Spotlight on Marshall County Community Corrections

Heather Green: Case Manager and Educator

Heather Green works as a Marshall County Community Corrections (MCCC) Case Manager and as a Marshall County Drug and Alcohol Program (MCDAP) Educator. She loves both elements of her job; working one on one with clients as a case manager and facilitating programs that plant seeds for long term recovery from addictions and alcoholism through education.

before specializing in the field of addictions and alcoholic recovery; Green worked for years in behavioral health care (BHC). She worked with adults and adolescents at Michiana behavioral Health Center from 2006 to 2013 and volunteered as a facilitator for 12-step programs through the

Bowen Center.

Her ultimate goal was to become an addictions counselor through accrued time working in the field of behavioral health care. It was in 2013 that she refined her personal and professional goals further and determined to pursue higher education. She completed her Associates Degree in 18 months at Ivy Tech. Through a reciprocal agreement all of her credits transferred from Ivy Tech to Indiana Wesleyan University (IWU) where she later completed her Bachelor’s Degree in Addictions Counseling.

As a case manager Green provides clients with assistance through surveillance to help them adhere to their court orders and achieve their recovery goals. MCCC serves clients in Marshall County and all adjacent counties including St. Joseph County, Elkhart County, Kosciusko County, Fulton County, Pulaski County and Starke County.

Though some individuals may find being sentenced to MCCC intimidating at first, Green said that they want clients to feel comfortable and to know they want them to succeed. “We want everybody to be successful. Some people just aren’t. Some people just don’t want to follow the rules and complete the program. Then we do have to end our relationship with them, which is never what they want.”

Green also facilities numerous education programs through the Marshall County Drug and Alcohol Program (MCDAP). She teaches Self-management and Recovery Training (SMART), which is also available to members of the public, Moral Reconation Therapy ®, and Prime for Life ® classes.

Green stated, “MRT is all about changing the way that people think.” The program is not only effective for those recovering from substance use disorder; but can be used to remedy other behaviors including theft or domestic violence. MRT is available through MCCC and at the Bowen Center.

Some people argue that addiction to any substance is a choice; others say that it is a disease. Green prefers not to use labels like “choice” or “disease”. Some who object to the label of disease use the choice factor to condemn or judge; while others cling to the label of disease as an excuse.

Green addressed the biological factor of addiction. “There is research that says if you have a grandparent, parents, brother or sister with alcoholism or addiction you are four times more likely to become an alcoholic or an addict yourself. Four times. That’s pretty substantial.”

She addressed the decision making factor of addiction. “If you have this high risk biologically and you start making really high risk choices with drugs or alcohol, chances are you are going to develop alcoholism or addiction. But again, if you never make those high risk choices; it doesn’t matter how high your biologic risk is because you are never going to become an alcoholic or an addict.”

She emphasized that social factors do impact those decision making skills. “If you grow up in a household where you’ve got to watch out for the needles on the floor; when you get stressed out there is a good chance that you are going to turn to some type of substance. But if you grow up in a household where you never ever see it; you are much less likely to make those choices.”

Green explained that trauma also influences decision making. “Trauma is a huge factor in addiction because it influences the choices that we make. It influences the choices that we make but it doesn’t physically change things.”

While working at the jail, Green said that incarcerated women who participated in her programs always had a history of trauma. “I never ever met a woman at the jail suffering from addiction who did not have a history of trauma.” She stated that 80% of the time; that trauma was sexual trauma including sexual molestation at an early age or sold for sexual activity by their parents.

There are also those cases where people who have not been raised in a home that promoted the use of substance use or misuse; either by example or exposure; and have not been raised in a neglectful or abusive environment still end up struggling with addiction. Green stated that research shows that 75% of most people become addicted started out using the substance for fun or recreation.

Green explained when people use a substance socially and recreationally; that is a high risk choice. When someone depends on it to function normally; then it becomes an addiction.

Read more about how Green advocates for children: ‘Their job is to be a kid’ on page A3.