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News - 2009
Perfection for Alabama Therapeutic Education Facility's Initial ACA Accreditation
West Caldwell, NJ, Dec 8, 2009 - The Alabama Therapeutic Education Facility (ATEF) was recommended for American Correctional Association Accreditation (ACA) with the perfect score of 100% on all mandatory and non-mandatory standards after a two day audit on Dec. 7th and 8th. ATEF is Community Education Centers' (CEC) 400-bed residential reentry center in Columbiana, Alabama. Including ATEF's accreditation, CEC now operates seventeen community-based reentry programs with Adult Community Residential Services (ACRS) accreditation all of which have scored 100% on all mandatory and non-mandatory standards, a record that is unprecedented in the industry. ATEF will receive its official reaccreditation in May 2010 at the ACA Correctional Accreditation Managers Association Conference.
"Since opening in March of 2008, the Alabama Therapeutic Education Facility has provided quality reentry treatment services to Alabama Department of Corrections' offenders. Achieving ACA accreditation less than two years after the facility opened is testament to the quality staff at ATEF," said Dr. Robert Mackey, Senior Vice President at CEC.
ATEF is a unique correctional treatment facility as it combines residential reentry treatment with "hands on" vocational training services. The reentry treatment component of ATEF provided by CEC consists of individual assessments, individual and group counseling, substance abuse treatment, educational services, vocational training, skills-based trainings, family services, and aftercare/alumni services. The Alabama Department of Postsecondary Education provides skills-based vocational training designed to increase their employability upon release.
Lectures at ATEF include topics such as addictive & criminal thinking, addiction & recovery Rational Emotive Behavioral Therapy, problem solving skills, self avocation & interpersonal communication, Moral Reconation Therapy (MRT), and the Meth Matrix. Small group sessions include anger management, domestic violence, parenting skills, life skills, age specific groups, gender specific groups.
"Any facility's initial accreditation is always the most challenging. The staff at ATEF did a superb job and should be proud of their efforts and the services they provide," said Tina Price, ACA Accreditation Manager.
The ACA accreditation program is a professional peer review process based on national standards that have evolved since the founding of the Association in 1870. The standards were developed by national leaders from the field of corrections, law, architecture, health care, and other groups who are interested in sound correctional management.
ACA standards address services, programs, and operations essential to effective correctional management. Through accreditation, an agency is able to maintain a balance between protecting the public and providing an environment that safeguards the life, health, and safety of staff and offenders. Standards set by ACA reflect practical up-to-date policies and procedures and function as a management tool for agencies and facilities throughout the world.
Community Education Centers, Inc. (CEC) is the largest provider of offender reentry and in-prison treatment services in America, operating in 19 states and the Commonwealth of Bermuda, with over 30,000 individuals in its daily care. CEC provides a full range of therapeutic residential and non-residential reentry services with a documented record of reducing recidivism. The company specializes in the reentry process and has developed the most effective reentry treatment model in the nation. CEC contracts with local, county, state, and federal government agencies, as well as non-profit agencies. CEC's Secure Facilities Division provides jail/detention management services at 18 facilities in Pennsylvania, Texas, and Ohio.
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