Facilitated Dialogue Program Training Curricula Development and Pilot

Description

Over the years, the National Institute of Corrections has created and provided post-conviction victim services resources that support the Victim Services Coordinators within the 50 state departments of correction. These coordinators are responsible for a wide range of services, many of which are mandated under state constitutions, statutes, and/or administrative rules. One such service is a provision that brings together the victim/survivor (or surviving family member) of a violent crime and the person who committed the crime—giving victims and survivors the opportunity to share how the crime has affected their lives and ask questions to which they have never been given answers. This type of interaction can be very delicate and requires specially trained facilitators to ensure the best outcome for all parties involved. Throughout the country, this type of post-conviction victim service process is referred to by many names, including Victim Offender Dialogue (VOD), Victim Offender Mediation (VOM), Victim Offender Mediation/Dialogue (VOMD), Facilitated Dialogue, and others. At least twenty-six states currently have or are required to have a facilitated dialogue program; however, very few of those states have a formalized training program for facilitators and most have not been authorized the additional funding needed to create one. In addition, many of these programs operate using a combination of agency personnel and local volunteers, or strictly volunteers, which further complicates the issue and requires training to be offered on a regular basis as volunteers relocate or otherwise become unavailable.

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