The National Governors Association (NGA) released the following update on the Learning Collaborative, a six-month-long program to support senior state officials in developing and implementing deflection and pre-arrest diversion programs. Cordata’s Vice President of Strategy and Partnerships, Dr. Kelly Firesheets, joined other local, state, and national experts in guiding teams through the action planning process.
In January 2023, participants from Illinois, Nevada, North Carolina and Pennsylvania attended the kickoff meeting for the National Governors Association’s (NGA) Learning Collaborative on Strategies to Support the Development of State-Level Deflection and Pre-Arrest Diversion (DPAD) Initiatives. This Learning Collaborative is a six-month-long opportunity designed to support Governors’ offices and other senior state officials in the development and implementation of a sustainable state-level DPAD initiative addressing the needs of individuals with substance use disorders (SUD).
During the kickoff meeting, participating states were able to share successes and best practices with other states and learn about current innovative and evidence-based DPAD initiatives from national, state and local experts. With support and partnership from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) and in collaboration with the Police, Treatment, and Community Collaborative (PTACC), NGA guided state teams through the action planning process.
This meeting will be followed by six months of specialized technical assistance as well as monthly state team calls, webinars and possible in-state site visits. Contact Ken Hardy (Khardy@nga.org) or Maria Kearl (MKearl@nga.org) for more information.