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School to Prison Pipeline

School to Prison Pipeline By Lindsay B. - Research Intern What is the School-to-Prison Pipeline? The school to prison pipeline is a term used to describe the trend in which students begin school but eventually end up in juvenile and criminal justice systems. The relationship between education and the court systems has led to disciplinary policies that often promote the criminalization of young students. When an education system employs harsh punishments for minor violations, this violent cycle is created. Students are repeatedly over-punished by methods that do not effectively reform their behavior (e.g., in-school suspension, out-of-school suspension); this leads to repeat offenses, which can then lead them to a criminal offense. How is this process created? There are numerous aspects that contribute to this process. As an example, let’s consider suspension. When a student is suspended, they are not receiving an education, they are missing in-class work that cannot b…

The Redemption Project

The Redemption Project Do you have a family member or loved one incarcerated in Minnesota? Do you worry that their incarceration will affect their chances of ever finding meaningful employment? There is hope. The Redemption Project works with select Minnesota prison facilities to provide inmates with education and mentoring opportunities while incarcerated and help them secure meaningful employment upon release. They utilize a three-stage process – Educate, Advocate, and Support – to guide their participants through a successful reentry. Visit www.redemptionproject.org to learn more. For other reentry resources available nation-wide and in Minnesota visit probationinfo.org/reentry-resources.

Reentry After Solitary Confinement

Reentry After Solitary Confinement By Connor H. - Research Intern While the transition for any offender is one that is full of challenges and barriers that they have to work through to be successful after being incarcerated, there is a group of inmates that have to deal with an entirely different set of challenges. This group is the offenders who have had to serve some portion of their time in solitary confinement. At any level of incarceration, solitary confinement is primarily used to punish disobedient inmates by housing them alone for 23 hours a day. There are two reasons why being in solitary confinement has a greater set of challenges than those who served time in general housing, the first is the mental effects solitary confinement has on a person the other is the deterioration of social skills. Both of these attributes are vital to an offender being successful after serving time and are greatly hindered when a person is isolated for extended amounts of time. …

Federal Bonding Program

The Federal Bonding Program One of the primary challenges for returning citizens is finding a job because employers often view ex-offenders as risky hires. The Federal Bonding Program works to encourage employers to give returning citizens a chance by offering bonds for at-risk job applicants, including justice-involved individuals. What is it? The US Department of Labor created the Federal Bonding Program in 1966 to encourage employers to hire potentially risky job seekers. Since then, over 52,000 at-risk job seekers have been bonded, giving a hiring incentive and peace of mind to the employers. How does it work? The FBP bonds guarantee reimbursement for the employer in the case of any loss due to employee theft. They can range in value from $5,000 to $25,000 and cover the first six months of the bonded individual’s employment at no cost to the employer. These bonds can be used for any job in the U.S. Applying for jobs with a criminal record can be stressful bu…

What Can People Send Me in Federal Prison?

What Can People Send Me in Federal Prison? In the Federal Bureau of Prisons there are no care packages. So what can people send you in federal prison? Besides putting money on your account and writing you letters, the only things your loved ones can send you are magazine subscriptions and books. And while you'll be grateful for anything someone sends you, it's better to get reading material you'll actually enjoy reading. Check your assigned facility’s policies, but most facilities require books to come straight from the publisher or a book club or a bookstore like Amazon, which means your loved ones won't be able to mail books directly which is why the Amazon Wish List is the best way to go. If you have someone create an Amazon Wish List for you, you can choose what books or authors or genres of books you want to receive. This also makes sure your shipping address is correct every time and that you don’t get multiple copies of the same book. And it’s easy for them t…

Do Sex Offenders Have to Take Polygraphs?

Do Sex Offenders Have to Take Polygraphs? Yes. Polygraphs exams, or lie detector tests, are used by most federal districts to ensure that sex offenders are in compliance with the requirements of their supervision or treatment program. They are administered periodically, usually every six months, and generally last between 1.5-2 hours. The examination technique will be explained to your satisfaction prior to the onset of the examination and a detailed interview will be conducted by the polygraph examiner. Based on that interview, the examiner will develop the questions for the actual test. All the questions that will be asked during the polygraph examination will be read and reviewed with you, and you will be given an opportunity to ask for clarification of these questions before the examination is administered. Complete honesty during this phase is recommended since the exam will likely expose any dishonesty. While an admission of guilt may still result in consequence…

Prison Release Hotline

Prison Release Hotline Empowering Men and Women on The Move for Re-Entry, Inc. is a supportive housing program in Metro Atlanta for men who have been incarcerated. They recently added a prison release hotline for men to connect with Fulton County services, including: Employment/Career Apprenticeship Temporary Housing Medical SNAP Benefits (Food Stamps) Substance Treatment Behavioral Health Counseling Mentoring Social Security Benefits (404) 654-0407

CHARG.org – Mental Health Resource

CHARG.org - Mental Health Resource Since 1983, the prison custody population in Colorado has increased over 500% with over 35,000 Colorado residents incarcerated in various kinds of facilities. With the vast amount of broad information, it can be increasingly difficult for an individual in the justice process or their loved ones to find the correct information and resources that they need to adequately readjust to life in the real world. CHARG Resource Center provides mental health support, homeless outreach, and more at various locations around Denver. If you or a loved one has been incarcerated and could use help, visit https://www.charg.org/ to see the resources available.

Felon Voting Rights

Felon Voting Rights Felon voting rights vary from state to state. In some, felons never lose their right to vote. In most, however, they do. Fortunately, many of those states restore a felon's voting rights upon the completion of their sentence. Visit the Collateral Consequences Resource Center to learn more about the rules in your state. If you are eligible to re-register to vote, visit www.vote.gov to find your state's voter registration information. To learn more about rules and restrictions for felons in each state visit our page here.

Reentry Resources – Texas

Reentry Resources — Texas With over 700,000 Texas residents navigating the criminal justice system across 254 counties, it can be very hard for justice-involved individuals and their loved ones to find the reentry resources they need. The Texas Department of Criminal Justice recognizes this issue and compiled a massive document full of various resources by Texas county. It has resources for topics such as substance abuse, housing, mental health, medical care, and much more. It provides addresses, contact information, website addresses, and comments about each resource. Having access to such resources is essential to those in need of help when returning home from prison. Texans, if you or a loved one has been incarcerated, click on the link and see all the resources available. https://www.tdcj.texas.gov/documents/rid/RID_Reentry_Resource_Guide.pdf For more reentry resources available in Texas and across the US, explore our Reentry Resources page.

Annuity.org – Financial Education

Resource Spotlight: Annuity.org Annuity.org is an online financial education center providing carefully researched, and timely financial information. The free, comprehensive web resource provides professional insight from experienced financial experts on a variety of financial topics, in hopes of helping you make educated financial decisions. Men and women recently released from prison often face an entirely new set of challenges, especially when it comes to finances. Annuity.org is here to help you navigate those financial challenges. With resources ranging from general financial literacy education, to long term financial topics such as income annuities. Other topics explained include saving and investing, personal finance basics, retirement planning, veteran resources, and more. Taking the initiative to self-educate and grow your financial knowledge is important, and can contribute to your success after release!

Love in the Time of Covid

Love in the Time of Covid How do we support our incarcerated loved ones during a pandemic? Our own lives are in various states of disarray yet we must still support our friends and family behind bars. The visiting rooms have been closed for months and facilities are on modified lockdown. In the best of times, life in a federal prison can most generously be described as bearable, but these are far from the best of times. The reports we hear from our loved ones are disturbing to say the least. And that’s just what they’re willing to tell us. The best thing we can do to keep their spirits up is to keep ours up as well. Stay in touch and stay positive. Write letters and emails, send books and magazines, send pictures even if they’re just of our smiling faces. Remind them that we haven’t forgotten about them, that we’re still here. This is just one chapter and it will eventually end. We just have to keep turning the pages until it does.