America Correctional Association

The American Correctional Association (ACA) is the largest correctional association in the world and represents all organizations of corrections within the criminal justice system. “The ACA is comprised of 78 chapters and affiliated organizational members, including federal, state, and military correctional facilities and prisons, county jails and detention centers, community corrections and halfway houses, and probation/parole agencies. The organization leads the cause of corrections and correctional effectiveness for practitioners and to benefit the public” (Gale).
In 1870, it was established as the National Prison Association (later renamed the American Prison Association), which makes it the oldest association in the correctional profession. The organization changed its name from the APA to the ACA in 1954 because they recognized that the corrections concept extends beyond prisons and jails. The ACA contributes towards increasing professional knowledge and abilities by providing an academic forum. The annual conventions focus on information about new philosophies and practices within the correctional disciplines. The ideas and information exchanged may ultimately affect over 600,000 staff members and inmates in the nation’s correctional systems” (Gale). The ACA also provides professional development, certification to standards and accreditation, and aids with research and publications. The ACA advocated for rehabilitation by providing offenders with physical exercise, recreation, religious programs, education, and job training. Another issue within the ACA is the treatment and rehabilitation of female offenders.
The Association on Programs for Female Offenders (APFO) is an affiliate of the ACA and serves as an advocacy group for female offenders. They advanced correctional concerns that pertain to female offenders. Some concerns are visitation with children, intra-prison pregnancies, and drug treatment programs designed to prevent harm to unborn children of pregnant females at the time of incarceration. With the knowledge and success the ACA provides, my career success can be improved. The education I received at Mount Mercy College is now getting improved from University of Phoenix.

If I commit to a job within corrections after graduation, the ACA will continuously improve my education because of the unlimited access a member can receive. I would also try to attend their yearly conferences to become a better staff member within the correctional facility. References American Correctional Association. Retrieved from http://www. aca. org The Gale Group (2002). American Correctional Association. In World of Criminal Justice. Retrieved from http://www. credoreference. com/entry. worldcrims/american_correctional_association_aca