Breaking Down Barriers for Justice Impacted Individuals is a 劳动力 Solution

Ramsey County 劳动力 Solutions series highlights the importance of helping residents land on their feet after incarceration.

A legal mistake or misstep on the path of life shouldn’t mean an individual cannot find redemption, contribute to society and build an economically sustainable foundation. 这就是为什么明尼苏达州 Ramsey County 劳动力 Solutions, with guidance from a community advisory team, seeks to help justice-impacted individuals get back on their feet, not only to alleviate the barriers they face once released from the criminal justice system but also to assist employers in meeting their hiring needs. In 2023, the department published a series of articles addressing the obstacles justice-impacted individuals encounter and the work necessary to integrate them into the workforce, with highlights listed below. 

The ‘Art’ of 公平的机会

关于 one-fourth of incarcerated Minnesota individuals released each year return to prison with a new felony conviction within just three years of release. 来自内心的艺术， a nonprofit providing a voice for incarcerated artists, attempts to interrupt that cycle through 教育 and awareness. One incarcerated artist, C.B., 所述, “By giving the incarcerated artists a platform, we encourage redemption narratives and a public belief in second chances.”

“The artistic process creates a dialogue to figure out their source of pain and how to move forward,安东尼奥·埃斯皮诺萨说, Art from the Inside founder and former corrections officer. “Seeing others appreciate their creations can build that essential sense of worth.”

Theory of Transformation™ Drives Hope, Engagement 

最近的一次 爱博体育手机版下载社区 Corrections survey indicated the most common need of adults on probation is a better connection with resources in the community. Ujamaa Place’s Theory of Transformation™ centers on five main pillars – housing, 就业, 教育, wellness and criminal justice advocacy. Since opening its doors in 2010, Ujamaa Place has provided support services to help men build positive lives and move into contributing roles in society.

“All the coaches have the same goal - to transform lives - and we recognize everything goes together,” said Ujamaa Place Employment Coach Nigel Sharper. “It's difficult to secure a place to live without a job, and it's tough to get a job if a person has some sort of dependency and that is true for each pillar, so we know we all have to work together to make things straight.”

通往稳定的桥梁 

Aldrick Woodruff is one example of an individual who has exhibited and cultivated the mental tenacity necessary to restore his place in the local community. Woodruff spent his time in prison at several facilities, including at a Lutheran Social Service halfway house in Minneapolis, which included a 90-day term with the Bridge Program at MINNCOR行业 在罗斯维尔. The Bridge Program provides 就业 and work skills training to help participants successfully transition back into society. 

“I took something from the community with my mistake,” said Woodruff. “I believe the right thing to do is give back to the community by stopping others from making similar mistakes and diverting them to a different place.” Woodruff developed the skills and found his place as a mentor to others while incarcerated and continues this work today in the community. 

Win-Win Solution for Justice-Impacted Individuals and Employers 

Second-chance hiring plays an important role in the safety and development of our communities. Research indicates access to meaningful 就业 is essential for reducing repeat criminal behavior, 引用的研究 约翰霍普金斯医院, a Kelly Services and Toyota partnership 和 U.S. 军事档次. 

Employers seeking to alleviate their workforce issues can make a fair business investment by intentionally adding justice-impacted individuals to their potential employee pool. These persons are eager for a second chance to prove they are not a wrong choice and are ready to contribute and move forward with their lives. Ramsey County 劳动力 Solutions implores business owners and leaders to 今天就伸出援手 to see how they can be intentional in hiring justice-impacted individuals. 

Stopping the Cycle of Recidivism

在电影中, “肖申克的救赎,” Morgan Freeman plays a character named Ellis Boyd Redding, a career criminal whose life behind bars is more comfortable and gratifying than his freedom. 不幸的是, this cycle frequently happens in real life, as formerly incarcerated individuals often engage in criminal behavior again because they cannot find opportunities to help them get back on their feet. 

Justice-impacted individuals face many barriers to securing 就业 and adapting to life outside prison walls. In partnership with the Work Release Program, MINNCOR operates the “outside the walls'' Bridge Program to help work release participants successfully transition into society. The three-month program provides individuals with an introduction to jobs and work skills training to bridge the gap from corrections to 就业 outside a correctional facility. 

All 关于 Relationships

Developing relationships is a critical first step for justice-impacted individuals to secure 就业. Probation and parole officers are consistently present in communities, seeking to build long-term relationships with 房东 and business owners while creating an understanding that they will be present and visible with the justice-impacted individuals. These relationships require trust, specifically that the community’s safety will come first and foremost.

“如果我们 truly want to change the crime picture and reduce the number of victims, we cannot keep closing doors to the formerly incarcerated population,马克·艾略特说, Probation Officer Supervisor in 爱博体育手机版下载社区 Corrections.

Coffee Shop Offers Common Ground to Reduce 首页lessness

Wildflyer Coffee is a nonprofit coffee shop in 圣保罗 and Minneapolis. 它的工作 & Life Skills Training Program is a four-month 就业 training program to cultivate the personal and professional skills youth aged 16-24 need to find and maintain stable 就业 and leave homelessness for good. 关于 20 percent of the youth Wildflyer works with are justice-impacted, but the homelessness issue goes well beyond that.

“We believe we can educate the community on what youth homelessness looks like in our area while working with young people as they develop their independence and work towards a more stable future,” said Wildflyer Coffee Program Manager Kenzie Diessner. 

联系 us today to learn more about 公平的机会, the collaboration of Ramsey County and the 劳动力 Innovation Board of Ramsey County with information, resources and events to help employers better understand the value of hiring individuals impacted by the criminal justice system.