At least four levels of participation are recommended in the partnership process: corrections administration, prisons, habilitation councils, and habilitation centers. Because evidence suggests that the overriding culture of prisons is punishment and that habilitation in the prison environment is not effective, therapeutic programs for offenders should be developed that are separate and distinct from the traditional prison system. Habilitation centers offer inmates realistic opportunities to make permanent changes in their lives and to stop criminal activities. Habilitation programs must be based on a social learning model rather than a medical model of treatment, emphasize the reinforcement of socially acceptable behavior, be coordinated with available community resources, provide intense and ongoing therapy in a fulltime residential setting, and employ qualified and committed staff. Inmates should be contained in habilitation centers that provide structured and sometimes confrontational therapy. A principal consideration in inmate selection for habilitation programs is to place them as near their home area as possible so that family support is available. Habilitation councils should oversee the movement of inmates between prisons and habilitation centers. A series of guidelines for inmate release is included. 4 references, 1 figure.