CLASSIFICATION AND PROGRAMS

Under the Deputy Warden of Programs is the Records and Classification Department. The Records and Classification function includes records maintenance, and administrative support to unit teams. It is the responsibility of the Records Office to ensure legal commitment of new admissions through a thorough review of all of the legal documentation associated with a conviction and for initiating, maintaining, and updating the inmates file as needed. Initial reception data is also collected and processed. The office is also responsible for updating records of inmates received, processed, and transferred from the LCF complex. The facility decentralized the management of inmate rehabilitation programming to a unit team operation. Each unit team consists of a Unit Team Manager who is responsible for the day-to-day operations of the living unit with the assistance of both security staff and corrections counselors.

The unit team concept has operated within the domicile units since 1974. The unit teams provide services to inmates in the form of work assignments, progress reviews, attitudinal and adjustment counseling, probation/parole counseling, and other matters. In 1975, new vocational training programs were introduced and educational programs strengthened. Parole planning efforts were intensified by the addition of specialists in the areas of vocational rehabilitation, career counseling, and job development. Throughout this process of change, the objective has been to integrate the basic functions of treatment and security, because no plan of treatment or rehabilitation can function without an effective umbrella of security.

The outgrowth of this new philosophy was the Life Skills Enhancement program which operates under the guidance of the Deputy Warden of Programs (DWP). The two major components of the Life Skills Enhancement Program are the academic education and vocational training programs. Literacy and the General Equivalency Diploma (GED) program are offered through Greenbush, Inc. They also provide the vocational training programs. Aramark provides commercial food service and welding. The employability program, which provides the inmates with information and guidance on seeking employment, is also provided to all persons in a program.

As of July 1, 1991, all medical services at LCF, as well as all other KDOC facilities, were contracted out to a medical care provider. Currently, medical services are contracted to Correct Care Solutions. This company is responsible for administering to the medical needs of the inmate population. Services provided in the facility clinic include: routine sick call, optical, dental, x-ray, laboratory, and physical therapy. For medical cases which cannot be treated at the prison clinic, inmates are referred to outside medical specialists. Arrangements have been made for inmates to be admitted to Cushing Hospital, and St. John Hospital in Leavenworth, Providence - St. Margaret's Hospital and the University of Kansas Medical Center in Kansas City. CCS has subcontracted with the Mental Health Consortium, based in Topeka, to provide Mental Health services to the facility. These services include group and individual mental health counseling, crisis intervention counseling, psychiatric services, and the provision of psychological evaluations of inmates.

On October 1, 1996, the Therapeutic Community program began operation in the Maximum Security Facility under direction of the Douglas County Citizens Committee on Alcoholism (DCCCA) of Lawrence, Kansas. It is the goal of this program to create a positive peer culture, and facilitate overall lifestyle changes. These lifestyle changes are demonstrated by the inmates remaining drug-free, able to interact in society without further criminal activity, while taking responsibility for ongoing recovery and contributing to their communities. Inmates assigned to this program are in the therapeutic community 24 hours a day. The inmate will remain in the program for 9 - 12 months depending on the needs of each individual inmate. It is the goal of treatment that each inmate leave the primary treatment program having acquired basic recovery skills. These skills will include: 1) the recognition of their primary problem, 2) the acceptance that they are responsible, and 3) the realization that they are accountable for their choices in life and that help is necessary for the continued sobriety, via peer support groups. The Sex Offenders Treatment Program (SOTP) program provides treatment for the male sex offenders at the facility. The program is 20 hours per week for 18 months. This program is contracted through DCCCA of Lawrence, Kansas. Candidates for the program must meet specific admission criteria to become eligible for participation in the program. The goal of the program is to habilitate offenders toward emotional health and successful transition back into the community. The program also provides psycho-educational classes with group therapy and individual sessions, working towards remaining offense free.