Nebraska’s Bold Step Toward Family-Focused Reentry

TRANSFORM Nebraska Network Advances a Unified Vision for Families, Communities, & Second Chances

From left: Dawn Renee Smith, Deputy Director, Nebraska Department of Correctional Services (NDCS); Katie Thurber, Commissioner, Nebraska Department of Labor; Dr. Alyssa Bish, Director, Division of Child & Family Services, Nebraska Department of Health and Human Services; Matthew Ahern, Deputy Director, Nebraska Medicaid; Dr. Steve Corsi, CEO, Nebraska Department of Health and Human Services; and Bob Denton, Deputy Administrator, Nebraska Adult Probation.

Nebraska is redefining what it means to support returning citizens—and the families and communities who stand beside them. Through the TRANSFORM Nebraska Network, state leaders are aligning missions, data, and strategy to build a coordinated, family-centered reentry system that strengthens both public safety and community well-being.

A panel discussion on the theme “Transforming Corrections” took place during the Correctional Leaders Association’s Midwest Directors conference, October 7 through 10, in Omaha, hosted by the Nebraska Department of Correctional Services.

Moderated by Dr. Carrie Pettus, founder and CEO of Wellbeing and Equity Innovations (WEI), the panel convened Nebraska’s top state agency leaders for a forward-looking conversation on transforming reentry through collaboration, innovation, and family engagement.

Dr. Pettus—a national expert in reentry science and systems change—guided the discussion with precision and empathy, drawing out practical insights and highlighting how Nebraska’s leadership is setting a new national benchmark for family-centered justice reform.

Director Rob Jeffreys & the Four Pillars of Correctional Transformation

At the core of Nebraska’s reentry vision is Rob Jeffreys, Director of the Nebraska Department of Corrections (NDCS), whose leadership emphasizes human dignity, accountability, and collaboration.
Jeffreys has articulated four strategic pillars that anchor Nebraska’s approach to corrections and reentry:

1. Staff Empowerment and Wellness – Investing in correctional professionals as agents of change through leadership development, safety, and wellness initiatives.

2. Rehabilitation and Reentry – Aligning services and evidence-based programs to individual needs, ensuring that people are prepared for success before release.

3. Infrastructure and Technology Modernization – Leveraging data integration and digital tools to promote efficiency, transparency, and continuity across agencies.

4. Stakeholder and Community Engagement – Building strong partnerships with families, employers, community groups, and service providers to expand opportunity and trust.

Jeffreys’ four pillars align seamlessly with WEI’s trademark Five-Key Model for Reentry, creating a shared blueprint for progress that begins during incarceration and extends into the heart of Nebraska’s communities.

Families & Communities at the Center

Throughout the discussion, panelists reinforced a clear message: reentry is not only about individuals—it’s about strengthening families and restoring communities.

  • Dr. Alyssa Bish, Director of the Division of Children and Family Services, stated that “family well-being is the bedrock of what we do.” She emphasized that when families are supported, children are safer and reentry outcomes improve for everyone.
  • Bob Denton, Deputy Administrator of Adult Probation, noted that “stabilizing one person means stabilizing a whole household.”
  • Dr. Steve Corsi, CEO of the Department of Health and Human Services, called attention to the often-overlooked role of extended family members, who provide care and housing during incarceration but rarely receive formal support.

Under Dr. Pettus’s guidance, the conversation highlighted the growing consensus that family well-being is not peripheral—it is foundational to long-term public safety, equity, and health.

Aligning Missions Across Agencies

Each participating agency is advancing its mission within a shared framework of family-centered collaboration:

  • Katie Thurber, Commissioner of the Department of Labor, emphasized employment as the key to reducing recidivism: “A good job changes everything for a family.”
  • Matt Ahern, Deputy Director of Medicaid, underscored the importance of continuity in physical and behavioral health care during and after incarceration.
  • Dr. Bish reaffirmed her division’s vision, “Good Life. Safe Families,” as central to Nebraska’s transformation.

 

The 5-Key Model

    Together with NDCS, these leaders are implementing WEI’s Five-Key Model for Reentry, which prioritizes:

    1. Healthy Thinking Patterns – Reliable, mutually beneficial relationships between two people that range from brief to enduring in duration within formal or informal social contexts.

    2. Positive Relationships – Reliable, mutually beneficial relationships between two people that range from brief to enduring in duration within formal or informal social contexts.

    3. Positive Social Engagement – Social experiences organized for beneficial social purposes that directly or indirectly involve others, engaged in during discretionary time, and experienced as enjoyable.

    4. Meaningful Work Trajectories – Sustainable compatibility of an individual’s goals and abilities and the demands of that individual’s occupation (obligations/job paid or unpaid) is sustainable.

    5. Effective Coping Strategies – Adaptive behavioral and psychological efforts taken to manage and reduce internal/external stressors in ways that are not harmful in the short or long-term.

      Collaboration and Innovation in Practice

      The TRANSFORM Nebraska Network exemplifies how intentional collaboration can change systems.

      Bob Denton described it as “moving from cooperation to true integration.”

      Commissioner Thurber proposed embedding employment specialists directly into reentry and family programs.

      Matt Ahern and Dr. Bish emphasized pre-release coordination, starting Medicaid enrollment and family planning before release to ensure continuity of care and income.

      Dr. Pettus facilitated the dialogue by connecting these insights to national best practices—demonstrating how Nebraska’s integrated approach aligns with cutting-edge research on interagency reentry ecosystems.She highlighted how the state’s leadership reflects a growing movement toward evidence-based, family-centered transformation across justice systems.

      Looking Forward: A Statewide Vision of Success

      When asked to define success five years from now, Dr. Steve Corsi envisioned a Nebraska where “families experience support instead of fragmentation, and returning citizens have clear pathways to health, housing, and work.”

      Commissioner Thurber and Dr. Bish offered bold ideas for the Network’s future:

      • A seamless IT system connecting returning citizens with jobs, training, housing, and health services.
      • A father engagement initiative, equipping fathers with parenting and employment resources before release to build stronger families from day one.

      Dr. Pettus closed the discussion by emphasizing that system transformation begins with shared values—a belief that families, not programs, are the central unit of change.

      A National Model on the Horizon

      Through Director Jeffreys’ four pillars of correctional success, Dr. Pettus’s research-driven leadership, and the collective vision of Nebraska’s state agencies, the TRANSFORM Nebraska Network is setting a new national standard for family-centered reentry.

      By linking correctional innovation, health access, family engagement, and workforce development, Nebraska is demonstrating what’s possible when systems unite around a common purpose: empowering families, strengthening communities, and redefining reentry as a pathway to belonging.