ICPA Florida 2022: Core Systems Showcases Pathway
3-min read
The International Corrections and Prisons Association (ICPA) held their flagship annual conference in Orlando, Florida this October. There were a range of speakers and presentations across the six-day event. The event provides stakeholders with opportunities to engage in important discourse.
Discussions with participants started at the reception desk on Sunday. It finished when people said their goodbyes after a visit to the correctional facility on the following Friday.
Thoughts from the ICPA Florida 2022
Sir Tim Purcell – “ICPA brings together agencies, operators, NGOs, academics and vendors from all over the world to participate in lively discussion over the week of the conference. Conversations flow easily and there’s a strong sense of common purpose; to improve the outcomes for those in the care of the Justice community.”
Patricia O’Hagan – “As a regular attendee of ICPA, it was great to attend the conference in person again after the pandemic and to meet old friends and make new ones too. We heard inspiring stories of how people have moved things forward through innovation and collaboration in response to the challenges they faced over the past few years.”
ICPA 2022 Theme: Excelling Beyond the ‘Old’ Normal: Corrections after the Global Pandemic
This year’s theme discussed the importance of technological advances during the pandemic and how we’re entering a new digital era.
Communications within correctional facilities was negatively impacted during the pandemic. Family and friends could no longer visit their loved ones. Staff had limited flexibility in their roles with the government advising social distance rules and mandated stay-at-home orders.
Digital technology, such as video calling, closed this barrier and Core Systems helped to do this with Core Pathway. The ‘new’ world is ‘excelling beyond the ‘old’ normal’ and has transformed the digital landscape.
Across the six-day conference, Patricia presented to participants and took part in a panel that discussed digital transformation.
Community Correction Service Transformation Supported by Digital Technology During the Pandemic
The challenges presented by the pandemic, and the result of lockdowns over the past couple of years, has exposed the fragility and vulnerabilities of mainstream systems and practices across many industries, including the community corrections sector.
Patricia O’Hagan, Core Systems CEO
Digital Transformation in Prisons
A team of experts, including Patricia O’Hagan, from the technology sector discussed the evolution of emerging technology and their role in prison transformation. One of the questions asked was, how do we deal with the digital divide that inmates may be facing?
Core Pathway encourages digitally excluded individuals to develop new skills for a successful community re-entry. There are solutions we may take for granted such as keeping a mobile calendar or purchasing goods and services online. Being isolated from technological advances while being in prison is limiting.
In this new world, most services have been digitalised and applying for a job after release will require filling out an online application form. This involves an online job search and writing a digital resumé using a word processor. Using Pathway makes it easier to complete these tasks and builds confidence in digital literacy.
“I feel there is renewed commitment to positive change in the corrections sector, arising from the empathy and insights we experienced during the pandemic. I look forward to contributing to that change through the work we do in Core.”
To learn more about the ICPA, visit here.
