by April Scheinoha
Reporter
Recidivism is declining, thanks, in part, to programs offered by the Minnesota Department of Corrections field office in Thief River Falls. At its meeting Tuesday, Oct. 12, the Pennington County Board heard an update on the programs offered by the DOC field office.
Moving On is one program offered by the Thief River Falls field office. The program helps female offenders build their social skills and find motivation to move forward in the following areas: personal, family, community, and employment/education.
Jessica Aarestad, senior agent, said Moving On focuses on where the women want to go rather than where they have been. The program breaks negative thought patterns, helps them work on their emotions and helps them determine what is healthy.
Moving On has been offered several times over the past five years in Polk County. Aarestad said she is excited to offer it here now.
The DOC field office also provides the Men’s Domestic Violence Group and the Cognitive Behavioral Group, which are offered by Legacy Group LLC. Both are 36-hour virtual courses that meet weekly. Each course costs $400, which is paid by the attendee. The Men’s Domestic Violence Group features activities for cognitive, social and emotional skills development. The Cognitive Behavioral Group teaches attendees ways to identify and manage their risk factors.
Besides facilitating those groups, agents also handle responsibilities related to Drug Court, DWI Court and the Sex Offender Treatment Program. Marc Bloomquist, DOC district supervisor, said the field office plans to offer dual-diagnosis youth programming in the future. Such programming would be for those youth who have been diagnosed with both mental health and chemical dependency issues.
County Board approved an agreement with Ehlers to administer the county’s American Rescue Plan funding. Ehlers will be paid $250 per hour. Ehlers will advise the county on eligible uses and provide oversight pertaining to the county’s $2.74 million in ARP funding.
County Auditor-Treasurer Jennifer Herzberg said other counties, including Red Lake County, have chosen to contract with Ehlers for such services.
County Board Chairperson Neil Peterson said it was a good move to contract with Ehlers because the county may have to pay back the full amount if it makes a wrong move.
As part of several motions, commissioners approved changes to their December meeting schedule.
They scheduled the Truth in Taxation hearing for Tuesday, Dec. 14 at 6 p.m. Since state statute mandates the county to hold that hearing at 6 p.m., County Board moved its regular meeting to 5 p.m. that day. Usually, the first meeting of the month is the morning meeting.
The second meeting of the month is usually the evening meeting. Due to the above changes, that meeting was shifted to the morning meeting. It was also shifted to a Thursday since commissioners wanted to allow for the handling of end-of-the-year items. The second December meeting will instead be held Thursday, Dec. 30 at 10 a.m.
County Board set a public hearing regarding the partial abandonment of County Ditch 16. The hearing will be held Tuesday, Nov. 23 at 4 p.m. at the Justice Center.
An adjacent landowner requested the partial abandonment, noting that his property drains to the south. County Engineer Mike Flaagan said he would call that portion a “slight swale” and not a ditch. He added that the original ditch description dates back to the early 1900s and it’s hard to say whether anything was ever built. The landowner already pays into the Judicial Ditch 11 system.
The next County Board meeting is scheduled Tuesday, Oct. 26 at 5 p.m. at the Justice Center.