Maintaining Family Ties in the Federal Prison System

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Hosted by Adrienne McCormick, Senior Correctional Programs Specialist with the Federal Bureau of Prisons, this webinar explores the experiences of mothers who are incarcerated.

Women are often the primary or sole caregivers of children prior to incarceration, and some give birth while incarcerated. Two programs offer support to women in federal prison before, during, and after childbirth: Mothers and Infants Together (MINT) and the Residential Parenting Program (RPP).

The MINT Program allows women to transfer to a community residential program during the last two months of pregnancy and remain there for up to three months after birth to bond with their children before returning to the institution to complete their sentence.

The RPP allows women in minimum security settings and with a sentence of less than 30 months the opportunity to reside with their babies after birth in a supervised environment for up to 30 months. During this time, the mothers also receive a variety of services such a mental health, medical care, vocational training, and child care. Additional programming is then offered inside the prisons to help facilitate family activities and bonding.