling efforts. As the chairperson, you can anticipate completing the following tasks:

•    Plan and facilitate a policy team meeting to develop initial input on the logic model
•    Share the policy team’s initial input with the Dosage Probation Workgroup chairperson(s)
•    Ensure the policy team has the opportunity to provide feedback on the near-complete logic model developed by the workgroup

Prepare and Facilitate the Policy Team Meeting

You may start preparing by reviewing the Dosage Probation Policy Team Logic Modeling Agenda Template (.doc). It includes the recommended meeting goals, topics, and discussion points to be covered and the time frames for each, totaling 90 minutes. You must customize the [bracketed] information and may make further adjustments to meet the needs of your policy team. For example, you may wait to introduce the vision, mission, and values at the next meeting or extend the meeting time to allow for more discussion.

You may also review the Introduction to Logic Modeling for the Dosage Probation Policy Team Presentation Template (.ppt). The presentation examines the importance of a logic model, defines its components, and includes a brainstorming activity on desired impacts of dosage probation and the contextual conditions that can affect implementation. This activity will provide the workgroup with the policy team’s initial input on the logic model. The presentation contains suggested talking points and approaches to discussions and activities. You must customize the slides with [bracketed] information and may make further adjustments to meet the needs of your policy team. The modifications you make to the presentation may require changes to the agenda and vice versa.

Following the meeting, share the policy team’s brainstorming results with the workgroup’s chairperson(s) to incorporate into the logic model.

Plan for Next Steps

Once input has been provided on the logic model, you can guide the policy team through its next core activity of developing dosage probation policies and procedures. In meetings during the second (preparation) and third (planning) phases of implementation, and likely into the fourth (implementation and evaluation), the policy team will make evidence-based and data-informed policy decisions regarding the sentencing, supervision, and early discharge of people on probation in collaboration with the workgroup.

In several months, you will hear from the workgroup chairperson(s) to coordinate a policy team meeting time to present a near-complete version of the logic model to the team. In preparation for the presentation and discussion, develop the meeting agenda accordingly and ensure it is shared with members beforehand, along with a copy of the logic model. You may also include a few questions for them to consider in advance (e.g., Does the logic model include the impacts and contextual conditions we identified early on? Do the impacts align with our team’s vision, mission, and values? What questions do you have about the logic model?).

The policy team and workgroup’s chairperson will want to agree on when subsequent briefings may be appropriate (e.g., delivering additional logic model presentations or sharing updated versions). The policy team should also receive opportunities to review and refine the logic model in the following implementation phases.

Complete Logic Modeling with the Workgroup

The Dosage Probation Workgroup chairperson(s) will lead their group members in developing the logic model. As the chairperson, you can expect to guide your workgroup through the following activities:

•    Plan and facilitate a series of logic modeling meetings with the workgroup
•    Create and revise the logic model diagram based on the workgroup’s discussions
•    “Finalize” the logic model with the policy team and workgroup
•    Plan for and establish subcommittees based on the logic model
•    Oversee the subcommittees’ development of action plans based on the logic model

Consider enlisting help from group members with skills beneficial to the logic modeling process, such as the ability to create the logic model diagram, envision the logic model in its totality (i.e., understand how each component leads to the next and reflects the vision for change), facilitate brainstorming, present to a diverse group of stakeholders, or lead or motivate other group members in subcommittee work.

Introduce Logic Modeling to the Workgroup

You may start preparing by reviewing the Dosage Probation Workgroup Introduction to Logic Modeling Agenda Template (.doc). It includes the recommended meeting goals, topics, and discussion points to be covered in the workgroup’s first meeting following kickoff and the time frames for each, totaling two hours. You must customize the [bracketed] information and may make further adjustments to meet the needs of your workgroup. For example, you may wait to introduce the vision, mission, and values at the next meeting and reallocate the time to begin logic modeling (see “Begin Logic Modeling with the Workgroup,” below) in the same meeting, while the information is fresh.

You may also review the Introduction to Logic Modeling for the Dosage Probation Workgroup Presentation Template (.ppt). The presentation follows and expands on the information in the agenda and contains instructional videos, discussion questions, and information about upcoming logic modeling activities. The presentation comprises suggested talking points and approaches to discussions and activities. You must customize the slides with [bracketed] information and may make further adjustments to meet the needs of your workgroup. The modifications you make to the presentation may require changes to the agenda and vice versa.

The group may watch the videos together during the meeting, or you may share them beforehand. The videos include Logic Model Chapter 1 (.mp4) and Logic Model Chapter 2 (.mp4).  The Carey Group developed the logic modeling video series used in this section with permission from the National Institute of Corrections (NIC) and the Center for Effective Public Policy based on the materials they developed for jurisdictions participating in NIC’s Evidence-Based Decision Making Initiative (EBDM).

Begin Logic Modeling with the Workgroup

You may start by reviewing the Dosage Probation Workgroup Logic Modeling Agenda Template (.doc). It includes the recommended meeting goals, topics, and discussion points to be covered, totaling four hours. You must customize the [bracketed] information and may make further adjustments to meet the needs of your workgroup. For example, you may adjust the break times, extend the meeting length, or hold it over a series of shorter weekly or biweekly sessions.

You may also review the Dosage Probation Workgroup Logic Modeling Presentation Template (.ppt). The presentation follows and expands on the information in the agenda, contains the Logic Model Chapter 3 (.mp4)  instructional video, and helps guide the workgroup’s brainstorming activity. The presentation includes suggested talking points and approaches to discussions and activities. You must customize the slides with [bracketed] information and may make further adjustments to meet the needs of your workgroup. In particular, you will need to adjust several slides to tailor the brainstorming activity to your jurisdiction (see below). The modifications you make to the presentation may require changes to the agenda and vice versa.

To ensure a successful brainstorming session, you will want to prepare to facilitate the session in advance. The brainstorming activity engages group members in generating ideas for each component of the logic model, which will provide the information needed to develop a first draft (see “Create and Refine Your Logic Model,” below). Start by reviewing the Dosage Probation Workgroup Logic Model Brainstorming Guide (.doc), which references the Brainstorming Activity Flip Chart Headers (.doc).

Create and Refine Your Logic Model

Once the workgroup completes the brainstorming activity, the chairperson(s) and/or anyone helping to create the logic model diagram can review the group’s ideas and draw up the first draft. To format your logic model, you can use any application that allows you to create a flow chart (e.g., Adobe Illustrator, Canva, PowerPoint, Visio, or Word).

Before you begin, you may wish to refresh yourself on the steps to developing a logic model in the Logic Model Chapter 3 (.mp4) video. You may also find helpful pointers in the first 1 minute and 47 seconds of Logic Model Chapter 4 (.mp4) . Start your diagram using the Dosage Probation Logic Model Template (.ppt), which may be adjusted to meet your needs, or create your own.

The chairperson(s) should shepherd the process of reviewing and refining the draft logic model with the workgroup during their monthly meetings. Ensure that each version of the logic model is shared with group members beforehand, along with the meeting agenda. You may also include questions to help members prepare for discussions (e.g., What questions do you have about the logic model? What changes do you suggest? What is missing? Do the activities make sense to you? How do you propose we measure [an output, outcome, or impact]? What suggestions do you have to fill in [a gap]?). Each meeting should progress the development of the logic model until it is near-complete, as described earlier in this section.

Once the workgroup develops a near-complete version, you may use the Dosage Probation Logic Model Review Checklist (.doc) to ensure the logic model achieves its purpose. You may find it helpful to ask all group members, a small subset of the group, or someone not involved in developing the logic model to complete the checklist. Ensure group members share, discuss, and agree on the checklist’s results. When the group is ready, you can take the next step of sharing the logic model with the policy team.

“Finalize” Your Logic Model

Once the workgroup feels confident in the logic model they developed, the chairperson(s) should contact the policy team’s chairperson(s) to share the logic model and coordinate and plan a meeting time to present and gather the policy team’s feedback. You and the policy team chairperson(s) will want to agree on the information shared, flow, and timing of the presentation to ensure full participation and the efficient use of time. For example, the policy team may be most interested in discussing the components on which they already gave their input (i.e., contextual conditions and impacts), the measurable outcomes and impacts, or a combination thereof.  

In preparation for the presentation, you will also want to decide who from the workgroup is best suited or skilled to present the logic model and facilitate a discussion with the policy team to gather their input. Some workgroups agree that the chairperson(s) is best positioned. Some agree that the chairperson(s) and another group member—for example, someone exceptionally knowledgeable about the logic model or who has experience presenting to stakeholder groups—should copresent. Still, others ask that the probation chief take the lead as the probation agency’s leader and a policy team member.  

After the policy team’s feedback is gathered, share their comments and suggestions with the workgroup and refine the logic model together at the next meeting. Depending on the next steps agreed upon with the policy team, you may need to coordinate and plan an additional presentation or share the revised version of the logic model. When the workgroup and the policy team agree on a “final” version, you can begin the next steps of establishing subcommittees and developing action plans.

Plan Your Logic Model Subcommittees

Before action planning, you will want to plan your logic model’s subcommittees. The subcommittees are responsible for creating action plans based on your logic model (see “Establish Your Subcommittees and Develop Action Plans,” below) and for carrying out those plans during the following two implementation phases (see “Get Ready for Next Steps,” below).

You will want to review your logic model to decide which subcommittees are needed. Depending on your logic model’s goals or work areas, you may have subcommittees dedicated to risk/needs assessment, case planning, behavior management, in-house cognitive behavioral programs, training/continuous quality improvement, data management, etc. You should already have an established community service provider subcommittee, which should now also be responsible for the portion of the logic model relevant to building community-based dosage probation partnerships.

After deciding on the subcommittees, you will want to consider each subcommittee’s membership. Subcommittee members are your probation agency’s resident experts on implementing their portion of the logic model. Each subcommittee should comprise workgroup members (and possibly management officials) who lead, take the initiative, and are knowledgeable, skilled, or otherwise have experience or interest in a particular area of work. The size of subcommittees typically varies based on the work area and the effort required to implement the action plan. Nonetheless, the composition and quantity of members will likely change over time. For example, probation leadership, other staff, or representatives of a stakeholder’s office (e.g., advocates of people harmed by crime, data analysts, or public information officers) can be invited to join as permanent members or temporary guests, depending on the subcommittee’s needs or the issue or challenge being addressed.

When creating subcommittees, some chairpersons request volunteers during a workgroup meeting. This can be an effective tactic for investing members in the implementation process. However, ensuring each subcommittee has the appropriate leadership and diversity in knowledge, skill, and experience can be challenging. Alternatively, some prefer to orchestrate the composition of each subcommittee by working behind the scenes to “tap” or engage members (and possibly management or other leadership officials) who have specific leadership qualities, knowledge, skill, experience, or interest to serve on or volunteer for a particular subcommittee. Others combine the two approaches, such as ensuring each subcommittee includes people with leadership skills or knowledge in a topic and allowing the remaining members to volunteer. You should choose the best approach based on your probation agency’s resources and workgroup needs. In any case, each subcommittee should ultimately decide on its leadership (i.e., chairperson, meeting coordinator, and recorder) and be self-sufficient to lead its activities and progress with minimal supervision.

Establish Your Subcommittees and Develop Action Plans

Once you have planned your logic model subcommittees, it is time to formally establish membership and start action planning. Each subcommittee must decide on its operational norms (e.g., leadership, meeting frequency, duration) and create a specific action plan that aligns with its assigned goal or work area in the logic model. An action plan is a detailed expression of the logic model that guides and allows subcommittees (and others) to closely monitor progress in completing their implementation activities, outcomes, and goals.

You may prepare by reviewing the Dosage Probation Workgroup Action Planning Agenda Template (.doc). It includes the recommended meeting goals, topics, and discussion points to be covered and the time frames for each, totaling two hours. You must customize the [bracketed] information and may make further adjustments to meet the needs of your workgroup. For example, the workgroup may have finished its vision, mission, and values statements, in which case, you may wish to shorten the length of the meeting to allow the newly established subcommittees time to meet, or you may include an additional item on the agenda depending on the probation agency’s or workgroup’s needs.

You may also review the Introduction to Action Planning for the Dosage Probation Workgroup Presentation Template (.ppt). The presentation follows and expands on the information in the agenda and contains a Logic Model Chapter 4 (.mp4) instructional video, discussion questions, and information to guide upcoming subcommittee activities. The presentation comprises suggested talking points and approaches to discussions and activities. You must customize the slides with [bracketed] information and may make further adjustments to meet the needs of your workgroup. The modifications you make to the presentation may require changes to the agenda and vice versa.

The Dosage Probation Action Plan Template (.doc) supplements the information in the agenda and presentation. Each subcommittee should use the template to develop its action plan and track progress toward its assigned goals and outcomes. It is recommended that the subcommittees finish creating their action plans within a couple of months to ensure a steady and progressive work pace. The subcommittees should adjust or update their action plans as their work evolves over the next two implementation phases.

Get Ready for Next Steps

To ensure the timely development of action plans and completion of activities by the implementation date (as agreed upon by the policy team and workgroup), it is important for the logic model's subcommittees to continue meeting regularly. While each subcommittee should determine its meeting frequency, starting with at least one one-hour monthly meeting is recommended. The frequency of meetings will likely vary as subcommittees progress and delegate interim tasks to individual members or small groups within the committee.

The workgroup chairperson(s) and subcommittee chairpersons should also meet regularly. Holding regular meetings helps maintain consistency in monitoring the progress of subcommittees as they work toward completing their activities. This approach also ensures that the subcommittees work together efficiently to avoid possible duplication of efforts on any overlapping goals or activities and address any technical or adaptive challenges that may arise. Regular meetings are also an opportunity to determine when to bring updates and specific questions or challenges to the workgroup for consideration and input.

Furthermore, the people in charge of data management for implementing dosage probation (e.g., the data subcommittee, support staff, or data analysts) will want to begin collecting and evaluating data. Firstly, they will want to define in measurable terms the desired outcomes and impacts outlined in your jurisdiction’s logic model, if that step has yet to be taken. In addition, they will want to gather baseline data and set benchmarks for the percentages or figures, if not already included, to achieve the desired outcomes and impacts. Those responsible for data management should also share their logic model progress with the workgroup and policy team for input.

In addition to ongoing subcommittee efforts, the workgroup can now turn its focus to developing policies and procedures for dosage probation. It is recommended that the workgroup maintain its monthly two-hour meetings to allow ample time for subcommittee updates or discussions, in-depth policy discussions, and prompt decision-making.