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Wagoner County tables jail-based RISE program funding pending grant sign-off
Summary
County commissioners tabled a request to use an existing opioid grant to fund tablets and a jail-based RISE reentry curriculum after staff said the grant administrator must first confirm allowable expenses. Sheriff and district attorney representatives endorsed the program as a tool to reduce recidivism.
WAGONER COUNTY, Okla. — Wagoner County commissioners on Oct. 6 agreed to table a request to use the county's opioid grant to buy tablets and support a jail-based RISE curriculum designed to teach inmates skills such as anger management and substance-use education.
Proponents described RISE as a rigorous, 90-day program intended to provide incarcerated people with tools to address root causes of substance use and mental-health problems and to prepare some participants for drug and mental-health court. Sheriff Chris Elliott told commissioners the approach matches a national trend and could help lower recidivism by providing education and support while people are still in custody. "If we're going to release people back into our community, we are gonna have to start on a local level of start looking at programs like RISE," Elliott said.
County jail staff requested permission to shift existing opioid-grant funds to buy locked-down tablets and curriculum delivery for the program, but staff said final approval must come from the grant administrator. Grant coordinator told the board she had forwarded the county's request for review and was awaiting confirmation from Healthy Minds/OAB about whether the current grant can cover the purchases before the grant ends in June 2026. "I'm still waiting on confirmation from Jill at OAB that this is a good fit," the staff member said.
Commissioners moved to table the request so staff can obtain the written confirmation; the motion passed on a roll-call vote. The action preserves the county's ability to pursue the program if the grant administrator signs off, and it leaves the county without a formal funding commitment until that confirmation arrives.
Discussion included details on program delivery and participant selection. Presenters said inmates would be supervised, classes would be restricted to the program and that tablets would be locked so they could be used only for assigned coursework. The district attorney and sheriff supported trying programs in the jail setting for people who could not bond out or who otherwise lacked community supports. The board did not authorize any purchases at the Oct. 6 meeting.
