Evaluation/Research Support Services for
the Pennsylvania Commission on Crime and Delinquency

In 2008, JRSA began an 18-month project to provide evaluation and research assistance to the Pennsylvania Commission on Crime and Delinquency (PCCD) in order to help the Office of Criminal Justice System Improvements (OCJSI) of PCCD improve its ability to produce meaningful information on the performance of PCCD-funded projects. The primary component of this project is to develop a process for the selection, submission, analysis and use of performance measurement data by OCJSI using mental health courts supported by PCCD as a prototype. In addition, activities will also include providing guidance to PCCD on other research and evaluation support efforts.

The overall project goal is to help OCJSI of PCCD improve their ability to produce meaningful information on the performance of PCCD-funded projects. In light of that, the project has several objectives:

1. assess OCJSI's current performance measurement approach and needs associated with developing a new approach;
2. develop a process for the selection of performance measures and submission of performance measurement data for mental health courts that permits:
   1. individual programs to report on significant accomplishments,
   2. OCJSI to aggregate performance measurement data across like programs, and
   3. OCJSI to meet performance measurement requirements of external funding agencies including the Department of Justice; and
3. improve the ability of OCJSI to use performance measurement information to make funding decisions and help programs improve performance.

For more information about this project, please contact Mary Poulin at mpoulin@jrsa.org.