summary: SPEP - FY22-23

raw_content:
Standardized Program Evaluation
Protocol [SPEP] Report
Melbourne Center for Personal Growth
AMIkids, Inc
(Contract Provider)
1000 Inspiration Lane
Melbourne, Florida 32934
Primary Service: Aggression Replacement Training
SPEP Review Period: April 1, 2022-March 30, 2023
SPEP Review Conducted: April 25, 2023
Florida Department of Juvenile Justice
Report Date: 08/02/2023
Introduction
The Standardized Program Evaluation Protocol (SPEP) is data-driven rating system for
evaluating program effectiveness. The SPEP was developed by relying on hundreds of studies
that have examined key characteristics of programs that demonstrated their ability to reduce
recidivism. To determine a SPEP score, the program’s services are compared to characteristics
of effective programs in the research of a similar type.
The SPEP score is composed of four principle characteristics that have been shown to predict
reductions in youth recidivism; service type, quality of service, dosage (amount of service), and
youth level of risk.
• Service Type: service type points are awarded based on the group category that the
service falls within
• Quality of Service: quality points are awarded by determining the extent to which the
program is delivered in what research suggests is a high-quality manner
• Amount of Service: or “dosage” refers to the amount and duration of services that were
received
• Risk Level: refers to the level of criminogenic risk for youth involved in the intervention.
The final output of the SPEP review is the Program Optimization Percentage (POP). This rate is
derived from the Basic Score and Program Optimization Score. The POP rate is a percentage
score that indicates how the service rates in effectiveness when compared to the potential
effectiveness if optimized to match the most effective services in the research. This means the
POP rate represents how close the program’s Primary Service is to its potential for that Primary
Service Type. For example, a POP rate of 55% would indicate that the program’s Primary
Service is operating at 55% of its potential effectiveness for recidivism reduction based on the
SPEP research.
Department of Juvenile Justice | Standardized Program Evaluation Protocol [SPEP] Report 2
Basic Score: 35 Points
1. Primary Service and Supplemental Service Types POS: 35 Points
POP: 100%
There are five Primary Service Types that have been classified into Groups with a maximum
number of points possible for rating purposes. Some Primary Service Types may also have
qualifying Supplemental Service Types that could earn a program an additional 5 points.
The Primary Service for this program is Aggression Replacement Training.
The program was awarded 30 points because the Primary Service is identified as a Group 5
Service. The specific Sub-Component Service Type identified is Cognitive Behavioral Therapy.
The Primary Service was identified as this type of service as it is intended to correct faulty
cognitions and perceptions and provides skills individuals can use to monitor thought patterns and
correct behaviors.
An additional 5 points was awarded based on a Qualifying Supplemental Service. The Qualifying
Supplemental Service was identified as None (automatic 5 points added to score), which was not
demonstrated to have been implemented.
The Primary and Supplemental Service Raw Score is equal to the sum of the Primary Service
points plus the Qualifying Supplemental Service points.
Note: Quality information is evaluated during quarterly and annual reviews.
Department of Juvenile Justice | Standardized Program Evaluation Protocol [SPEP] Report 3
Basic Score: 20 Points
2. Overall Quality of Service Delivery Score POS: 20 Points
POP: 100%
The Quality of Service Delivery Score is the sum of the scores for the seven treatment quality
indicators. The Program Optimization Percentage Rating determines the Overall Quality of
Service Level:
Indicator Sum Score 0-3 = Low; Sum Score 4-7 = Medium; Sum Score 8-10 = High.
Sum of all Indicator Scores (a – g below): 10 Points
Overall Quality of Service Delivery Level:
Low (Raw Score = 5)
Medium (Raw Score = 10)
High (Raw Score = 20 Points)
Basic Score: 1 Point(s)
a. Facilitator Training
Maximum Possible Score: 1 Point
All facilitator(s) of the Primary Service must have received formal training specific to the
intervention or model/protocol.
The Standardized Program Evaluation Protocol (SPEP) review encompasses twelve (12) months
of records. Aggression Replacement Training is a multimodal psychoeducational intervention
designed to alter the behavior of chronically aggressive adolescents and young children. The goal
of ART® is to improve social skill competence, anger control, and moral reasoning. To
accomplish this, Aggression Replacement Training (ART) uses the following interventions: social
skills training teaches participants what to do, helping them replace antisocial behaviors with
positive alternatives; anger control teaches participants what not to do, helping them respond to
anger in a nonaggressive manner and rethink anger-provoking situations; moral reasoning helps
raise participants’ level of fairness, justice, and concern for the needs and rights of others.
The program provided documentation of three master level counselors and the director of
treatment having been trained in the primary service.
Basic Score: 2 Point(s)
b. Treatment Manual/Protocol
Maximum Possible Score: 2 Points
There is a specific written manual/protocol detailing delivery of the Primary Service.
The program utilizes the commercially-produced curriculum for Aggression Replacement Training
(ART), which is a highly-detailed curriculum provided three times each week over the course of
ten (10) weeks. The director of treatment has a binder to house all documentation for ART. In the
binder are the youth sign in sheets, internal fidelity monitoring documents, staff training
certificates and copies of the last employee annual evaluations. ART is facilitated as a closed
group, meaning once a cohort begins, no new youth may be added.
Department of Juvenile Justice | Standardized Program Evaluation Protocol [SPEP] Report 4
Basic Score: 1 Point(s)
c. Observed Adherence to the Manual/Protocol
Maximum Possible Score: 1 Point
Upon observation of the Primary Service by the Quality Improvement reviewer, the facilitator of
that service adhered to the written protocol/manual.
A session of Aggression Replacement Training was observed during the annual review. The
group took place in a group room off the case managers' offices. Eight youth, two facilitators, and
one direct care staff were present during the hour-long session. The group began with a review of
the last session which discussed peer pressure. The group discussed how to express affection
and each member was paired with a classmate and completed a role play of the new skill. The
group was engaged the entire time and no behavioral issues were observed.
Basic Score: 2 Point(s)
d. Facilitator Turnover
Maximum Possible Score: 2 Points
Measures the extent to which facilitators of the specific intervention/service have changed as
well as gaps in service of that Primary Service.
According to documentation provided by the program, no facilitator turnover occurred which
adversely affected delivery of Aggression Replacement Training (ART). The groups are co-
facilitated with trained staff so if one person leaves, the other trained facilitator can complete the
cohort with out delay.
The program facilitated three cohorts of ART during the review period. The first cohort began on
June 3, 2022 with ten (10) youth and was completed on August 4, 2022 with ten (10) youth. A
second cohort began on October 4, 2022 with seven youth and was completed on December 8,
2022 with seven youth. A third cohort began on February 28, 2023 with seven youth and was
ongoing at the time of the review with all seven youth. .
Basic Score: 2 Point(s)
e. Internal Fidelity Monitoring
Maximum Possible Score: 2 Points
The program has a process to monitor the delivery of the intervention to examine how closely
actual implementation matches the model protocol.
Internal fidelity monitoring took place on a monthly basis for facilitators of Aggression
Replacement Training, without exception. Each person facilitating group was observed and the
monitoring was conducted by staff member trained in the service.
Basic Score: 1 Point
f. Corrective Action based on Fidelity Monitoring
Maximum Possible Score: 1 Point
The program has a process by which corrective action is applied and demonstrated based on
the fidelity monitoring of the delinquency intervention/therapeutic service.
The program has a process in place to address corrective actions identified during monthly
internal fidelity monitoring. A review of documentation revealed no corrective actions were noted
nor taken during the review period. The facilitators were found to be delivering the primary service
in an acceptable manner.
Department of Juvenile Justice | Standardized Program Evaluation Protocol [SPEP] Report 5
g. Evaluation of Facilitator Skill Delivering the Basic Score: 1 Point
Intervention Maximum Possible Score: 1 Point
Performance evaluations of the facilitators of the specific intervention/service include
evaluation of skill in delivering the intervention/service.
A copy of the annual employee evaluations were provided as part of the review. Each employee
who facilitated Aggression Replacement Training was rated in their effectiveness of service
delivery.
Department of Juvenile Justice | Standardized Program Evaluation Protocol [SPEP] Report 6
3. Amount of Service - Duration
Basic Score: 8 Points
Program Optimization Score: 10 Points
Program Optimization Percentage: 80%
Research indicates the target duration of 10 weeks for this type of service. Of the 15 youth in the
sample, 83% (14 of 15) reached at least the indicated target duration. Further explanation is
detailed in the Summary and Recommendations below.
Note: Dosage information (duration) is calculated from the Juvenile Justice Information System
(JJIS) Evidence-Based Services module. Duration is included for the youth in the SPEP sample.
4. Amount of Service – Contact Hours
Basic Score: 10 Points
Program Optimization Score: 10 Points
Program Optimization Percentage: 100%
Research indicates a target of 30 contact hours for this type of service. Of the 15 youth in the
sample, 100% (15 of 15) reached the indicated target contact hours. Further explanation is
detailed in the Summary and Recommendations below.
Note: Dosage information (contact hours) is calculated from the Juvenile Justice Information
System (JJIS) Evidence-Based Services module. Contact hours are included for the youth in the
SPEP sample.
5. Risk Level of Youth Served:
Basic Score: 15 Points
Program Optimization Score: 25 Points
Program Optimization Percentage: 60%
Percentage of Youth with Moderate, Moderate-High, and High-Risk Levels to Reoffend: 80%
Moderate to High Score: 7 Points
Program Optimization Score: 12 Points
Program Optimization Percentage: 58%
Table 1
Moderate = 3 youth
Moderate-High = 5 youth
High = 4 youth
Total Youth in Sample = 15 youth
Department of Juvenile Justice | Standardized Program Evaluation Protocol [SPEP] Report 7
Percentage of Youth with High-Risk Level to Reoffend: 27%
High Score: 8 Points
Program Optimization Score: 13 Points
Program Optimization Percentage: 62%
Table 2
High = 4 youth
Total Youth in Sample = 15 youth
The risk level score is compiled by calculating the total percent of the SPEP sample that score
Moderate to High-Risk to reoffend and also the total percent of the SPEP sample that score High-
Risk to reoffend.
Of the SPEP sample, 80% (12 of 15) youth scored Moderate to High-Risk to reoffend, for a score
of 7 points.
Of the SPEP sample, 27% (4 of 15) youth scored High-Risk to reoffend, for a score of 8 points.
Note: The latest Community Assessment Tool (CAT) prior to the placement date was used in the
derivation of the risk level score. This CAT provides the best indication of the risk to re-offend
level of the youth when the youth was first placed in the program.
Summary and Recommendations
Program Program
Category Basic Score Optimization Optimization
Score Percentage
Primary and Supplemental Service Type 35 35 100%
Quality of Service Delivery 20 20 100%
Amount of Service: Duration 8 10 80%
Amount of Service: Contact Hours 10 10 100%
Risk Level of Youth Served 15 25 25%
Totals 88 100 88%
This SPEP report evaluates Aggression Replacement Training, an intervention delivered at
Melbourne Center for Personal Growth.
15 youth completed the program during the review period.
The program scored High for Quality of Service Delivery.
The targeted number of weeks for this specific intervention is 10 weeks; the targeted number of
hours for this specific intervention is 30 hours. After additional review and discussion with the
Peabody Research Institute at Vanderbilt University, the Department determined it was within
SPEP standards to deviate from the standard dosage targets for Group 5 services (15 weeks; 45
hours).
Department of Juvenile Justice | Standardized Program Evaluation Protocol [SPEP] Report 8
The program earned 8 points for Amount of Service: Duration. Of the 15 total youth sampled, all
15 included dosage with end dates in the EBS Module. Of those youth, 14 received at least the
recommended weeks of service. Youth in the sample completed between 7 and 12 weeks of
service, with an average of 10 weeks.
The program earned 10 points for Amount of Service: Contact Hours. Of the 15 total youth
sampled, all 15 included dosage in the EBS Module. Of those youth, 15 received at least the
recommended hours of service. Youth in the sample completed 30 hours of service.
The program was awarded 15 available points for Risk Level of Youth Served. This is calculated
using data from the Community Assessment Tool (CAT). This score reflects youths' most recent
CAT score prior to placement at the program. The program itself has no control over youths' CAT
risk level because the scored assessment was administered prior to the youths' admission.
Had the percentage of youth served with Moderate-High and High risk to reoffend been higher,
and this report awarded each 25 of the available points for this section, the Program Optimization
Percentage for this service would increase to 98%. As stated previously, the Risk Level of Youth
Served score is not under the control of the program.
RECOMMENDATION(S):
Melbourne Center for Personal Growth can maintain their SPEP Quality of Service Delivery score
by continuing the practices in place at the time of this review.
Melbourne Center for Personal Growth can optimize their SPEP Amount of Service score by
ensuring dosage for all youth is recorded accurately in EBS and by ensuring youth receive the full
targeted dosage of service.
Department of Juvenile Justice | Standardized Program Evaluation Protocol [SPEP] Report 9

file_name: FY2022-23 MCPG ART.pdf