Photo provided Bartholomew County Sheriff officials and corrections officers are shown with the female graduates of the jail substance abuse treatment program graduates this week.
The Bartholomew County Jail’s drug treatment program has honored its newest group of graduates.
The jail’s program, called BART, stands for Begin, Accept, Reveal, Transform.
The program averages 14.5 weeks of treatment and includes intake, screening, classification, admission, assessment, diagnosis and treatment planning.
The treatment program uses a matrix model for criminal justice systems that provides participants with more than 400 hours of group and individual treatment. The minimum treatment period is 12 weeks and is completed in seven phases. The first five phases are covered during the intake process.
After three years, there have been 128 BART graduates, according to sheriff office officials. Nineteen of those individuals reoffended, making the recidivism rate 0.15.
Sheriff-elect Chief Deputy Maj. Chris Lane and Sheriff Matt Myers were extremely concerned about the expected influx of drugs and potential drug overdoses in the county. The sheriff’s office worked with the Alliance for Substance Abuse Progress to make sure services were not being duplicated and to remain under ASAP’s wing.
Lane said the sheriff’s office was very grateful to Columbus city officials, Bartholomew County officials, Cummins and all those who contributed to helping bring the BART program to where it is today.
“In the beginning, I thought I was just going to sit here and do my time – but God seemed fit to put it (the BART Treatment Program) in my life, said one of the graduates, Jennifer Jeffries. “It showed me things I didn’t realize, my past has to be dead – it’s haunted me too long and now with the tools I’ve learned from therapy and will continue to use, I can buy that and move on.”
Myers explained that those participating in the program are getting help from others who know what they are experiencing and what they need to become good citizens when they return to the community.
“It’s life changing. I feel like it’s my life calling to help others and influence them or steer them towards recovery by leading by example. That’s what this program did for me,” said Jeremy Vanantwerp, who graduated from the program.
