Evaluation of Second Chance Act Demonstration Projects
The Second Chance Act of 2007 (Public Law 110-199) authorizes awarding federal grants to government agencies and nonprofit organizations to provide employment assistance, substance abuse treatment, housing, family programming, mentoring, victim support and other services to individuals returning to the community from prison or jail. The goals of the Second Chance Act are to increase reentry programming and improve outcomes for offenders returning to their families and communities.
The Second Chance Act directs NIJ to evaluate the effectiveness of demonstration projects funded by the Bureau of Justice Assistance (BJA). In fiscal year 2010, NIJ awarded close to $10 million in Second Chance Act funds for reentry-related research. See the table 'Ongoing NIJ Evaluations of Second Chance Act Projects for information on NIJ-funded grants that will support the following collaborative efforts with BJA.
| Title | Awardee | Award Amount | Award Number |
|---|---|---|---|
| An Evaluation of BJA Second Chance Act Adult Demonstration Projects | Social Policy Research Associates | $2,999,998 | 2010-RY-BX-0003 |
| Description: This grant will support a $3 million, 36-month evaluation of a subsample of 15 Second Chance Act adult demonstration sites funded by BJA in 2009. The evaluation will include impact, process and outcome analyses and cost assessments of reentry services provided by the sites. | |||
| An Evaluation of BJA's Second Chance Act FY2010 State, Tribal, and Local Reentry Courts Program | Northwest Professional Consortium, Inc | $2,988,850 | 2010-RY-BX-0001 |
| Description: This grant will support a 42-month multi-site evaluation of the program. A process evaluation will document and compare program models and implementation. An impact evaluation will examine rearrests, reconvictions, violations and returns to incarceration using pre/post archival data. Cost-benefit analyses will calculate avoided public costs by comparing program interventions to "business-as-usual" conditions. | |||
| An Evaluation of the Multisite Demonstration Field Experiment: What Works in Reentry Research | MDRC | $3,000,000 | 2010-RY-BX-0002 |
| Description: In an effort to provide rigorous evidence of what works in reentry, NIJ will conduct one or more experiments of promising reentry interventions, strategies or programs. Reentering offenders will be randomly assigned to receive the experimental treatment or to receive "business-as-usual" reentry services (or some other clearly defined control treatment). The evaluation has been funded by NIJ in partnership with BJA as part of NIJ's Demonstration Field Experiment program. | |||
