Supervision Agency Gender-Responsive Evaluation (SAGE)

Overview

Women in the Justice System

Women make up the fastest-growing group under community supervision, yet most agency policies, practices, and programs were created with men in mind. This creates a persistent gap between what agencies provide and what women under supervision truly need—a gap that leads to higher rates of revocation, absconding, and unmet needs, costing women, their families, and the communities agencies serve.

Closing that gap requires a clear understanding of where your agency currently stands. That is exactly what the Supervision Agency Gender-Responsive Evaluation (SAGE) is designed to deliver. For community supervision agencies prepared to evaluate and improve their gender-responsive practices, CEPP offers practical SAGE implementation support—bringing national expertise, a structured approach, and actionable guidance directly to your agency. This is a professional services engagement, customized to your jurisdiction’s specific context and capacity.

What Is the SAGE?

The SAGE is a comprehensive, multi-method assessment framework grounded in research evidence on gender-responsive supervision. It transforms that evidence into a structured, practitioner-led evaluation process.

The SAGE is designed to be carried out by local agency staff and is guided by CEPP’s training and coaching. This method develops internal capacity and encourages investment in the results. The evaluation reviews current practices across six domains:

The process usually takes six to eight months from start to finish. By the end, agencies have a clear, evidence-based understanding of their strengths, gaps, and priorities, along with a concrete action plan to move forward.

Who Should Use the SAGE?

The SAGE is designed for community supervision agencies across the justice continuum, including probation departments, parole agencies, and pretrial services, that are committed to improving outcomes for women under supervision. It is especially suitable for agencies that:

• Are beginning or deepening gender-responsive reform efforts
• Aim to base strategic planning on data about current practices.
• Are trying to reduce revocation and absconding rates among women.
• Need to improve coordination across supervision, treatment, mental health, and community support systems.

Are responding to leadership, legislative, or community requests for more equitable practices.

Our Approach

What CEPP Provides

CEPP’s engagement is organized into three phases, offering support from initial preparation to final planning.

CEPP offers support through virtual training sessions, coaching calls, and on-site technical assistance. At the end of the engagement, your agency will receive a written summary of findings and a prioritized action plan that can directly guide strategic planning, budget requests, programming decisions, and staff development.

The Impact

Expected Benefits

Since the SAGE was developed in 2021, CEPP has supported 11 counties across 10 states through the SAGE process, including Deschutes County, OR; Hennepin County, MN; Sacramento County, CA; Tarrant County, TX; and additional counties in Colorado, Oregon, South Carolina, and Virginia. Agencies that have completed the SAGE process report significant improvements within their organizations. Based on the evidence base behind the tool and the experience of participating sites, agencies can expect:

• Lower rates of revocation and absconding among women under supervision, as practices align more closely with what research indicates is effective.
• Enhancing service delivery with data-driven planning that links supervision practices to women’s real risks and needs.
• Enhanced cross-system coordination, including improved policy alignment among supervision agencies, mental health services, treatment providers, and community support networks.
• Strengthen gender-responsive capacity within the agency, including better staff skills, awareness, and culture.
• A consistent quality assurance process that enables ongoing evaluation and continuous improvement.

What Partner Agencies Are Saying

Agencies that have worked with CEPP on the SAGE describe an experience characterized by genuine collaboration, ongoing support, and a meaningful boost in their ability to serve women under supervision.

“Thank you so much for the invaluable support you’ve provided over the past two years. It has truly been a privilege to work with you, and we have benefited greatly from your expertise and commitment to advancing gender-responsive practices in community supervision. Your support and partnership guidance has helped us build a stronger foundation for supporting women under supervision.” — Jessica Wildermuth, Ph.D., Project Manager for Hennepin County Department of Community Corrections and Rehabilitation

“The providers from CEPP have always proven to be responsive, efficient, and effective in the performance of project deliverables. Their work on institutional and community assessments for women under supervision has resulted in a one-of-a-kind tool that agencies have embraced and found incredibly useful.” — Lorie Brisbin, Former Correctional Program Specialist, National Institute of Corrections

“We very much appreciate the time you spent with us, and I hope for a future that will allow us to continue this work to better the experience for justice-involved women.” — Tira Hubbard, Adult Services Division Director, Multnomah County, Oregon Community Justice

Partner with CEPP

CEPP has dedicated 45 years to collaborating with policymakers, agencies, and communities to promote justice, with our Gender Equity portfolio at the core of that effort. We offer extensive expertise in evidence-based supervision practices, a proven track record working with agencies nationwide, and a commitment to strengthening your team’s internal capacity to maintain improvements long after our partnership concludes. Besides the SAGE, CEPP has facilitated the Gender-Informed Practices Assessment (GIPA)—a comparable assessment tool for institutional settings—in facilities across Illinois, Iowa, Michigan, Missouri, New York, Oregon, South Carolina, and Washington, and has partnered with the Federal Bureau of Prisons to conduct a GIPA at a federal women’s correctional facility in Florida.

We understand that each jurisdiction’s needs, structure, and capacity vary. Our collaborations are built together, and we welcome an initial conversation to explore how the SAGE might align with your agency’s priorities, timeline, and budget.

Whether you serve a pretrial, probation, or parole population—or a combination of these—we are prepared to help you develop practices that lead to better outcomes for women, their families, and your community.

To learn more, contact us to discuss scope, timeline, and cost. Erica King, Senior Manager |  eking@cepp.com