A new partnership between Rockwall County and R.E.C. Treatment Center is bringing substance use treatment directly to individuals in the Rockwall County Jail, with the goal of beginning recovery before participants return home to their families and communities.
R.E.C. Treatment Center, short for Rehabilitation, Education, Community, is a nonprofit behavioral health organization serving justice-impacted adults. Its new Rockwall County program provides voluntary substance use treatment inside the jail through a 10-week pilot designed to serve up to 16 participants per treatment cycle.
The initiative was developed in collaboration with Rockwall County leadership and the Sheriff’s Office and received unanimous approval from the Rockwall County Commissioners Court. According to R.E.C. founder and Executive/Clinical Director Michael Meireles, LCSW, LCDC, SAP, the program grew from a shared belief that intervention should begin earlier in a person’s involvement with the criminal justice system.
“Treatment and accountability are not opposing ideas, they work best together,” Meireles said. “Holding someone accountable for their actions is important but helping them understand and address the underlying issues that contributed to those actions creates a much greater opportunity for lasting change.”
Bringing Treatment to People Before They Return Home
The program seeks to address a common gap in the criminal justice and behavioral health systems: people struggling with substance use may spend time incarcerated without receiving meaningful treatment until after their release, if they receive it at all.
R.E.C. says more than 60% of individuals entering jail have untreated substance use disorders. The Rockwall County pilot aims to use time in custody as an opportunity to begin addressing those issues and prepare participants for a more stable return to the community.
Participants receive comprehensive substance use assessments, clinical diagnoses, individualized treatment plans, individual and group counseling, and relapse prevention planning. Educational components address decision-making, emotional regulation, stress management, healthy relationships and recovery skills.
Treatment also looks beyond substance use itself. R.E.C. works to connect participants with resources addressing employment, housing, transportation, healthcare and other practical challenges that can affect someone’s ability to remain stable following release.
The in-jail program is entirely voluntary and offered at no cost to participants.
Early Results Underscore the Need
One of the most notable findings from the program’s first cohort, Meireles said, is that more than half of its participants had never previously received formal substance use treatment.
For some, the pilot represents their first opportunity to work with a licensed clinician to understand the factors contributing to their substance use and develop healthier coping strategies.
Meireles said one participant who has since returned to the community voluntarily contacted R.E.C. for help connecting with additional resources, not because treatment was required, but because he wanted continued support as he worked toward greater stability.
“Recovery isn’t just about completing a program,” Meireles said. “It’s about someone recognizing they don’t have to navigate life’s challenges alone.”
When participants give permission, the organization can also communicate with family members to help loved ones understand how they can support the recovery process.
Measuring Success Beyond the 10-Week Program
R.E.C. plans to measure more than whether participants simply complete the program.
During treatment, clinicians monitor attendance, engagement, participation and progress toward individualized goals. Afterward, the organization intends to maintain contact with participants for up to 12 months, tracking four areas associated with successful recovery and community reintegration: employment and financial stability; access to basic needs such as housing, food and transportation; mental health and continued treatment; and legal stability.
The longer-term follow-up is also intended to identify new problems as they emerge and reconnect former participants with community resources when additional assistance is needed.
“Recovery is not defined by completing a 10-week program,” Meireles said. “It is measured by how individuals are doing months later as they rebuild their lives.”
A Community Partnership
R.E.C. credits Rockwall County Jail administrators with helping make the pilot possible. Meireles said Captain Gray recognized the potential value of offering treatment within the jail, while Officer Klosterman worked with R.E.C. to ensure the clinical program could operate effectively within the facility.
The organization is also working with community partners including Helping Hands of Rockwall County, North Texas Behavioral Health Authority, Miles of Freedom and Texas Workforce Solutions. Together, those relationships can help connect participants with behavioral health care, employment and workforce assistance, food and basic-needs support, housing resources and other services following release.
If the Rockwall County pilot proves successful, R.E.C. hopes to expand access locally and potentially offer a model that other Texas counties could consider.
For Meireles, however, the larger purpose is not simply about creating another program within the criminal justice system. It is about what happens when participants eventually walk back into their communities.
“The people participating in this program are our neighbors,” Meireles said. “They are someone’s son or daughter, mother or father, spouse, coworker, friend, or family member.”
Substance use can have a ripple effect across families, workplaces and communities, he said, but recovery can create a ripple effect as well.
“When someone receives quality treatment early, learns healthier ways to cope, returns to work, reconnects with family, and becomes a productive member of the community, everyone benefits,” Meireles said.
About R.E.C. Treatment Center
R.E.C. Treatment Center is a nonprofit organization providing substance use treatment, education and recovery support for justice-impacted adults. In addition to its work within the Rockwall County Jail, the organization offers outpatient and educational services through in-person and virtual programs, income-based sliding-scale fees and Community Access Scholarships for qualifying individuals experiencing financial hardship. Its programs are supported through charitable community contributions.
Readers can learn more about R.E.C. Treatment Center, its services, volunteer opportunities and ways to support its mission at the organization’s website.
