Center for Effective Public Policy - CEPP

23/09/2026

Is your agency or jurisdiction working through a challenge, or looking for new ways to strengthen policy and practice?

CEPP partners with justice system professionals and communities across the country, providing customized training, technical assistance, facilitation, strategic planning, assessment, and implementation support.

Our approach starts with understanding your system, your challenges, and your goals.

Learn more and connect with our team:

We’d love to hear from you!

21/09/2026

Our team recently presented the findings and recommendations from Implementing the Pretrial Fairness Act’s Domestic Violations Provisions: An Assessment of DuPage County’s Pretrial System.

The presentation provided an opportunity to discuss what CEPP learned through the assessment and opportunities to strengthen implementation moving forward.
We’re grateful to our DuPage County partners for their collaboration and commitment throughout this work.

📸 A few moments from the presentation.

18/09/2026

Why does the pretrial system need change?

CEPP Director Alison Shames recently joined Arnold Ventures' Fighting Crime: Field Notes podcast to talk about how the pretrial system works, what research tells us about effective practices, and how thoughtful changes can improve outcomes for both public safety and the people moving through the system.

Alison also discusses the work of Advancing Pretrial Policy and Research (APPR) and how CEPP helps jurisdictions across the country better understand their pretrial systems, strengthen their practices, and learn from one another.

It's a great conversation about what effective pretrial practice can and should look like.

🎧 Listen to the episode from Arnold Ventures

In the US, people are presumed innocent until proven guilty, yet we detain a lot of people before they are even convicted of a crime.

17/09/2026

CEPP works with state and local partners across the country to tackle complex challenges throughout the justice system.

Our projects span pretrial justice, probation and parole, reentry, community engagement, evidence-based decision making, and more.

Curious about what we're working on?

Our portfolio includes a wide variety of justice-related initiatives.

15/09/2026

CEPP in the Field 📍 Georgia + Hawaii
Our Advancing Evidence in Parole Decisions team has been on the road!

CEPP’s Richard Stroker and Cynthia Mausser have visited Georgia, Hawaii, Pennsylvania, and Utah, meeting with parole board members and key staff to continue strategic planning and identify priorities for the work ahead.

These early conversations are helping each participating jurisdiction refine its focus and build a strong foundation for meaningful, sustainable improvements in parole decision-making.

📸 Take a look at a few moments from recent visits to Georgia and Hawaii!

https://cepp.com/project/advancing-evidence-in-parole-reform/

03/09/2026

We have some exciting news to share! 🎉

CEPP has been named NAPSA's 2026 Partner of the Year!

We are honored to receive this recognition of our collaboration with the pretrial field. Our work would not be possible without the practitioners, community members, partners, and leaders across the country who work alongside us to strengthen pretrial systems.

Thank you to NAPSA for this incredible honor, and to everyone who is part of this work!

28/08/2026

We’re excited to be part of the 2026 NYAPSA Annual Conference, October 19–20 in Schenectady, NY!

CEPP’s Tanya Anderson and Orleny Rojas will lead two sessions:
🔹 Staying True to Pretrial Fundamentals: Aligning Practice with Core Principles
🔹 Pretrial and Probation: Compare and Contrast

Both sessions will offer opportunities to dig into the principles, research, and practices that support effective pretrial systems and to learn alongside colleagues from across New York.

We look forward to seeing you in Schenectady!

Learn more and register:

NYAPSA Conference 2026 registration is open for October 19–20 at Rivers Casino & Resort in Schenectady, New York.

24/08/2026

Looking for practical tools to strengthen your work?

CEPP develops free and practical resources to help justice professionals turn research into action. From implementation guides and toolkits to webinars and training materials, our resources are designed to support agencies working to improve outcomes through evidence-informed practice.

Whether you're focused on community supervision, pretrial justice, organizational change, leadership, or system improvement, we're here to help.

Explore our resources and discover tools you can put to work in your agency today. We'd also love to hear what topics you'd like us to cover next!

18/08/2026

Every day, CEPP partners with agencies across the country to strengthen justice systems through practical, evidence-informed solutions.

We believe lasting change happens when research meets real-world experience and when communities build solutions together.

We're proud to support that work every day.

Our portfolio includes a wide variety of justice-related initiatives.

17/08/2026

Every community faces different challenges and different opportunities.

CEPP works alongside agencies nationwide to provide customized training, facilitation, strategic planning, and technical assistance that helps communities strengthen their justice systems.

If your agency is looking for a partner, we'd love to talk.

We’d love to hear from you!