DOCCS offers a wide range of services and programs to assist individuals who are incarcerated in redirecting their lives towards becoming law-abiding and productive members of society.
Adult Fundamental Education.
The Adult Basic Education Program offers personalized teaching for incarcerated individuals with reading and math scores below the sixth grade level on the Department’s chosen standardized test in reading, mathematics, and language arts. This instruction is tailored to address real-life adult challenges and situations.
The goal of this program is to provide individuals with the necessary competencies or skills to successfully function in contemporary society, at the sixth grade level in mathematics and reading.
College Programs.
Jefferson A. Community College offers an Associate’s Degree in Human Services or Individual Studies for individuals who are incarcerated and have either a verified high school diploma or a high school equivalency.
Aggression Replacement Training (ART).
A cognitive behavioral intervention program is designed to assist individuals in improving their social skills and moral reasoning, reducing aggressive behavior through the use of mindfulness and exercises for self-regulation.
The program is comprised of five modules containing 32 sessions. ART is composed of three interconnected interventions: anger management training, organized education, and ethical thinking.
Participants will learn techniques to help them build better skills for making choices, regulating self to automatically “stop” aggression, and understanding what causes aggressive/angry behavior, as well as how to act and feel less aggressively.
Individuals who are evaluated as requiring ART are designated to the program by the facility Program Committee.
Building Maintenance.
The Maintenance Building Program provides students with the necessary fundamental skills to make minor repairs in weatherization, plumbing, electricity, masonry, and carpentry, preparing them for entry-level positions as building superintendents.
This program offers personalized, self-paced instruction to help students develop the necessary skills for entry-level competencies, as defined by modules.
Custodial Maintenance.
The Custodial Maintenance Course emphasizes services including equipment and sanitizing solutions, safely cleaning operations and restroom maintenance, window cleaning, upholstery care, fabric and carpet maintenance, and floor care.
Student competencies in entry level skills, which are determined by modules, are cultivated through personalized instruction at their own pace. This course equips students with commercial, institutional, and industrial cleaning and maintenance skills, aiming to enhance their competencies.
Additionally, you can also access certifications such as the New York State Department of Labor Apprenticeship program, NCCER core training program certification, and Basic and Advanced Custodial Technician certifications.
Electrical Trades.
This course provides instruction on basic electricity with an emphasis on wiring commercial and residential systems of all types, as well as servicing and installing. Taught skills include interpreting code, reading wiring schematics and architectural drawings, equipment testing for use, controls and circuits.
The goal of the Electrical Trades course is to provide students with skills level entry as an assistant electrician or apprentice, through individualized self-paced instruction in competencies defined by modules.
Floor Covering.
This course provides instruction on basic electricity with an emphasis on wiring commercial and residential systems of all types, as well as servicing and installing. Taught skills include interpreting code, reading wiring schematics and architectural drawings, equipment testing for use, controls and circuits.
The goal of the Electrical Trades course is to provide students with skills level entry as an assistant electrician or apprentice, through individualized self-paced instruction in competencies defined by modules.
Horticulture.
The field of horticulture encompasses the production, maintenance, supervision, and promotion of various types of plants, including flowers, shrubs, trees, bulbs, and turf. Training in this field covers a wide range of techniques and approaches, such as plant propagation, transplantation, pruning, cultivation, fertilization, greenhouse production, plant identification, and insect control. This comprehensive training includes both theoretical instruction and practical application.
Students will learn the basic principles of landscape design through the use of various equipment, such as rototillers, tractors, and mowers, as well as power and hand tools for horticulture. They will also receive instruction on controlling disease and insects, as well as fertilization. Additionally, students will learn about the construction of new fences, walls, and pathways using wood, stone, and brick.
The goal of the Horticulture course is to provide students with a level of skills entry that makes them employable as Groundskeepers or Horticulturists. The course offers individualized and self-paced instruction, allowing students to develop competencies in defined modules.
Incarcerated Veterans.
Following a period of imprisonment, veterans reentering society have their readjustment and reentry needs addressed by the Incarcerated Veterans Program.
Level I.
All correctional facilities provide Level I. services ensuring that veterans obtain a copy of their DD214 Military Discharge papers and that appropriate referrals are made through the Veterans Administration (VA) for ongoing treatment, vocational training, education, housing, and employment when the veteran is released from incarceration.
Level I.I
In addition to the Level 1 services provided, Cape Vincent is a Level I.I facility that also has a Veterans Inmate Organization or a Veterans Educational Group that meets on a regular basis providing education, camaraderie, and support to each other. There is often a community group involved, such as an American Legion or a VFW Post. They often hold a Veterans’ Day Recognition Ceremony and Banquet to honor their service to their country.
Masonry.
Students are taught the basic principles of construction, including the art of masonry. In addition to learning how to mix mortar and work with bricks, students must also learn about cinderblocks, cement blocks, concrete, and trade mathematics. They are also required to learn how to read blueprints.
The Mason Shop course offers self-paced individualized instruction to students, focusing on entry-level skills required for becoming a bricklayer or mason.
Both the Apprenticeship Program provided by the New York State Department of Labor and the NCCER Masonry Certification Training Program are accessible alternatives.
Artwork and embellishing.
The program teaches students how to apply stains, clear finishes, and pigmented paint. Students also learn techniques for wallpapering and refinishing wood. Instruction is provided on safety procedures for handling paints, ladders, and scaffolding. Students in this program learn techniques for applying paint to both interior and exterior surfaces. The skills taught in this program are related to surface preparation.
The goal of this course is to provide students with the opportunity to develop their skills as a painter or helper by offering individualized, self-paced instruction in competencies defined by modules based on their skill level entry.
Both the New York State Department of Labor and NCCER provide accessible programs, such as an Apprenticeship Program and a Painting Certification Training Program.
Waste Management.
The Waste Management Program provides recycling and composting services, as well as cost-saving measures, to specific municipalities and the Department. Within the program, facilities and regional recycling processing centers hire as many as 1100 incarcerated individuals at different stages.
Composting operations for Food Waste are situated all over the state and typically outside the security perimeters of facilities.
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