State Correctional Institute, Chester, Pennsylvania

The facility, which opened in 1998, is the first smoke-free facility in Pennsylvania. During the first year of operation, there were over 1,000 inmates. Drug or alcohol offenders who have 15 to 36 months remaining on their sentence are eligible for admission to SCI-Chester. Inmates at SCI-Chester receive 12 months of drug and alcohol treatment, beginning within two weeks of their arrival and ending when they are released to a Community Corrections Center or parole. The facility’s treatment program of therapeutic communities, addiction counseling and education is administered by Gaudenzia, Inc., a not-for-profit addiction and mental health services organization in partnership with the Pennsylvania Department of Corrections (Gaudenzia 2003).