I. INTRODUCTION
The International Community Corrections Association seeks to improve the effectiveness and quality of community based correctional services by identifying and promoting the application of evidence informed practices. The ICCA regularly brings together leading international correctional researchers along with practitioners and representatives of other interests in the criminal justice system to improve the delivery of correctional interventions based on research and evaluation.
II. BACKGROUND
Research and evaluation provides corrections with reliable and valid information necessary to maintain quality services, improve the effectiveness of correctional interventions and guide increasingly complex criminal justice system decisions. Applying the research on proven and effective approaches to actual practice safeguards the public investment in community corrections while maximizing the positive impact of public resources.
III. STATEMENT OF PRINCIPLES
The ICCA has a responsibility to encourage, promote, educate and participate in community correctional research and evaluation by:
Coordinating research collaboration among the academic community and public sector community correctional agencies;
Making available to other correctional professionals the research and evaluation information necessary to reduce the likelihood of future criminality and improve the prospects for successful offender reintegration;
Offering training opportunities for criminal justice professionals in the application of correctional research and evaluation;
Disseminating correctional research, evaluation findings, and results;
Encouraging innovation and new approaches which include an evaluation component;
Providing guidance to professionals on the real world application of evidence-informed practices; and
Encourage policy makers and criminal justice stakeholders to make decisions which are informed and guided by the research on correctional effectiveness.
Revised and approved by the ICJA Board of Directors Date: September 13, 2014