Circles of Support and Accountability (COSAs)

As part of its Restorative Reentry Program, the Newport Community Justice Center operates a modest number* of COSAs (“Circles of Support and Accountability”) designed to smooth the transition of “core members” (“offenders”) from prison to a positive role in society.

A COSA consists of at least one staff person (COSA Coordinator) and three volunteers from the community who make a commitment to the COSA process with the core member for an initial period of at least one year. With work beginning months before the core member leaves prison, the Circle (including the core member) utilizes the Offender Responsibility Plan (developed at the Facility) and the NCJC’s own intake interview to plan and prepare for life after release, focusing on the core member’s strengths (e.g., job skills), as well as potential problem areas (e.g., lack of transportation or housing).

As the core member leaves prison, the COSA provides them with an immediate social circle of functional people, offering the support and carrying the expectations of ordinary friendship. COSA Circles initially meet together at least once a week, with individual members working with the core member at other times as well. COSA members may provide rides to doctor’s appointments, assistance in finding furniture or a place to live, discussion and analysis of problems finding work, help making links with social service agencies, and other “friendly” assistance. In many ways, a COSA functions as family and friends might in helping someone they care about move beyond the incapacitation of a serious illness, a divorce, a period of unemployment, or other life crises.

COSAs are, however, a little more formally organized than “just friends” and are linked closely, for example, with the core member’s Facility Case Worker and Probation Officer. COSAs observe certain special boundaries—e.g., no personal gifts, and no secrets between core members and other members of the Circle or DOC officials. What might be called the “favors” done for the core member by others in the Circle are not to be “returned.” But the core member is held accountable in the sense that they must honor those gifts by, for example, meeting appointments and making a conscientious effort to settle in successfully as a member of the community (housing, work, etc.). Core members are also, of course, expected to abide by any conditions set by Furlough or other Agreements governing their release.

COSA is a voluntary, non-custodial program that lies between law enforcement and other authorities on the one hand, and the general society on the other. It’s approach is restorative, it’s method to “walk with” the core member, and it exercises no power directly over the core member, who is generally free to drop out of the program at any time.

Referrals to the NCJC’s COSA program are made through a prospect’s Case Worker or Probation Officer and come to the NCJC from Newport Probation and Parole. New volunteers to serve on Circles are welcome, with application materials available from the Justice Center at 222 Main Street in Newport, or by calling 802-323-1431. For more details on the program, see the Center’s COSA Volunteer Manual, or stop by the Center.

 

* The number of COSAs in operation at any given time is a function of staff funding levels, volunteer availability, and the particular time and resource requirements of specific core members.