National Reentry Resource Center

National Reentry Resource Center Newsletter

FEATURES

U.S. Department of Justice Announces 2009 Second Chance Act Grantees

In September, the Office of Justice Programs (OJP), U.S. Department of Justice, announced the 2009 recipients of the Second Chance Act grants. Enacted in 2008, this unprecedented legislation authorizes federal grants to government agencies and nonprofit organizations to provide employment and housing assistance, substance abuse and mental health treatment, family support, mentoring, victims assistance, and other services that can help reduce recidivism.

This initial round of Second Chance Act funding was divided across five categories: adult mentoring, adult demonstration, juvenile mentoring, juvenile demonstration, and the National Reentry Resource Center. The demonstration grant program provides funds to implement comprehensive and collaborative strategies that address prisoner reentry, while the mentoring grant program provides funds for mentoring and transitional services. The following chart breaks down funding by program type.

Grant Program	Total Awards Granted	Total Awards Funded
Adult Mentoring Grants	36	$10,000,000
Adult Demonstration Grants	15	$7,732,726
Juvenile Mentoring Grants	11	$4,707,524
Juvenile Demonstration Grants	5	$3,660,172

Select a heading below for more information about:
Second Chance Act
Adult Mentoring Grantees
Adult Demonstration Grantees
Juvenile Mentoring Grantees
Juvenile Demonstration Grantees

Hill Update

On Thursday, November 5, 2009, the U.S. Senate approved an appropriations bill for the Department of Justice for fiscal year 2010 (H.R. 2847) that provides $64 million for prisoner reentry, including $50 million for Second Chance Act programs and $14 million for reentry initiatives in the federal Bureau of Prisons. The version of the bill that passed the House of Representatives in June provides $114 million for prisoner reentry, including $100 million for Second Chance Act programs. The Senate appropriations bill also provides $10 million for the Mentally Ill Offender Treatment and Crime Reduction Act (MIOTCRA), whereas the House version provides $12 million. Members of the House and Senate Appropriations committees will now meet to resolve differences between the House and Senate versions of the bill.

Reentry Program/Agency	House	Senate
Second Chance Act	$100 million	$50 million
Bureau of Prisons	$14 million	$14 million
Total:	$114 million	$64 million

Announcements & Events

Nov 18 Consensus Project Webinar

Dr. Jennifer Skeem will provide an overview of how criminogenic risk factors contribute to the involvement of people with mental illnesses in the criminal justice system, discuss the need to develop approaches that take into account individuals’ criminogenic risk factors and their functional impairments, and present an intervention model that does both. The webinar will conclude with a question-and-answer period.

To learn more about this webinar, including how to register, click here.

Nov 18 Coming Home Roundtable

This forum is part of the Coming Home series of reentry-oriented roundtable discussions, hosted by the Community Service Society. Topics addressed in the series include job placement, housing issues, reuniting families, political participation, parole, and employment.

New York, NY

Nov 21 Aim4Peace Job and Educational Fair

If you are an ex-offender and/or seriously seeking employment, The Aim4Peace Job Fair is sponsored for you to meet employers who are currently hiring. The event also will have educational opportunities, such as resume building. All attendees should dress in proper attire, and if you are seeking employment you should bring at least 10 copies of your resume.

Dec 02 National Network for Safe Communities: First Annual Conference

Key themes of the NNSC's first conference include Implications of the Gang Violence and Drug Market Strategies for U.S. Crime Policy, Racial Reconciliation and Engaging Communities' Moral Voice, Institutionalization and Sustainability of Crime Reduction Efforts, Best Practices in Project Management and Oversight, and Current Innovations and Key Research Questions.

Dec 03 SF Public Defender's Office Clean Slate Program 10th Anniversary Celebration

Over the past 10 years, the Clean Slate Program has helped thousands of individuals restore their lives and overcome barriers in obtaining employment, housing, professional licenses, certifications, and government aid by clearing their criminal record.

Dec 07 Council of Advisors to Reduce Recidivism through Employment Eighth Annual Policy Conference: Leveraging the Fiscal Crisis to Create Reentry Opportunities

The Safer Foundation and Council of Advisors to Reduce Recidivism through Employment (CARRE) present the eighth annual policy conference: Leveraging the Fiscal Crisis to Create Reentry Opportunities.

Funding Opportunities

A Systems Approach for Workforce Performance - Curriculum Development

The National Institute of Corrections (NIC) is soliciting proposals from organizations, groups, or individuals to participate in a cooperative agreement to develop and field test a thirty-six-hour curriculum to train a multidisciplinary staff in state correctional agencies and prison systems. The time of the cooperative agreement is for a twelve-month period. The training curriculum will focus on the concept of agency management and operations as a systemic and collaborative effort of all stakeholders in the system. It will include updated and contemporary elements essential for managing an agency and institution to achieve its statutory mandates and mission in an increasingly challenging and budget-lean environment. Modules on organizational change and building a culture for collaboration are included. The ultimate goal of the curriculum is to provide management teams with the tools to manage their operations and demonstrate efficient, effective, safe, and secure practices for staff, inmates, and the general public. Application deadline is November 30, 2009.

Weed and Seed Communities Competitive Program

The U.S. Department of Justice will award competitive grants of up to $150,000 to Weed and Seed Communities to support efforts to fight crime, drugs, and gangs. The Justice Department's Community Capacity Development Office's FY 10 Weed and Seed Communities Competitive Program provides discretionary grant funding to nonprofits and government agencies in communities that were not previously approved Weed and Seed sites, but have been so designated by Congress. Application deadline is December 1, 2009.

Production of Four Satellite/Internet Broadcasts and Three Stand-Alone DVDs

The National Institute of Corrections (NIC) is soliciting proposals from organizations, groups, or individuals to enter into a cooperative agreement to produce four satellite/Internet broadcasts and three DVDs. Three of the proposed satellite programs are nationwide satellite/Internet broadcasts (three hours each). One of the programs is eight hours and will be a live broadcast for trainers and facilitators on “How to Use the Developed DVD.” Application deadline is December 1, 2009.

Offender Reentry Program

The Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration, Center for Substance Abuse Treatment is accepting applications for fiscal year 2010 Offender Reentry Program grants. The purpose of this program is to expand and/or enhance substance abuse treatment and related recovery and reentry services to sentenced juvenile and adult offenders returning to the community from incarceration for criminal/juvenile offenses. Applicants are expected to form stakeholder partnerships that will plan, develop, and provide a transition from incarceration to community-based substance abuse treatment and related reentry services for the targeted populations. Eligible applicants include domestic public and private nonprofit entities. For example, state and local governments, federally recognized American Indian/Alaska Native Tribes and tribal organizations, urban Indian organizations, public or private universities and colleges, and community- and faith-based organizations are encouraged to apply. Application deadline is January 19, 2010.

Reentry in the News

Articles from newspapers around the country covering reentry issues can be found on the National Reentry Resource Center's website. Some recent headlines from the homepage are posted below.

Wall Street Journal (National): More job seekers scramble to erase their criminal past

11/12/09. U.S. job seekers are crashing into the worst employment market in years and background checks that reach deeper than ever into their pasts. The result: a surge of people seeking to legally clear their criminal records.

Detroit Free Press (MI): Prison policy changes make Michigan a leader among states

11/4/09. Michigan Corrections Director Patricia Caruso has taken a lot of criticism, especially from prosecutors, about higher parole rates and other efforts to reduce Michigan's bloated prison system. But Caruso and her department have, rightly, earned praise from corrections officials around the country.

The Star-Ledger (NJ): Rutgers study finds Essex female ex-offenders' recidivism rate lower after help from re-entry program

11/3/09. The study’s author, Heather Tubman-Carbone, tracked female ex-offenders in a four-year period: those who completed their prison sentence without early release, those who were paroled but didn’t participate in FORGE, and those who were paroled and took part in FORGE.

Farmington Daily Times (NM): Start early at a local level to stop recidivism problem

11/2/09. As state budgets continue to shrink and tighten, governors across the nation are working to close the revolving door on the nation's prisons.

The Dallas Morning News (TX): Since gaining freedom 20 years ago, woman has helped others do the same

11/1/09. After spending over nine years behind bars for a crime she did not commit, woman starts program to help ex-offenders stay out of prison.

Publications

Children of Incarcerated Parents: An Action Plan for Federal Policymakers (Council of State Governments Justice Center)

This action plan reviews both federal and state barriers to identifying and serving children of incarcerated parents, and offers policy recommendations for the U.S. Congress and the Administration. The action plan is designed to help federal leaders improve policies for children of incarcerated parents, but also includes recommendations of value to states and local governments that can facilitate and complement federal initiatives and result in better responses to this population.

Creating a Workforce Development Culture to Reduce Reincarceration (National Institute of Corrections)

This Transition and Offender Workforce Development Bulletin highlights Vermont’s Workforce Development Program, which sought to reduce recidivism by 25 percent for offenders with poor work histories and moderate to high risk of reoffending by using a strengths-based approach to teach fundamental life skills throughout education, work, and living units. The reincarceration rate for male participants who successfully completed the program is 59 percent at six months following release, compared to the control group’s rate of 74 percent; the rate for females is 38 percent versus 63 percent for the comparison group.

Social Capital and Reentry to the Community from Prison (Center for Behavioral Health Services and Criminal Justice Research)

This research brief presents a framework for understanding “community” and its role in the reentry process for people with behavioral health problems.

Lifelines Linking to Federal Benefits for People Exiting Corrections (Bazelon Center for Mental Health Law)

This publication from the Bazelon Center for Mental Health Law offers state and local officials and corrections administrators a blueprint for promptly linking formerly incarcerated individuals who have psychiatric disabilities to federal benefits upon their release back into the community.

Mentoring Former Prisoners: A Guide for Reentry Programs (Public/Private Ventures)

Few social programs have attempted to provide high-risk adults—and, particularly, former prisoners—with mentors. And, thus, there are few resources that offer practical advice and recommendations for mentoring this population, given its distinct needs, assets, and challenges. Although much remains to be tested and learned, this manual draws on the experience of the eleven sites involved in P/PV's Ready4Work prisoner reentry demonstration, as well as established best practices in the mentoring field, to provide guidelines for practitioners who are interested in developing a mentoring program to support former prisoners and enhance the effectiveness of other reentry services, such as employment and case management services.

Audiences

Tools & Resources