SUBJECT: Unit Management | PAGE 1 OF 6 . |
NUMBER: 74-UMA-01 | |
ORC/OAC REFERENCE: ORC 5120.01 | SUPERSEDES: 74-UMA-01 dated 02/01/2024 |
RELATED ACA STANDARDS: | EFFECTIVE DATE: |
5-ACI-2B-02, 2B-03, 3A-06, 5B-05, | April 14, 2025 |
5-ACI-5E-09 | |
APPROVED: |
Ohio Revised Code 5120.01 authorizes the Director of the Department of Rehabilitation and Correction, as the executive head of the department, to direct the total operations and management of the department by establishing procedures as set forth in this policy.
The purpose of this policy is to set forth guidelines regarding the accessibility and responsibilities of unit personnel assigned to monitor and provide services to incarcerated persons (IPs).
This policy applies to all persons employed by the Ohio Department of Rehabilitation and Correction (ODRC), contractors providing a service to the ODRC, IPs, and volunteers.
The definitions for the terms below can be found at the top of the policies page on the ODRC Intranet.
Unit management’s primary responsibility is to know and provide hope to the IPs in their unit by having meaningful contact with them on a routine basis to provide individually focused services. Unit management staff members shall facilitate personal contact and interaction with IP assigned to their specific caseloads by providing programming, maintaining unit office hours and regular visual inspections of living areas. Unit management staff at each facility shall provide programming based on the outcome of the annual needs assessment. Unit management staff shall assist in identifying and solving adjustment related problems to help IP make decisions, plan actions, and reach goals.
Unit managers shall ensure unit staff compliance with caseload management procedures outlined in policy and developed by the UMC locally. At a minimum, the caseload management system shall include regular contacts with IP to review their institutional adjustment, case plan, ORAS case plan, classification status, release plan, program/work assignments, disciplinary history, and participation in prosocial activities and programs. These contacts and resulting documentation shall be entered into the IP’s official record.
Unit management staff shall provide programs as outlined in ODRC Policy 02-REN-02, Unit Management Core Programs. Case managers shall provide a minimum of four (4) hours of unit management core programing per week. In addition, unit staff shall help facilitate prosocial opportunities including, but not limited to, community service, volunteer programs, peer-led programs, family engagement events, , and skill building programs.
Core hours of unit management coverage shall be 8:00 AM - 6:00 PM Monday-Thursday, 8:00 AM - 4:00 PM on Friday, and a minimum of four (4) hours coverage 8:00 AM - 4:00 PM on Saturday or Sunday. Each unit team shall provide coverage for their areas of responsibility. Coverage by one person/team institution-wide is not permitted. Coverage, including weekends and evenings (4:00 PM – 6:00 PM), may be provided by unit managers, case managers, correctional counselors, and/or administrative professionals.
Unit managers shall ensure coverage by submitting a monthly schedule to the UMC by the 15th of the previous month. Schedules shall be posted in all living units and accessible to other departments. Deviations from the established schedule shall be approved in advance by the UMC. Management shall provide advanced notice when adjusting schedules to accommodate expected coverage for institutional need/special events, including weekends and evenings. There shall be no coverage provided on state holidays except where a local labor-management agreement exists.
Unit managers shall be required to make contact on every shift monthly with a minimum of two
(2) hours on the 3rd shift.
Correctional counselors shall make no more than two (2) third shift contacts a month, not to exceed three (3) hours at the beginning or end of the shift.
The UMC shall formally meet with unit managers monthly and all unit staff quarterly. Regional reentry coordinators shall be invited to meetings held by the UMC at least quarterly. Unit managers are responsible for ensuring monthly unit meetings occur in the unit they supervise. The UMC or unit manager may determine whether more frequent meetings are required. Guidelines for unit meetings include:
A pre-planned agenda shall be distributed to all invitees prior to unit meetings.
Unit meeting minutes shall be taken and distributed to all attendees. A copy of the minutes shall be placed in the Post Information Manual and/or available electronically on a shared server.
Unit officers shall be invited to unit meetings and have a mechanism whereby they may provide input if unable to attend.
The responsible deputy warden shall ensure that unit management and security maintain a cooperative relationship. To accomplish this:
The security chief shall ensure all unit managers and the UMC are copied on the shift report.
Post orders shall contain directions for unit officers to address concerns with the unit manager.
Unit managers shall provide input into work evaluations for unit officers.
Unit staff shall be available to IP to ensure crisis and routine intervention through making rounds, holding office hours, and conducting town hall meetings.
The UMC shall conduct weekly rounds in all living areas and TPU to address staff and IP concerns and evaluate implementation of the unit management system. UMCs shall coordinate their rounds to ensure they include joint visits to all living areas and TPU with the Chief of Security biweekly as outlined in ODRC Policy 50-PAM-02, Incarcerated Person Communication/Weekly Rounds,
All unit managers, case managers, and correctional counselors shall conduct meaningful rounds in all living areas in their unit daily. Staff providing evening coverage shall make rounds after 4:00 PM. The UMC shall review the Employee Visit Record Log (DRC6011) periodically to ensure compliance.
The UMC shall ensure unit staff visit IP in the transitional program unit (TPU) at least once every seven (7) days. Visits shall be documented on the DRC6011 in TPU and on the individual DRC4118 Individual Segregation Record Sheet.
Case managers shall hold office hours during periods when IP are likely to be in the living area. Office hours shall be posted in the living area and updated whenever schedule changes are made. Office hours shall be a minimum of two (2) hours daily.
Correctional Counselors shall be available to IP during half of their shift. This includes being available for crisis intervention. For example, correctional counselors working with two (2) blocks on an eight-hour (8) shift shall be available for two (2) hours per day per block. Correctional counselors working with four (4) pods shall be accessible for one (1) hour per area.
Unit staff shall use available technology, including tablet-based communication, to make general announcements and keep IP informed about significant changes affecting the population and opportunities available to them.
Unit management staff shall conduct town hall meetings at least quarterly to maintain good communication with IP living in their areas of supervision. Town hall meetings shall be documented using a sign-in sheet and pre-planned agenda which includes time for IP to express ideas and concerns.
In addition to the expectations outlined above, the following roles and responsibilities are general requirements for each of the unit management positions. This list is not exhaustive.
Unit Management Chief (UMC)
Work at the direction of assigned deputy warden,
Ensure that unit managers manage their units in compliance with subsection VI of this policy,
Conduct annual needs assessment in compliance with ODRC Policy 71-SOC-10, Annual Needs and Staffing Assessment for Social Services Programming,
Create a programming schedule to meet the needs identified in the annual needs assessment and that addresses excessive waiting lists for individual programs and complies with ODRC Policy 02-REN-02, Unit Management Core Programs,
Oversee the classification system including security reviews and transfer requests,
Monitor compliance with ODRC Policy 02-REN-01, Reentry Assessment and Planning.
Correction Specialist (Unit Manager)
Work at the direction of the UMC,
Manage unit operations in compliance with subsection VI,
Provide supervision and direction to unit staff,
Provide quality assurance for disciplinary, classification, case planning, and release planning actions,
Have primary responsibility for IP bed and unit moves that involve their unit. Security supervisors shall have authority to make bed moves made for institutional need or for security reasons in the absence of the unit manager,
Maintain ongoing communication with other department heads, 1st, 2nd, and 3rd shift supervisors and correction officers assigned to their unit,
Provide input into post orders for correction officers working in their unit,
Provide input on job evaluations of all permanently assigned correction officers,
Conduct investigations as assigned,
Provide verbal or written after-action reports on all significant incidents and acts of violence occurring in their units as assigned by the responsible deputy warden.
Correctional Program Specialist (Case Manager)
Work at the direction of the unit manager,
Assist assigned caseload by providing key services such as risk assessments, case planning, programming, and other social services to help IP during incarceration and upon reentry,
Guide and assist IP by acting as a liaison between them and other service providers, including outside agencies,
Complete classification actions for those on their caseload,
Conduct routine office hours according to the posted schedule,
Engage in comprehensive release and reentry planning for those on their caseload.
Correctional Counselors
Work at the direction of the unit manager,
Acts as hearing officer in disciplinary process,
Inspect units for cleanliness and adherence to security and safety practices,
Address the complaints and concerns of IPs and investigate incidents of disruptive activity,
Meet routinely with correction officers assigned to living areas and support them in enforcing rules, complying with post orders, maintaining sanitation, and addressing IP concerns,
Assist in facilitating meaningful activities inside the unit, including recreational activities, community service, and skill-building activities.
Administrative Professionals
Work at the direction of the unit manager and/or UMC,
Assist with clerical duties (i.e., filing, scanning, tracking, answering phones, data entry, etc.) and Administrative Professionals,
Work at the direction of the unit manager and/or UMC,
Assist with clerical duties (i.e., filing, scanning, tracking, answering phones, data entry into ORAS/DOTS, etc.),
Assist with videoconferencing (i.e., Legal, Video In-Reach, APA Workshop, other agencies, etc.),
Assist in facilitating meaningful activities, and
Assist in processing visiting applications.
Corrections Officer
Work under the administrative supervision of both the unit manager and shift supervisors when assigned to living areas,
Work cooperatively with correctional counselors to enforce rules, maintain sanitation, and address IP concerns.
02-REN-01 Prison Reentry Assessment and Planning 02-REN-02 Unit Management Core Programs
50-PAM-02 Incarcerated Person Communication/Weekly Rounds
71-SOC-10 Annual Needs and Staffing Assessment for Social Services Programming
Individual Restrictive Housing Record Sheet DRC4118 Employee Visit Record Log DRC6011