Chair Alex Garza opened the Wayne County Community Corrections Advisory Board meeting and, noting the board lacked a quorum, allowed vendor presentations to proceed but said no formal votes could be taken.

Vendors described multi-part reentry and in-jail programs intended to reduce recidivism and support housing and treatment. Wendy Anderson of Lake Ridge Village said the organization runs a jail-based, 20-session cognitive-behavioral therapy program with daily CBT groups and one-on-one clinical sessions supported by a peer component. "We have serviced approximately 314 people in the jail based program, and only 14 people have returned since we've been there in 3 years," Anderson said, adding that Lake Ridge can provide up to about two years of housing after program completion.

Sonia Shellman, director of behavioral health at Centers for Family Development, described a 14-week core curriculum that separates services by gender and incorporates HEAT/HEAR habilitation and restorative practices alongside substance-use and mental-health services. Shellman said the agency evaluates social determinants of health and links participants with housing and health services. She told the board the center has served fewer than 200 participants in five years, with about 67 in the last year, and said those participants were billable to Wayne County Community Corrections.

Darren Rogo, director of ETRS, described three programs the agency runs: a jail-based domestic-violence transition class, a community outpatient domestic-violence program and a drunk-driving jail-to-outpatient program. Rogo cited evidence-based CBT as central to their work and referenced data showing a roughly 20–25% recidivism reduction when CBT is implemented with fidelity; he said a three-year decline of about 21% is reflected in local figures. Mary Jane Reynolds, who leads ETRS’s jail-based domestic-violence programming, outlined a 48-class-day jail course that translates into an extended, 26-week outpatient phase for continuing work after release.

Board members questioned vendors on eligibility and referral pathways. Presenters said referrals come primarily from probation officers and specialty courts; members urged outreach to prosecutors and regular briefings to encourage sentence agreements or probation conditions that include the programs. Commissioner and law-enforcement members discussed ways the board could help increase utilization by making judges, prosecutors and probation staff more aware of free county-eligible programs.

Board members also raised operational points: whether the programs can serve women, whether capacity exists to scale up if demand grows, and how time-in-program affects release timing. Lake Ridge and Centers for Family Development said they can serve women and that added capacity could be handled by recently acquired additional facilities and expanded bed counts.

Because the board lacked a quorum, no formal actions or funding votes were taken. Several members asked staff to schedule follow-up briefings for judges, prosecutors and probation districts and to circulate provider contact information so referrals can increase.

The board invited vendors to present to probation departments and specialty-court staff; Member Robinson offered the board office as a scheduling contact. The meeting proceeded to other agenda items and adjourned without votes.