Missouri will soon develop a specific program to address the needs of women incarcerated in the state’s prisons. More and more women are entering the state’s prisons, causing a population of 770 ten years ago to swell to more than 1,800. The State Corrections Department says a bill signed into law by Governor Bob Holden establishes a women offender program and a director of women’s programs within the Department. The Department wants to provide skills to keep the women from returning once released.