Date of Submission

Summer 7-24-2017

Document Type

Dissertation/Thesis

Degree

Doctor of Education

Department

Education

OIP Defense Chair

Dr. Elan Paulson

Keywords

Aboriginal offender parole outcomes CSC

Abstract

This paper outlines an Organizational Improvement Plan (OIP) and addresses a current Problem of Practice (PoP) in Aboriginal federal corrections. The Correctional Service of Canada (CSC) is a federal department mandated by the Corrections and Conditional Release Act. Notably, this Act mandates the CSC to be responsive to the special needs of Aboriginal offenders. Aboriginal offenders have long been over-represented within the Canadian corrections system; consequently, there is tremendous pressure on the CSC to address the gap in outcomes between Aboriginal and non-Aboriginal offenders. The PoP considers the role of the Aboriginal Initiatives Directorate within CSC and describes the impact of current outcome measures on Aboriginal offenders. Crucially, current outcomes lack accuracy and reliability; thus, they do not adequately consider pertinent success factors that would give Aboriginal offenders comparable outcomes to their non-Aboriginal counterparts. The PoP also identifies factors—both pro-active and reactive— and describes their implications. Specifically, the PoP describes factors that challenge Aboriginal Community Liaison Officers’ efforts to describe incremental progress that Aboriginal offenders achieve on conditional or discretionary release (parole). The current complex political environment, the impact of policies implemented by the previous Conservative federal government (2006-2015), and the increased demand for public accountability heighten the need for new measures that better reflect the successes that Aboriginal offenders do achieve on conditional release. The OIP relies on Cawsey, Deszca & Ingols’ (2016) Change Path Model as a guiding framework and organization change tool to identify solutions. The OIP concludes with an outcome effectiveness evaluation.

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