Department of Labor funding award will support workforce development and job training for formerly incarcerated Rhode Islanders
Kingston, RI – Today, Rhode Island’s Congressional delegation announced that the non-profit Polaris MEP will receive $1,454,078 in federal funds to assist people re-entering the community after completing their sentence. This award, which is being administered through the Department of Labor’s Pathway Home grant, will help Polaris MEP and its partners research strategies to assist people leaving incarceration find jobs, connect them with reentry services and job trainings, and reduce rates of recidivism.
“This federal funding will help Rhode Island study best practices to prepare incarcerated individuals for successful employment upon their release. Helping ex-offenders gain in-demand skills and matching them with businesses looking to hire puts them on the path to success, boosting our economy and strengthening our communities,” said U.S. Senator Jack Reed.
“Rhode Island has led the way in providing formerly incarcerated individuals with the skills and resources they need to land a well-paying job,” said U.S. Senator Sheldon Whitehouse, a former U.S. Attorney and Attorney General for Rhode Island. “This federal funding will support Rhode Island’s efforts to reduce recidivism by helping individuals who have served their time return home as successful members of the community.”
“Reentry programs provide a second chance for formerly incarcerated individuals in Rhode Island and can help them gain skills, find a career and rebuild their lives,” said Rep. Seth Magaziner. “This federal funding will go toward job training programs and services that will both improve public safety and grow the economy.”
“Investing in proven strategies that help justice-involved individuals find high-quality jobs in our community helps break the destructive cycles of poverty and incarceration,” said Congressman Gabe Amo. “By supporting these important efforts, this federal investment will both support our local economy and provide a helping hand to returning citizens as they strive for a better future.”
“The Pathway Home grants we announced today will allow justice-involved individuals to get the training they need to secure good jobs as they re-enter their communities following a term of incarceration,” said Assistant Secretary of Labor for Employment and Training José Javier Rodríguez. “The Biden-Harris administration recognizes that our communities are safer when formerly incarcerated Americans have access to good jobs. These grants enable participants to begin skills training before their release, better preparing them to start their new lives.”
“Rhode Island is grateful for this grant, which will result in helping incarcerated individuals gain the skills they need to find employment and successfully integrate back into the community,” said Governor Dan McKee.
“We are grateful to Senators Jack Reed and Sheldon Whitehouse, Congressmen Seth Magaziner and Gabe Amo, and to our partners at the Rhode Island Department of Corrections for their commitment to expanded opportunity for previously incarcerated individuals,” said Lindsey Brickle, Polaris MEP Director of Workforce and Community Partnerships. “For several years, Polaris MEP has been focused on connecting talent within traditionally underserved communities – including justice-involved – to high-skilled careers in industry. We are eager to build on the innovative strategies for job training and placement to be identified through Pathway Home. This will create a strong, positive ripple effect that benefits both manufacturing employers and reentry candidates.”
Brickle also said she believed that the most exciting element the Pathway Home program is the continuity of services delivered through “Reentry Roadmaps.” The roadmaps represent the client-centered, comprehensive skills training and wrap-around services each individual will receive from pre-release to post-release. She noted there is a great breadth of partners who will be delivering education, training, case management and support. (A full list of partners is at https://polarismep.org/news/pathway-home-reentry-training-grant.) “Reentry Roadmaps are an innovative way to align individual needs with employer demand, with a continuity of support that removes barriers to success.”
“At the Department of Corrections, we are working with variety of partners to ensure the incarcerated population has the opportunity to acquire the skills needed to attain meaningful employment and compete in the workforce upon release,” said Wayne T. Salisbury Jr., Director of the Rhode Island Department of Corrections. “This grant will further enhance our ability as a state to remove barriers to employment and support those preparing to reenter the community. We are fortunate our congressional and state leaders recognize how vital such opportunities are to the success of this untapped segment of today’s workforce.”
BACKGROUND
The Pathway Home grant, which was authorized by the Workforce Innovation and Opportunity Act, provides funding for formerly incarcerated individuals to complete training and build valuable skills that are in demand by local employers. Directed by the Department of Labor’s Employment and Training Administration, the grants help eliminate gaps between an individual’s release from prison/jail and their enrollment in a beneficial workforce development program.
Polaris MEP, Rhode Island’s Manufacturing Extension Partnership center affiliate, will lead the coordinated efforts of state government, community partners, industry and institutions of higher education to reduce recidivism through skills training.
