Tech2Connect: Providing Reentry, Reconsideration, and Treatment Services for Justice Involved Individuals

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Lisa Chapman serves as assistant district director of the Seventh Judicial District Department of Correctional Services (DCS). As assistant district director, Ms. Chapman has broad oversight of the operation of a community corrections department that manages community-based corrections in five counties of eastern Iowa, including the management of two residential facilities—total capacity of 188 residents—and field units that supervise approximately 2000 individuals under a variety of correctional statuses. Ms. Chapman has worked in community corrections for thirty-eight years; she has worked in pretrial release, in residential and as a probation/parole officer. In 2013, she became a field unit supervisor, and in 2019, she assumed the position of assistant district director. During Ms. Chapman’s tenure as assistant district director, she has focused on staff training, program development and continuous quality assurance. For the past eight months, Ms. Chapman has led a team of DCS staff members in the development and implementation of the Tech to Connect program. This program offers enhanced cognitive programming for individuals under field supervision and improved reentry processing for individuals who are preparing for their release from prison to the community.

Sally Kreamer has worked in corrections for over 33 years and is the Deputy Director for Community Based Corrections for the Iowa Department Corrections. Prior to that she was the Director of Community Based Corrections for the Fifth Judicial District Department of Corrections Services in Des Moines, Iowa. She has been involved in the implementation of evidence-based practices since the early 1990’s having been involved in implementation statewide of cognitive based programs, gender specific programming, trauma informed programming, and the use of validated actuarial assessment tools in both community-based corrections and institutions. She has worked with parole boards, judges, colleges and universities, faith-based community members and other community providers on implementation of research informed practices to include hiring and retaining effective staff. Sally Kreamer has published several articles and manuals in the field of probation and parole specifically dealing with high-risk employee screening, program and assessment fidelity and outcome measures. She has served on many boards including the National Alliance on Mental Illness, Iowa Correctional Association, and the Criminal Justice Advisory Board. She obtained her Bachelors of Science from Iowa State University and her Masters of Science from the University of Cincinnati.

Nick Peitz currently serves as the Associate Warden of Treatment the Mount Pleasant Correctional Facility. Nick has been employed with the State of Iowa Department of Corrections at the Mount Pleasant Correctional Facility since 2008. Nick has held the roles of Correctional Officer, Correctional Counselor, Treatment Services Director, and his current role as Associate Warden of Treatment. Nick also serves as the Mount Pleasant Correctional Facility’s PREA (Prison Rape Elimination Act) Compliance Manager, he is also on the Iowa statewide PREA audit team. In Nick’s current role he supervises institutional Correctional Counselors, a Re-Entry Coordinator, and is very involved in the re-entry process. Nick Graduated from Mount Mercy University in 2008 with a Bachelors degree in Psychology, with a minor in Fine Art. Nick is currently enrolled in Mount Mercy’s Master of Strategic Leadership program, and is anticipated to graduate with his MSL in May of ’22.

James D. Varland, MA, LMHC, LMFT, SOTPII: Jim is an Iowa Licensed Mental Health Counselor and Marriage and Family Therapist, as well as a Sex Offender Treatment Provider, Level II. He has extensive training in EMDR, Solutions Focused Therapy, and assessing and treating clients with sexual offenses. Jim has been with the Iowa Department of Corrections since 2001 serving in both institutional and community-based corrections. Jim has also worked in hospitals, private practices, family service agencies, and has been an adjunct instructor for three difference colleges. He also served as Chair on the Iowa Board for the Treatment of Sexual Abusers (IBTSA). He has been the Treatment Supervisor for the 2nd Judicial District since 2015 and has been the lead person for the Tech 2 Connect tablet program in his district. He supervises a team of treatment staff and high-risk Probation/Parole Officers.