Minnesota Department of Health: Expanding Model Practices in County Jails and Community Corrections to Support Children of Incarcerated Parents

This program will promote and expand services in detention and correctional facilities to incarcerated individuals and their minor children younger than age 18, and provide services to children of incarcerated parents by facilitating access to services that support their needs. This program will provide states and localities with funding to implement positive family engagement strategies and activities that address the needs of incarcerated parents and their minor children.

The Minnesota Department of Health will expand model practices in county jail facilities to support children of incarcerated parents. The project will develop a multidisciplinary learning community, engage partners, and support county facilities with the implementation of policy, systems, and changes that benefit children of incarcerated parents and their families. The goal is to increase the quantity and quality of parent-child contacts while the parent is in custody and after release. The project will focus on education, staff training, and community and state agency partnerships, and will address the physical, social, psychological, and economic factors that influence children’s health and development to support the parent-child relationship and connect families to community resources. CA/NCF