By MIKE COURSON
Great Bend Post
The goal of Central Kansas Community Corrections is to increase public safety through probationer success. The plan is to remove moderate and high-risk adult felony offenders from some of the situations that lead to legal issues. CKCC staff cannot do that alone, and Director Amy Boxberger said there has been a shift from technical work to adaptive work in the field.
"In technical work, it's very clear," she said. "It's clear cut, there are solutions, it's easy. Adaptive work requires more learning most of the time. Through the years in my work, I know we've had to get curious about the 'why,' and why people get in trouble, why they find themselves back again and again."
That has led to various partnerships in the community. Stepping Stones Recovery helps clients with substance use disorders and is also facilitating a Family Peace Initiative grant to serve people with long-term incarceration issues, especially early-onset incarceration. Intensive Supervision Officer Tyler Lehmkuhl said The Center for Counseling's programming in the Barton County Jail has been a big boost.
"I've seen a big success in just clients getting services in jail and getting mental health under control," he said. "It's actually made a big difference in my caseload, with the people I had in jail. They're starting to come out with a clear mind. I think the Center has really helped with that."
Time in jail offers offenders a break from some of the high-risk issues that result in legal issues. Now, that break is being combined with actual treatment. Organizations like Rise Up Central Kansas can help those offenders avoid high-risk situations once they are released from jail.
"The opposite of addiction is connections," Boxberger said. "The more relationships and positive relationships we can encourage them to find, the more likely they're going to have that long-term recovery, which is really necessary for them to be successful."