Technology Snapshot: The Bayou State’s Innovative Supervision and Reentry Strategies

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Dr. Kelly Frailing is an Associate Professor of Criminology and Justice at Loyola University New Orleans. She received her doctorate in criminology from the University of Cambridge in England and has published extensively in her two main areas of interest, crime and disaster, and people with mental illness who are justice involved. Her evaluation research includes examining the connection between court process, especially interactions with the judge, and legal and psychosocial outcomes for the participants in the mental health court in Washoe County, Nevada (published in the International Journal of Law and Psychiatry), the referrals process at this same mental health court (International Journal of Forensic Mental Health) and the importance to participants of being able to speak Spanish with the judge in a majority Hispanic drug court in Webb County, TX (Criminal Justice Policy Review). Dr. Frailing is currently the research partner on an Innovations in Supervision grant in Jefferson Parish, Louisiana.

Olivia Koukoui provides technical assistance to jurisdictions around the country that are recipients of Innovations in Supervision Initiative and Innovations in Reentry Initiative grants. Prior to joining the CSG Justice Center, Olivia worked in the field of corrections, starting as a rehabilitation counselor for the Virginia Department of Juvenile Justice. She later transitioned into the role of probation officer for Fairfax County, Virginia. Most recently her work included collecting, investigating, and verifying defendants’ background information to compile and develop reports for the Circuit Court, including sentencing guidelines and recommendations for court ordered supervision. Olivia holds an MBA from the University of Maryland University College, and a BS in criminal justice from Virginia Commonwealth University.

Elizabeth English Smith is a policy analyst at the Council of State Governments Justice Center in the Corrections and Reentry division, providing technical assistance to state, local, and nonprofit Second Chance Act grantees. Previously, she was the manager of external affairs for domestic policy at the American Enterprise Institute (AEI), where she communicated AEI’s work on correctional education and reentry to policymakers, researchers, and state and local leaders. She also served as a research associate at AEI, travelling around the country to visit and research evidence-based correctional education and reentry programs. Her work has appeared in outlets including U.S. News and World Report and Real Clear Policy, and she is the co-editor of Education for Liberation: The Politics of Promise and Reform Inside and Beyond America's Prisons. She received a BA in political science and Spanish from the University of Michigan, and her MPP with a concentration in criminal justice policy from The George Washington University.

Robert Vehock works as the Program Manager for the Louisiana Department of Public Safety and Corrections, Office of Reentry. In his current role, Robert is responsible for several Bureau of Justice Assistance (BJA) grants as well as multiple Louisiana Justice Reinvestment programs. Robert’s career has spanned over 20 years and has seen him work in most areas of criminal justice. He earned his BS at University of Louisiana at Lafayette and his MPA from the Louisiana State University Public Administration Institute.