PROJECT SUCCESS (FL)

Program Description
Project Success was established in 2001 with funding from the federal Residential Substance Abuse Treatment (RSAT) grant program. Project Success is a six-month residential substance abuse treatment program for incarcerated adult females, followed by 12 months of aftercare in the community.

Incarcerated women may volunteer for the program or they may be mandated to attend by a court order. Program staff visit the county jail to inform the women about Project Success on a monthly basis. If the women are eligible to participate and have enough time remaining in their sentence to complete the six-month residential component, they are admitted.

A Modified Therapeutic Community model is at the core of the program. This model focuses on providing services in a holistic manner and draws upon the individual's desire to change. Women in the program agree with their counselors on a treatment plan, which establishes a number of goals for the participant to complete the program. The program includes, but is not limited to, parenting training, family therapy sessions, job and life skills development, computer literacy classes, financial management classes, and community linkages. Commitments from educational facilities in the area have been secured to provide job placement, training, mentoring, and peer support upon reentry into the community. The program also focuses on the women's gender-specific needs, including previous victimization. Upon completion, clients move into a 12-month aftercare case management phase. Project Success contracts with the Phoenix Houses of Florida to provide discharge-planning services to assist clients in making the transition back into the community.

Program Goals
Project Success' primary goal is to reduce substance abuse relapse and recidivism.

Networking, Partnering & Collaboration
Except for the program administrator, services are contracted out to other community agencies and organizations. For example, the Dixie Hollins Adult Education Center provides the program with a computer literacy instructor to assist in training clients on word processing programs. In addition, a task force was established, consisting of representatives from the courts, public defender's office, the state's attorney's office, the Pinellas County Department of Justice Coordination, the Sheriff's Office, and substance abuse providers. This task force was established in order to plan for the inception of the Pinellas County Adult Drug Court in 2001.

Outcomes
Project Success collects data on program participation. Outcomes are measured by tracking the graduates of the program who have been re-arrested or who have relapsed. The Florida Department of Children and Families began an evaluation of the program in October 2002.

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