Tennessee's Intensive Aftercare

The Serious and Violent Offender Reentry Discretionary Grant Program (Reentry) was developed through a federal partnership by the Departments of Justice, Labor, Health and Human Service, Education, Housing and Urban Development, Commerce, Veterans Affairs and Agriculture. The federal partners' goal is to help state and local agencies navigate the complex field of existing state formula and block grants and to assist them in accessing, redeploying and leveraging those resources to support the components of a comprehensive reentry program. In addition to the new funding, the federal partners are identifying funds from their respective agencies that are already available to state and local agencies to provide the necessary services to implement a reentry program. The Reentry Program is designed to provide funding to state and local units of government to develop and implement institutional and community corrections-based offender reentry programs through collaborative partnerships with government, social service, faith-based, and community organizations, in order to reduce recidivism, increase public safety, and successfully reintegrate serious and violent offenders back into the community. Reentry programs are required to partner with a state adult or juvenile correctional agency.

The Tennessee Department of Children's Services (DCS) has designed this program to allow the Tennessee Aftercare Program the ability to provide outpatient mental health counseling, including substance abuse treatment. This program will be used to bridge gaps or barriers in accessing outpatient services, specifically to pay for outpatient mental health and substance abuse counseling for youth placed in the Tennessee Intensive Aftercare Program. These funds will enhance Tennessee's Aftercare Program by providing needed services to all of the youth Tennessee serves.

CA/NCF