WITNESS
Larry Brimeyer is a Regional Deputy Director for the Iowa Department of Corrections. He is responsible for the operations of five correctional institutions housing over 5,000 offenders. He also provides oversight to community corrections programs in the four judicial districts in the Eastern Region of Iowa where over 15,000 offenders are under some form of community supervision.
Mr. Brimeyer is a 35 year corrections employee. He began his career as a Correctional Officer at the Anamosa State Penitentiary. He has also served as a Correctional Counselor, Correctional Treatment Manager, Administrative Law Judge, and Deputy Warden. He has taught Criminal Law as an Adjunct Faculty member at Kirkwood Community College in Cedar Rapids, Iowa. He is a member of the American Correctional Association and is a certified ACA accreditation auditor. Mr. Brimeyer has a B.A. in Psychology and an M.A. in Rehabilitation Counseling.
Mr. Bimeyer provided project oversight of a two year NIJ grant-funded program on Correctional Officer Stress from 2001-2003. This research-based field test addressed employee stress at two of the institutions he is responsible for.
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STATEMENT
In 2001, the National Institute of Justice provided grant funding to three Departments of Corrections and three Law Enforcement agencies to implement a program focusing on the prevention and reduction of stress among officers and their families as part of a field test. The Iowa Department of Corrections was one of the field test sites….
The "Peer Support Program" is the legacy of the stress grant project. …Peer support is a process whereby co-workers (peer supporters), who are trained to recognize various symptoms and problems, assist their fellow officers through listening, understanding and providing appropriate referrals when necessary. Peer support is the concept of providing an avenue for employees to "talk out" their personal problems privately with co-workers who understand and want to help. Many talk to peers who have "been there," whose help they can solicit as equals. Peer support programs may serve as early detection mechanisms to help staff deal with personal and professional problems before they become more serious. Peer supporters are co-workers, friends and supervisors who have volunteered to share their life experiences. They have also received the training necessary to become peer supporters and continue to work at their regular job assignments.
…A program such as this is not one that can be thrown out to institutions to be implemented randomly, without experience or focus. It needs to be carefully shaped to ensure effectiveness and sustainability, to guarantee that it will deliver the desired results. Nor is it a program that is easily measured for success, because this program is not about numbers. If a difference was made in one person's life that helped them achieve a healthier and happier life, the program was successful.
Excerpted from a written statement submitted to the Commission
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