Virtual Academy

What is the Virtual Academy?

The Advancing Data in Corrections initiative includes a Virtual Academy, which builds data literacy and analytic capabilities within departments of corrections (DOCs) nationwide to further data-informed planning and decision-making. Through their participation in the Virtual Academy, corrections agency staff can access the program’s self-paced learning materials, community forum, peer-to-peer networks, and technical assistance at no cost.

The CSG Justice Center’s work on the Virtual Academy is funded by the Bureau of Justice Assistance (BJA). BJA is a component of the U.S. Department of Justice’s Office of Justice Programs.

The program is guided by the Virtual Academy Correctional Research Leaders Advisory Council, a group of five leaders in the field of corrections research and data analytics.

Who is the Virtual Academy for and what is its goal?

The Virtual Academy is for DOC staff who analyze their agency’s data, along with their supervisors. Staff who do this job may have many titles and work in variously named divisions, depending on how DOC leadership structures the agency’s research and data analysis capacity. For the sake of brevity, program materials refer to these staff as corrections analysts. The goal of the Virtual Academy is to give corrections analysts the necessary tools and guidance to enhance their ability to analyze their own data.

What tools and services can corrections analysts access through the Virtual Academy?

The Virtual Academy provides DOC leaders and analysts with the opportunity to do the following:

• Access a package of resources designed to facilitate skill-building and spark ideas for how to use corrections data.
• Receive asynchronous, online training to learn new analytical skills.
• Join a community of practitioners to get support from peers across the country.
• Work with subject matter experts to receive targeted troubleshooting and learn how to better communicate research results to policymakers and correctional leaders.

It does this by providing a variety of products, such as the following:

• Online, self-guided courses designed to expand analytical capabilities. Topics include learning the R programming language, dealing with data quality issues, and conducting statistical analyses. These courses are accompanied by written methodological standards.
• An online forum to give analysts an opportunity to connect with one another to build productive relationships with peers across the country
• A regular seminar series that showcases innovative analytic projects from DOCs across the country
• A guide for recruiting, hiring, and retaining corrections analysts, including core competencies that standardize the skills and experience analysts should have at different seniority levels
• Standing online office hours for people to ask field experts their analytic and research questions
• A model code repository with a variety of code templates written in the R statistical programming language to improve data analytic efficiency and accuracy
• A repository with reports from corrections agencies across the country to assist in generating analytic reporting ideas
• An in-person conference in August 2024 to meet peers and learn more about the field

How can I get involved?

Please reach out to virtualacademy@csg.org if you have any questions about the program or to find out how it may benefit your state’s DOC.