Reading The Courant's account of the judiciary committee's public hearings on proposed reforms for our state's criminal justice system, it appears we are at a crossroads [Page 1, Nov. 28, "Justice In The Dock After Cheshire"]. Public and official opinion has concluded that for the sake of public safety, Connecticut will be facing larger prison populations and longer stays for inmates.

As a pupil services specialist with the Department of Correction, I know firsthand that to reform how we handle — and eventually release — the incarcerated, we cannot ignore the need to invest in the educational and vocational workforce in our institutions.

Today, up to three-quarters of Connecticut's inmates receive no occupational training or educational development while incarcerated. It is in all our interests to prepare the incarcerated to be productive members of society when they eventually return to our neighborhoods.

If we are to accomplish this, we need to double the current number of state schoolteachers and pupil services specialists in the Department of Correction. Such an investment will enable the attainment of a real education, the development of social skills and the realization of vocational skills training to be assessed, along with other criteria, before making the critical decision to release an inmate to the community.

That is why my fellow members in CSEA/SEIU Local 2001 and I are recommending lawmakers empower the Department of Correction to achieve the workforce levels needed to implement and assess such a performance-based outcome. Working together, we can improve discipline and security in our facilities, boost economic growth in our neighborhoods, and ultimately make our communities safer.

Ann Francisco
Middlebury

The writer is steward of P-3B Council, CSEA/SEIU Local 2001.