Florida Department of Corrections
Chaplaincy Services
Impact of Inmate
Participation
In Chaplaincy Programs
State of Florida Contents ~ TOP
Department of Corrections
Chaplaincy Services
Attached you will
find a copy of the Chaplaincy Services report on inmate participation rates for
Chaplaincy programs. I want to express
appreciation to all of those who contributed to this effort. A true joint
effort made these figures available. A
special thank you is appropriate to Bureau Chief, Dr. William Bales and the
Bureau of Research and Data Analysis. Dr. John L. Lewis (Research and Data
Analysis) provided excellent technical assistance in utilizing the information
in the Offender Based Information System and continued his cooperation in this
report by offering editorial and revision recommendations.
Richard Nimer,
Director and Bernard Cohen, Deputy Director of the Office of Program,
Transition and Post-release Services encourages statistical reporting and
thorough data collection as part of effective evaluation. Their consistent encouragement was central
to the completion of this report, which is intended to be a tool for assessment
of religious program interest among inmates.
It may also be applied to evaluation of individual Chaplaincy programs.
This report is a
compilation of information retrieved from the institutional Chaplains. We are continuing to collect this
information through monthly reports that are retrieved electronically via the
Internet. Chaplain Harold Allison guided the pilot project where the data
retrieval tool was developed and tested at six institutions across the
State. Chaplain Douglas Gingerich took
over the project in the fall of 2001 and has diligently provoked the field to
submit accurate reports. Additionally,
Chaplain Gingerich put together numerous charts of trends and statistics, many
of which are included in this report.
The narrative was co-written and edited by Dr. William Smith and
Chaplain Alex Taylor.
Ch. Alex Taylor
Chaplaincy
Services Administrator
Introduction Contents ~ TOP
Measuring Inmate
Involvement and Its Consequences
Foreword
The primary function of the Chaplain for the Florida Department of Corrections is to provide for the religious needs and obligations of those institutionalized persons who are not able to address their religious concerns in the same fashion as a person in free society. Chaplains have always provided spiritual direction to those adjusting to the confines of prison and separation from free society. They counsel inmates through crises such as a death in the family, divorce or a life threatening hospitalization of a family member. Chaplains are involved with most aspects of a prisoner’s life including education, moral reform, and family liaison. As faith-based programs gain interest as a viable rehabilitative supplement to educational, vocational and betterment programs, Chaplains and their volunteers are providing a wider menu of program options.
There were times in prison history when attending a chapel service was not optional. There was one weekly service and it was well attended because it was either mandatory or a part of release consideration. Fortunately, we are beyond those times, and the prison religion program directed by the Chaplaincy is as religiously diverse as the inmate population, and the opportunities for participation are frequent. Participation is not required so inmates involved in Chaplaincy programs do so for personal reasons. The most prominent of these is the genuine desire to make qualitative lifestyle changes to break the cycle of recidivism. The Chaplain in a Florida prison has an obligation to provide diverse religious education opportunities and in so doing, makes use of numerous citizen volunteers of many different faith communities. Increasingly, Chaplains manage religious programs that include a calendar filled with sacred text and doctrinal studies, seminars, regular and special-occasion religious services, holy days of obligation and a variety of other special events. It is often a very busy and demanding schedule. There is an increased interest in religious programming as a venue to address and provide solutions to the problems of offenders. Chaplaincy is an important part of the criminal justice process. It has grown to be a source of stability and moderation for those inmates involved in its programs.
Gross Attendance Contents ~ TOP
It is the intention of the Office of Program, Transition and Post-release Services to quantify and evaluate the efficacy of all programs. This requires accurate measurement of inmate participation. Like many program staff, the Chaplains report regularly on the religious activities taking place under their supervision. Many of the events have large attendance numbers and are cumbersome to maintain an on-going record of participation. Additionally, the past manner of record keeping provided a gross number for attendance. This number combined the attendance of all of the various services and activities throughout the month into a single figure. The gross attendance number accurately reflects attendance records but includes every time an inmate attended a religious activity. This number may count one inmate several times in one month. With some inmates attending only a few times each month and some attending many, the gross attendance record could easily be higher than the institutions total inmate population. It did not at all indicate how many inmates do not attend any religious activities during the month. Though the gross attendance is standard in correctional institutions, it is limited in its usefulness.
Individual
Inmate Participation Rate: A Better
Measure
Contents ~ TOP
Chaplaincy Services identified an essential measure that would provide a more accurate assessment of the importance of religious programming. This essential measure is to identify the number of inmates that participate at least one time in a measurement period in a religious program in the prison. Measuring the number of different inmates that are involved in religious programming provides valuable insight into the effectiveness of a program as it pertains to the number of inmates that are impacted by religious programs. Since inmates participate in the overall program at different rates and frequencies, an accurate measurement tool will provide two measures:
a. The effectiveness of the program as it pertains to the entire institution’s population of inmates; and
b. The frequency of participation of individual inmates.
With this information, a more accurate assessment of the programs efficacy and potential impact on institutional management and individual behavior is possible. A participation measure is also needed to highlight an ineffective program that reaches an insignificant number of inmates or a program schedule that is lopsided in providing the same type of programming over and over.
Definition Contents ~ TOP
A participation rate can be established by determining the percentage of inmates out of the total available[1] inmate population that take part in at least one religious activity per month. The inmate is only counted for those activities where inmates are required to sign-in. Each inmate is counted only once during the measurement period whether the inmate attended once or multiple times. The measurement period is one month. When the total number of inmates is compared to the total available inmate population, a rate of participation is identified. If 100 separate inmates signed into religious activities during a given month, and the total available inmate population is 1,000, then the participation rate is 100 out of 1,000 or 10%.
This Report Contents ~ TOP
What this document contains is the result of a cooperative effort. Chaplaincy Services Administration provided a data entry tool to record the inmate attendance by name and DC number in specific categories of religious activities. Each institution submitted a monthly account of attendance at all of the sign-in activities by using a common data entry tool[2]. We called this the Chaplaincy Participation Report (hereafter referred to as CPR). The Senior Chaplain at each institution returned a monthly CPR. The charts contained in the following pages are derived from the CPR sent in by the institutional Chaplains.
Preliminary Conclusions Contents ~ TOP
Though a three-month report is preliminary, some trends are indicated and supported by the figures generated from the institutional CPR.
1. Inmates who attend religious services get fewer disciplinary reports than inmates who do not attend religious services. This lowers the disciplinary report rate for the entire Department.
2. Inmates who attend 10 or more religious activities per month receive disciplinary reports at a rate equal to one third that of inmates who do not attend any religious activities and at half the rate of those who attend one to three religious activities per month. This is a preliminary indication that those inmates who are more committed or sincere regarding their faith are less likely to participate in negative behavior.
3. Religious services and activities are of interest to an average of 38.0% of the inmate population that are available for attending group activities. Considering that all religious programming is voluntary, this is an astounding rate of participation.
4. Institutions that have a chaplain to inmate ratio of one to 500 (or less) have a higher participation rate than institutions where the ratio of inmates to chaplain is higher. This finding is an indication that the greater the opportunity the Chaplain has to interact with the inmates the more the inmates are inclined to participate in religious programming.
5. Institutions for youthful offenders or females have a higher participation rate than institutions for adult males. Youthful offenders are generally housed in units that concur with # 4 above.
6. Religious programming not only is an essential element to control inmate idleness, it is a cost effective means in providing a safer, more manageable environment. This has proven to be an essential element of inmate rehabilitation.
Details Contents ~ TOP
Chaplaincy Services distributed a measuring tool and required that Chaplains use the tool to record inmate participation over a three-month trial period. Only sign-in religious activities were measured. Chaplaincy Services programs also includes activities that do not utilize a sign-in of inmates. These include chaplain rounds to inmate housing or work locations, crisis messages and large activities held outside of the Chapel area in the open yard. This report only refers to those activities where a sign-in sheet is used. This is the majority of religious programs and activities. Not all of the 52 FDC institutions were able to participate due to a variety of reasons. Reasons for no information include:
· Vacant positions of either a Chaplain to collect the attendance figures or a Clerk/Typist to enter the figures.
· Institutions where the Chaplains do not have access to the LAN and consequently could not submit the reports in a timely manner for inclusion.
· Many of the work camps attached to the institutions were unavailable for measurement. Though work camps do have regularly scheduled religious activities, volunteers conduct most of these and inmate sign-in sheets are not used or were not available for this report.
With these stipulations, the numbers in the CPR reflect reports from the following institutions:
|
Avon Park CI,WC |
Baker CI |
|
|
Brevard CI |
Broward CI |
Calhoun CI |
|
Century CI |
Charlotte CI |
Columbia CI |
|
Cross City CI |
Dade CI, Annex |
Everglades CI |
|
Florida State Prison |
Gainesville CI, WC |
Glades CI |
|
Gulf CI,MU, Anx |
Hamilton CI., Anx |
Hernando CI |
|
Hillsborough CI |
Holmes CI. WC |
Indian River CI |
|
Jackson CI |
Jefferson CI |
Lancaster MU, WU |
|
Lawtey CI |
Liberty CI, Quincy Anx |
Lowell CI |
|
Marion CI |
Martin CI |
Mayo CI, WC |
|
New River E, W |
NFRC MU, WU |
Okaloosa CI |
|
Okeechobee CI |
Polk C.I. |
Putnam C.I. |
|
River Junction |
Santa Rosa C.I. |
SFRC |
|
Sumter C.I. |
Tomoka CI,WC |
Union CI |
|
Wakulla CI |
Walton CI,WC |
Washington CI |
|
Zephyrhills
CI |
|
|
During the measurement period the total average inmate population for the FDC was 72,157. The figures from this report are drawn from the average of 50,026 inmates in the institutions that were in open population and able to attend religious activities at major institutions. The other 22,131 inmates were in AC, CM, DC, PM, or work release and were ineligible to participate or unavailable for measurement.
Of the total number of inmates that were able to participate (50,026) in a sign-in religious activity, 38,121 inmates or 76.2% were measured for attendance at religious activities. 14,609 inmates (38.3% of 38,121) attended a religious activity at least one time. The total participation rate at all of the measured institutions for the three-month study of July through September 2001 is 38.3%.
When female and youthful offender institutions are separated from the total and compared to the total, they have a higher than Statewide average with a participation rate of 58.5% for the same measurement period. Institutions with a chaplain to inmate ratio of one chaplain to five hundred or less inmates had the highest participation rate of 65.9% for the three-month period.
Figure 1
Chart 1 is a breakdown of the total inmate population between
those who were eligible to attend religious services or activities and those
who were not. Due to the dynamic nature of the population, a fixed point of
measurement was used with the understanding that though this is the exact
number for a specific day, it also represents a typical number for any given
day during the three month measurement period.
This number is derived by averaging over the three-month period the
population on the last day of each month. In Chart 1, the combination of 22,131
and 50,026 reflects the entire inmate population in custody (72,157).
The larger number (50,026) represents the number of
inmates that were able to attend a religious program or activity. The smaller number (22,131) includes inmates
that were in Close Management, Protective 
Management,
Administrative Confinement, or Disciplinary Confinement on the day in which the
numbers were taken. Additionally, inmates in work release were not
counted. Work camp statistics were not
consistent, thus only those inmates in the work camps previously listed were
counted.
Chapel Tracking
Contents ~ TOP
The following three pages are the Chapel Tracking tables by region for July, August and September, or each month of the measuring period. Each table identifies the institution by region. The key elements of each table are (1) the open population (inmates eligible to participate in programming); (2) the number of inmates from the open population that participated in Chapel programs; and (3) the percentage of the open population that participated in Chapel programs.
The blank cells in each table are intentional, they indicate that the information for that period was not available. The various reasons for the unavailability of the information is explained in the “Details” section.
July Chapel Tracking by Region Contents
|
Region I |
Open Pop. 7/31/01 |
July Attendance |
% |
Region
III |
Open
Pop. 7/31/01 |
July Attendance % |
|
|
ACI East |
577 |
180 |
31% |
Avon
Park & WC |
1166 |
478 |
41% |
|
ACI West |
659 |
222 |
34% |
Brevard |
870 |
357 |
41% |
|
Calhoun |
950 |
380 |
40% |
CFRC
East |
|
|
|
|
Century |
1155 |
382 |
33% |
CFRC
Main |
|
|
|
|
Gulf Main |
1205 |
610 |
51% |
Hernando |
|
|
|
|
Gulf Annex |
1174 |
555 |
47% |
Hillsborough |
245 |
187 |
76% |
|
Holmes |
1435 |
387 |
27% |
Lake |
|
|
|
|
Jackson |
1191 |
536 |
45% |
Lowell |
794 |
227 |
28% |
|
Jefferson |
|
|
|
Marion |
1026 |
403 |
39% |
|
Liberty |
950 |
277 |
29% |
Polk |
|
|
|
|
Madison |
|
|
|
Sumter |
1129 |
303 |
27% |
|
Okaloosa |
|
|
|
Tomoka |
1121 |
608 |
54% |
|
Quincy Annex |
352 |
82 |
23% |
Zephyrhills |
511 |
196 |
38% |
|
River Junction |
331 |
72 |
22% |
TOTAL |
5,733 |
2,456 |
42.8% |
|
Santa Rosa |
850 |
207 |
24% |
|
|||
|
Wakulla |
1141 |
377 |
33% |
|
|||
|
Walton |
1229 |
440 |
36% |
|
|||
|
Washington |
801 |
340 |
42% |
|
|||
|
TOTAL |
14,000 |
5,047 |
36.1% |
|
|||
|
Region II |
Open Pop. 7/31/01 |
July Attendance |
% |
Region IV |
Open Pop. 7/31/01 |
July Attendance |
% |
|
Baker |
948 |
612 |
65% |
Broward |
707 |
394 |
56% |
|
Colunbia |
905 |
261 |
29% |
Charlotte |
879 |
435 |
49% |
|
Cross City |
713 |
217 |
30% |
Dade |
673 |
209 |
31% |
|
Florida State Prison |
350 |
124 |
35% |
Dade Annex |
944 |
136 |
14% |
|
Gainsville |
501 |
253 |
50% |
Desoto Annex |
|
|
|
|
Hamilton |
1041 |
422 |
41% |
Everglades |
1366 |
135 |
10% |
|
Hamilton
Annex |
1198 |
336 |
28% |
Glades |
852 |
360 |
42% |
|
Lancaster
Main & WC |
|
|
|
Hardee |
|
|
|
|
Lawtey |
734 |
422 |
57% |
Hendry |
|
|
|
|
Mayo |
1119 |
569 |
51% |
Indian
River |
250 |
189 |
76% |
|
New
River E & W |
|
|
|
Martin |
436 |
65 |
15% |
|
NFRC
Main |
275 |
135 |
49% |
Okeechobee |
900 |
388 |
43% |
|
Putnam |
382 |
210 |
55% |
SFRC |
1055 |
272 |
26% |
|
Taylor |
|
|
|
TOTAL |
8,062 |
2,583 |
32.0% |
|
Union |
1434 |
302 |
21% |
STATE
TOTAL |
37,249 |
13,949 |
37.4% |
|
TOTAL |
9,454 |
3,863 |
40.8% |
|
|||
August Chapel Tracking by Region Contents
|
Region
I |
Open
Pop. 8/31/01 |
August
Attendance |
% |
Region
III |
Open
Pop. 8/31/01 |
August Attendance |
% |
|
ACI
East |
562 |
162 |
29% |
Avon
Park & WC |
1152 |
472 |
41% |
|
ACI
West |
694 |
185 |
27% |
Brevard |
875 |
377 |
43% |
|
Calhoun |
968 |
446 |
46% |
CFRC
East |
|
|
|
|
Century |
1155 |
406 |
35% |
CFRC
Main |
|
|
|
|
Gulf
Main |
1167 |
542 |
46% |
Hernando |
427 |
385 |
90% |
|
Gulf
Annex |
1071 |
428 |
40% |
Hillsborough |
257 |
205 |
80% |
|
Holmes |
1435 |
479 |
33% |
Lake |
|
|
|
|
Jackson |
1146 |
552 |
48% |
Lowell |
773 |
319 |
41% |
|
Jefferson |
|
|
|
Marion |
1044 |
461 |
44% |
|
Liberty |
947 |
221 |
23% |
Polk |
987 |
411 |
42% |
|
Madison |
|
|
|
Sumter |
1115 |
242 |
22% |
|
Okaloosa |
|
|
|
Tomoka |
1121 |
642 |
57% |
|
Quincy
Annex |
355 |
111 |
31% |
Zephyrhills |
512 |
189 |
37% |
|
River
Junction |
346 |
69 |
20% |
TOTAL |
8,263 |
3,703 |
44.8% |
|
Santa
Rosa |
800 |
219 |
27% |
|
|
|
|
|
Wakulla |
1107 |
389 |
35% |
|
|
|
|
|
Walton |
1175 |
495 |
42% |
|
|
|
|
|
Washington |
838 |
324 |
39% |
|
|
|
|
|
TOTAL |
13,766 |
5,028 |
36.5% |
|
|
|
|
|
Region
II |
Open
Pop. 8/31/01 |
August
Attendance |
% |
Region
IV |
Open
Pop. 8/31/01 |
August
Attendance |
% |
|
Baker |
932 |
489 |
52% |
Broward |
691 |
466 |
67% |
|
Columbia |
|
|
|
Charlotte |
905 |
412 |
45% |
|
Cross
City |
690 |
379 |
55% |
Dade |
685 |
312 |
45% |
|
Florida
State Prison |
350 |
125 |
36% |
Dade
Annex |
955 |
165 |
17% |
|
Gainesville |
501 |
255 |
51% |
Desoto
Annex |
|
|
|
|
Hamilton |
1030 |
248 |
24% |
Everglades |
1355 |
433 |
32% |
|
Hamilton
Annex |
1159 |
335 |
29% |
Glades |
811 |
416 |
51% |
|
Lancaster
& WC |
694 |
210 |
30% |
Hardee |
|
|
|
|
Lawtey |
705 |
403 |
57% |
Hendry |
|
|
|
|
Mayo |
1119 |
571 |
51% |
Indian
River |
260 |
248 |
95% |
|
New
River E & W |
1522 |
369 |
24% |
Martin |
|
|
|
|
NFRC
Main |
275 |
104 |
38% |
Okeechobee |
898 |
405 |
45% |
|
Putnam |
411 |
254 |
62% |
SFRC |
1022 |
292 |
29% |
|
Taylor |
|
|
|
TOTAL |
7,582 |
3,149 |
41.5% |
|
Union |
1477 |
274 |
18% |
STATE
TOTAL |
40,476 |
15,896 |
39.3% |
|
TOTAL |
10,865 |
4,016 |
36.9% |
|
|
|
|
September Chapel Tracking by Region Contents
|
Region I |
Open Pop. 9/30/01 |
September Attendance. |
% |
Region III |
Open Pop. 9/30/01 |
September Attendance |
% |
|
ACI East |
564 |
166 |
29% |
Avon Park & WC |
1153 |
|
|
|
ACI West |
696 |
172 |
25% |
Brevard |
869 |
487 |
56% |
|
Calhoun |
934 |
392 |
42% |
CFRC East |
825 |
|
|
|
Century |
1132 |
|
|
CFRC Main |
1480 |
|
|
|
Gulf Main |
1174 |
477 |
41% |
Hernando |
422 |
309 |
73% |
|
Gulf Annex |
1076 |
415 |
39% |
Hillsborough |
264 |
|
|
|
Holmes |
1279 |
510 |
40% |
Lake |
990 |
|
|
|
Jackson |
1139 |
510 |
45% |
Lowell |
689 |
157 |
23% |
|
Jefferson |
698 |
160 |
23% |
Marion |
1055 |
577 |
55% |
|
Liberty |
934 |
343 |
37% |
Polk |
1045 |
|
|
|
Madison |
937 |
|
|
Sumter |
1143 |
|
27% |
|
Okaloosa |
782 |
330 |
42% |
Tomoka |
1121 |
641 |
57% |
|
Quincy Annex |
362 |
102 |
28% |
Zephyrhills |
497 |
172 |
35% |
|
River Junction |
337 |
66 |
20% |
TOTAL |
5,796 |
2,654 |
46% |
|
Santa Rosa |
798 |
254 |
32% |
|
|
|
|
|
Wakulla |
1140 |
327 |
29% |
|
|
|
|
|
Walton |
1175 |
495 |
42% |
|
|
|
|
|
Washington |
829 |
299 |
36% |
|
|
|
|
|
TOTAL |
13,917 |
5,018 |
36.1% |
|
|
|
|
|
Region II |
Open Pop. 9/30/01 |
September Attendance |
% |
Region IV |
Open Pop. 9/30/01 |
September Attendance |
% |
|
Baker |
959 |
507 |
53% |
Broward |
699 |
389 |
56% |
|
Columbia |
908 |
|
|
Charlotte |
851 |
550 |
65% |
|
Cross City |
694 |
273 |
39% |
Dade |
694 |
309 |
46% |
|
Florida State Prison |
350 |
139 |
40% |
Dade Annex |
925 |
117 |
13% |
|
Gainesville |
501 |
283 |
56% |
Desoto Annex |
1057 |
|
|
|
Hamilton |
1006 |
279 |
28% |
Everglades |
1366 |
408 |
30% |
|
Hamilton Annex |
1158 |
284 |
25% |
Glades |
821 |
333 |
41% |
|
Lancaster & WC |
705 |
|
|
Hardee |
772 |
|
|
|
Lawtey |
730 |
358 |
49% |
Hendry |
513 |
|
|
|
Mayo |
1119 |
517 |
46% |
Indian River |
260 |
|
|
|
New River E & W |
1496 |
379 |
25% |
Martin |
439 |
|
|
|
NFRC Main & West |
539 |
262 |
49% |
Okeechobee |
902 |
398 |
44% |
|
Putnam |
432 |
|
|
SFRC |
994 |
232 |
23% |
|
Taylor |
826 |
|
|
TOTAL |
7,252 |
2,736 |
37.7% |
|
Union |
1123 |
295 |
26% |
STATE TOTAL |
36,640 |
13,984 |
38.2% |
|
TOTAL |
9,675 |
3,576 |
36.9% |
|
|
|
|
Percentage of Inmate Participation by
Region
Contents ~ TOP
Chart 2 reflects the consistency of the average percentage of inmate participation for each month of the measurement period. The data for Chart 2 was obtained from the Chapel Tracking tables. It should be noted that Region III, though having the highest participation rate, had the fewest total number of participants.
August 2001
Inmate Participation by Institution Type
Contents ~ TOP
Variance according to institution type Contents ~ TOP
Total
participation rate at all institutions for the three-month study of
July-September, 2001 was 38.3%.
Female and
Youthful Offender institutions averaged 58.5% of the inmates
participating. This is almost 20
percentage points higher than the State average.
Smaller
institutions with a Chaplain to inmate ratio of under 1/500 had the highest
participation rate at 65.9%.
Institutional Adjustment:
Disciplinary Report Frequency
Contents ~ TOP
A measurement of inmate adjustment identifies the number of disciplinary reports (DR’s) that measured inmates received during the three months that Chapel participation rates were considered. The record of inmates who attended religious activities was separated from the record of those inmates who did not attend any religious activities. Both were then analyzed as to the frequency of DR’s per one thousand inmates. In the group of inmates that attended religious activities during the three-month period, they were further grouped according to the number of times they attended a religious activity in the measurement period of one month.
The number of DR’s was measured for those inmates who attended religious services one to three times per month, four to nine times per month and those who attended ten or more times in a month.
Finally, a statewide average was included to compare the findings with a norm. The State norm for all inmates is 70 DR’s per thousand inmates. The inmates in the measurement group (50,026) that attended no religious services computed at the rate of 88 DR’s per thousand inmates. Inmates who attended from one to three religious activities during the month received 66 DR’s per thousand inmates. Inmates who attended from four to nine religious activities received 48 DR’s per thousand inmates. The fewest DR’s per thousand were received by the inmate group that attended ten or more religious activities during the month at 29 DR’s per thousand inmates.
For all three months, the more inmates attended religious activities, the fewer DR’s they received. Inmates who did not attend any religious activities were three times more likely to get a DR than inmates who attended ten or more services a month did. Statewide, inmates in general were more than twice as likely to get a DR than inmates who attended ten or more religious activities per month. Though there may be a variety of reasons for getting or not getting a DR, the numbers indicate that the more an inmate attends religious activities, the odds that the inmate gets into trouble are diminished.
DR’s are considered to be one of the prime indicators of institutional adjustment. The following three pages measure the institutional adjustment of inmates who participate in Chapel programs by the number of times the inmate participates and their number of DR’s. This figure is then compared with the institutional adjustment of those inmates who did not participate in Chapel programs.
July Institutional Adjustment Contents
|
July |
Total Inmates |
Received DR |
DR% |
|
State Avg. |
72,075 |
5,083 |
7.1% |
|
Att. 0 times |
21,363 |
2,001 |
9.4% |
|
1-3 times |
4,437 |
324 |
7.3% |
|
4-9 times |
2,004 |
119 |
5.9% |
|
10+ times |
937 |
37 |
3.9% |
Chapel
attendance at 30 institutions
was measured for the month of July.
Chart 4 reflects that inmates
who attended 10 or more chapel programs a month received a DR at far less than
half the rate of those who did not attend any services.
Chart 4
Attendance: State 0 1-3 4-9 10+
Average
|
Chart 4 |
August Institutional Adjustment Contents
|
August |
Total Inmate |
Received DR |
DR% |
|
State Avg. |
72,187 |
5,106 |
7.1% |
|
Att. 0 times |
23,544 |
2,098 |
8.9% |
|
1-3 times |
5,401 |
339 |
6.3% |
|
4-9 times |
2,834 |
124 |
4.4% |
|
10+ times |
1,337 |
32 |
2.4% |
Chapel attendance at 35 institutions was measured for the month of August. Chart 5 reflects that inmates who attended 10 or more chapel programs a month received a DR at about 1/3 the rate as the State average and about ¼ the rate of those who did not attend any services.
Chart 5
September
Institutional Adjustment Contents
|
September |
Total Inmates |
Received DR |
DR% |
|
State Avg. |
72,210 |
4,888 |
6.8% |
|
Att. 0 times |
25,094 |
2,045 |
8.1% |
|
1-3 times |
5,386 |
337 |
6.3% |
|
4-9 times |
2,892 |
121 |
4.2% |
|
10+ times |
1,318 |
31 |
2.4% |
Chapel
attendance at 36 institutions was measured for the month of September. Chart 6 reflects that inmates who attended
10 or more chapel programs a month
received a DR about 1/3 the rate of the State average and the rate of those who
did not attend any services
Chart
6
Statewide Measurement of Disciplinary
Reports per 1,000 inmates Contents ~ TOP
Chart 7 indicates that by using the standard measurement for DR reporting, the higher the inmate participation in Chapel programs the lower his or her personal disciplinary infractions. Participation in Chapel programs actually helps lower the state average to 70, since the average of those inmates who do not participate in any Chapel programs is 88.
Chart
7
Attendance: State 0 1-3
4-9 10+
Average
|
Chart
7 |
Statewide Participation by Program Type Contents ~ TOP
Chart 8 reflects the statewide average of inmate participation in Chapel programs during the measurement period. It should be noted that despite the variety of Chapel programs, the PWO’s and RES’s are by far the most popular and highly attended. The numbers in the following table are the total three-month combined attendance figures.
PWO: Primary
Worship Opportunity 23,869
RES: Religious
Education or Study 18,578
SPE: Special
Events 5,102
CWS: Chapel
Workshops 1,926
SHP: Self
Help Activities 5,432
Total 54,907
Primary
Worship Opportunity: Any recognized form of worship by the individual religious
bodies. Catholic Mass, Christian Church
Service, Jumah Prayer, Shavat, scheduled at weekly, BI-weekly or monthly
intervals
Religious
Education or Study: Religious Instructional Classes, Sacred Text Studies,
Instructional Video Classes, Taleem.
Special
Events: Special Worship Opportunities (not regularly scheduled), Holy Days of
Obligation, Civic or Cultural Celebrations, Concerts.
Chapel
Workshops: Marriage Enrichment Programs, Anger Management, Prison Fellowship
Seminars, normally a 1 or 2 day program addressing a religious theme.
Self-Help
Activities: Representing a variety of activities such as Life Skill Classes,
Substance Abuse Prevention support groups, AA.
Total Number of Inmates
Conclusions: Contents ~ TOP
|
Total Number of Inmates |
Chaplaincy is
an active part of every institution. A
statewide average of 38% participation among eligible inmates indicates a
significant level of institutional effectiveness. There is no question that there is inmate interest and
involvement in institutional religious programs. The extent of programs and activities offered by Chaplaincy
Services appears to have a more than coincidental positive effect on inmate
behavior. The more religious activities
offered, the greater the appeal to a wider group of inmates. With a behavioral effect evident when
attendance is from four to nine times per month, it is possible to provide a
significant benefit to institutional management through increased religious
programming. More religious programs
could be an effective tool to reduce disciplinary infractions at
institutions. Additionally, as noted at
institutions where there is a ratio of one chaplain to five hundred or less
inmates, the participation rate is much better than the statewide norm. More Chaplains could very well be an
integral element to solving the behavioral problems at institutions.
Participation
in religious programming is a voluntary act by interested inmates. As such, religious programs and activities
are having a positive effect on a significant number of inmates in the FDC.
Frankly, many
correctional professionals have viewed religious programming at best as simply
an answer to inmate idleness. Previous studies[3], along with the findings of this study, suggest
the fallacy of such reasoning. The
impact of religious programming goes well beyond a simple answer to inmate
idleness. Religious programming is an
integral part of any professional correctional institution and may provide a cost
effective management tool for reducing DR’s.