Marshall County Community Corrections plans to continue using the Bowen Center’s counseling services for its jail treatment program.
The county commissioners approved a contract renewal Monday, at the request of Community Corrections Director Ward Byers. “So it’ll be some therapeutic evidence-based programming for that target population of Level 6 felons and above, moderate-to-high risk,” he explained. “It’s part of our ongoing collaboration with the sheriff. We have funding through the grant to pay for this, through our jail treatment grant, with the State of Indiana.”
Byers told the commissioners the counseling consists mainly of group sessions for the inmates, although there’s also the option to add some individual sessions for those needing extra help. “The Bowen Center will be in the jail at least two times a week,” he said. “We’re looking at increasing that because of demand. We do have a significant waiting list of individuals who would be part of this programming. We’ve been running this programming now for a while in the jail, and it’s been very successful.”
He says Community Corrections has about $40,000 budgeted for counseling, but that cost may increase as the program expands. “What grant funding doesn’t cover, the Project Income Fund most certainly can, through its professional services line item,” he explained.
However, Commissioner Kevin Overmyer pointed out that the commissioners pay a certain amount of money to the Bowen Center every year out of their own budget, and the county’s supposed to get certain services in return. County Attorney Jim Clevenger agreed to research what those specific services are, although he says the Bowen Center has denied they include the jail treatment counseling.
