Restorative Justice and Second Chances

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Summary of Restorative Justice and Second Chances

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Restorative Justice

Second-Chance Policy, Record Relief, and Collateral Consequences

Second Chance Month 2025

| Prison Fellowship | Prison Fellowship | May 27, 2025

This article describes Second Chance Month events and stories from 2025, including gatherings led by formerly incarcerated people. It emphasizes public awareness, testimony, community support, and the belief that people should not be permanently defined by past mistakes.

Prison Fellowship’s Statement After United States Senate Declares April 2025 as Second Chance Month

| Prison Fellowship | Prison Fellowship | April 29, 2025

This statement reports on the Senate’s 2025 Second Chance Month resolution and highlights the broad movement for reentry support. It emphasizes that people with criminal records often face thousands of barriers long after completing their sentences.

Prison Fellowship Convenes Day of Action Urging Congress to Pass Second Chance Month Resolution

| Prison Fellowship | Prison Fellowship | April 1, 2025

This article describes a national advocacy day in which formerly incarcerated leaders and supporters urged Congress to recognize Second Chance Month. It connects personal stories to policy changes that reduce barriers to reintegration.

The Case for Clean Slate

| Margaret Love | Collateral Consequences Resource Center | June 22, 2021

This article explains the argument for automatic record-clearing laws. It emphasizes that petition-based systems often fail because they are complicated, expensive, and inaccessible to the people most in need of relief.

Collateral Consequences Resource Center

| Collateral Consequences Resource Center | Collateral Consequences Resource Center | Undated

This resource center tracks laws and reforms related to criminal records and post-sentence penalties. It helps explain how conviction records can continue to punish people long after they have served their time.

Clean Slate in the States

| Clean Slate Initiative | Clean Slate Initiative | Undated

This page tracks state progress on clean-slate legislation. It is useful for documenting how record-clearing reform has spread as part of the broader second-chance movement.

Housing, Jobs, IDs, and Economic Stability After Incarceration

Like a Civic Death: CT Men Face Lasting Financial Hardships After Incarceration

| Alex Putterman | CT Insider | June 17, 2026

This article reports on research showing severe economic, health, food-security, and housing struggles among formerly incarcerated men in Connecticut. It frames reentry as a long-term public-health and community-stability issue, not simply an individual adjustment problem.

I’m Free, But I’m in Prison

| Vera Institute of Justice | Vera Institute of Justice | May 7, 2026

This data story examines how incarceration affects families and economic security, especially for women connected to incarcerated or formerly incarcerated partners. It is useful for showing that reentry affects households, caregiving, employment, and community well-being.

Prison Fellowship Statement After White House Issues Presidential Message on Second Chance Month

| Prison Fellowship | Prison Fellowship | April 30, 2026

The article focuses on the symbolic and practical importance of public recognition for second chances. It notes the many legal and social barriers faced by people returning from incarceration and presents Second Chance Month as a movement to support redemption, accountability, and successful reintegration.

Learning Life All Over Again: Reentry After Long-Term Imprisonment

| Kristen M. Budd and Sabrina C. Pearce | The Sentencing Project | April 22, 2026

This report focuses on people released after very long prison terms and the challenges they face rebuilding daily life. It highlights technology gaps, emotional adjustment, family reconnection, housing, employment, and the need for reentry support that continues beyond the first days home.

How Unlikely Allies Helped One Nonprofit Get Results in Deep-Red Alabama

| Kim Chandler | Associated Press | April 14, 2026

This article profiles Alabama Appleseed and its work challenging extreme sentences and helping people receive meaningful second chances. It shows how legal advocacy, bipartisan cooperation, and public storytelling can open doors for people who have served long prison terms and are seeking a way back into community life.

Supporting the Re-Integration of Formerly Incarcerated Individuals Through Entrepreneurship

| OECD | OECD | February 2026

This report examines entrepreneurship as a possible pathway for formerly incarcerated people who face discrimination in traditional hiring. It emphasizes that business ownership can help some people rebuild independence, but only when paired with training, mentoring, financing, and realistic support.

Economics of Incarceration

| Prison Policy Initiative | Prison Policy Initiative | 2026

This research collection focuses on the economic causes and consequences of incarceration. It is useful for second-chance topics because reentry success is closely tied to jobs, debt, fines, fees, family finances, and long-term economic exclusion.

Senate Passes Second Chance Reauthorization Act of 2025

| CSG Justice Center | Council of State Governments Justice Center | October 10, 2025

This article reports on Senate passage of legislation to continue Second Chance Act programs. It connects federal reentry funding to public safety, lower recidivism, stronger families, and better outcomes for people coming home.

The Challenge of Finding a Job After Prison

| Vera Institute of Justice | Vera Institute of Justice | September 5, 2025

This article explains how conviction records and employer discrimination make work difficult to find after prison. It highlights employment as a core part of successful reentry and calls for policies that turn prison work and training into real post-release opportunity.

Grilled Cheese Shop Offers Minnesotans a Second Chance After Prison

| Michael Sainato | The Guardian | June 14, 2025

This article profiles All Square, a Minneapolis restaurant that hires and supports formerly incarcerated fellows. It shows how wages, mentorship, therapy, entrepreneurship training, and public-facing work can help people rebuild after prison.

People Think Prison Is for Rehabilitation. It Is All Lies: Could Community Service Work Better Than Jail?

| Joe Parkin Daniels | The Guardian | June 1, 2025

This article examines Colombia’s effort to let some incarcerated women serve community-service sentences instead of remaining in prison. It focuses on poor women affected by drug laws and asks whether rehabilitation, family stability, and public safety are better served by alternatives to incarceration.

People in Jail and Prison Are Erased from Unemployment Data

| Vera Institute of Justice | Vera Institute of Justice | April 10, 2025

This article explains how incarceration hides many people from official unemployment statistics and distorts the reality of economic exclusion. It connects reentry, employment, poverty, and public policy by showing how incarceration damages labor-market opportunity.

Ts Madison Opens Starter House in Atlanta for Formerly Incarcerated Black Trans Women

| James Factora | Them | April 1, 2025

This article reports on a reentry housing project in Atlanta for formerly incarcerated Black trans women. The program combines housing with health, wellness, psychological support, and economic empowerment, showing how second chances must be tailored to people facing overlapping barriers.

Mass Incarceration: The Whole Pie 2025

| Wendy Sawyer and Peter Wagner | Prison Policy Initiative | March 11, 2025

This report provides a broad overview of incarceration in the United States and helps explain why reentry and diversion matter. By showing who is locked up and why, it provides context for reforms that reduce incarceration and expand community-based solutions.

Fair Chance Housing: Lessons in Implementation

| Vera Institute of Justice | Vera Institute of Justice | January 10, 2025

This publication examines how fair chance housing policies can be implemented in practice. It focuses on reducing blanket exclusions, improving individualized review, and helping people with conviction histories access stable homes.

Opening Doors to Housing Initiative

| Vera Institute of Justice | Vera Institute of Justice | 2025

This initiative works to reduce housing barriers for people with conviction histories. It shows how reentry success depends on fair access to homes, especially for people otherwise pushed toward homelessness or unstable living conditions.

Community Reentry Program Characteristics Associated with Improved Outcomes

| E. Taylor | Taylor & Francis / Journal of Offender Rehabilitation | 2025

This study examines Missouri’s Community Reentry Initiative and looks at which program features are associated with better reentry outcomes. It adds useful research evidence to discussions about what kinds of support actually help people succeed after incarceration.

Restorative Justice in Modern Criminal Justice Administration

| Park University | Park University | September 23, 2024

This overview explains how restorative justice practices such as mediation, conferencing, and healing circles can complement traditional criminal justice systems. It emphasizes accountability, victim participation, reduced recidivism, and rehabilitation rather than punishment alone.

Want to Make Communities Safer? Make Sure People Coming Home from Jail and Prison Have a Place to Live

| Nazish Dholakia | Vera Institute of Justice | April 11, 2024

This article connects public safety to housing access for people leaving incarceration. It argues that safe and affordable housing helps people reconnect with family, find work, receive care, and avoid the instability that can lead back to jail or prison.

Denver Barbershop Will Train, Employ Formerly Incarcerated People

| Alayna Alvarez | Axios Denver | February 4, 2024

This article profiles a Denver barbershop designed to train and employ formerly incarcerated people. It highlights how trade skills learned during incarceration can become real jobs when employers intentionally remove second-chance hiring barriers.

People Need Transportation Access After Release from Jail and Prison

| Vera Institute of Justice | Vera Institute of Justice | October 5, 2023

This article explains how lack of transportation can derail reentry. Without reliable transportation, people leaving incarceration may struggle to get to work, treatment, court dates, family obligations, and basic services.

Transforming Prisons Through Research

| Urban Institute | Urban Institute | 2023

This report lays out a research agenda for making prisons more humane and effective. It asks how prison systems can support redemption, desistance, and reintegration rather than simply warehousing people.

New Data on Formerly Incarcerated People’s Employment Reveal Labor Market Punishment

| Wanda Bertram and Wendy Sawyer | Prison Policy Initiative | February 8, 2022

This article summarizes federal data on employment after prison and shows how many people struggle to find stable work after release. It reinforces the need for fair-chance hiring, training, and support that continues beyond the prison gate.

Released From Prison With No Place to Live

| Vera Institute of Justice | Vera Institute of Justice | August 6, 2021

This article examines the housing crisis faced by people leaving prison. It shows how homelessness and unstable housing can undermine every other part of reentry, including employment, family reunification, treatment, and supervision compliance.

Illinois Bill Makes History, Highlights Criminalization-to-Homelessness Pipeline

| Vera Institute of Justice | Vera Institute of Justice | February 23, 2021

This article discusses fair chance housing reform in Illinois and the larger connection between criminal records and homelessness. It shows how housing discrimination can punish people long after they have completed their sentences.

Barred from Working

| Kathy Sanchez, Jennifer McDonald, and Lisa Knepper | Institute for Justice | August 2020

This report examines how occupational licensing laws can exclude people with criminal records from lawful work. It supports second-chance reform by showing that training is not enough if people remain blocked from licenses and careers.

Nowhere to Go: Homelessness Among Formerly Incarcerated People

| Lucius Couloute | Prison Policy Initiative | August 2018

This report estimates homelessness among formerly incarcerated people and finds that they are far more likely to experience homelessness than the general public. It explains how housing instability can trap people in a revolving door of poverty, policing, and reincarceration.

Out of Prison & Out of Work: Unemployment Among Formerly Incarcerated People

| Lucius Couloute and Daniel Kopf | Prison Policy Initiative | July 2018

This report documents the extremely high unemployment rate faced by formerly incarcerated people. It explains how job discrimination, licensing restrictions, and economic exclusion create barriers that undermine successful reentry and public safety.

The Connecticut Experiment

| Maurice Chammah | The Marshall Project | May 8, 2018

This article examines Connecticut’s TRUE program, which applies a different prison model for young adults. It reflects the idea that emerging adults need developmentally appropriate rehabilitation, mentorship, and responsibility rather than purely punitive incarceration.

The Role of Restorative Justice in the Social Reintegration of Offenders in Kenya

| S. N. Waireri | Strathmore University | 2017

This thesis examines restorative justice and offender reintegration in Kenya. It is useful for a global perspective on how communities, justice institutions, and social support can help formerly incarcerated people return home successfully.

Opening Doors, Returning Home

| Vera Institute of Justice | Vera Institute of Justice | November 14, 2016

This evaluation examines New York City’s family reentry pilot program, which allowed some formerly incarcerated people to reunite with family members in public housing. It shows how carefully designed housing access can support stability and reduce reentry barriers.

Outside the Walls

| Amy L. Solomon | Urban Institute | 2004

This publication follows the challenges faced by people returning from incarceration. It emphasizes the difficult transition from confinement to community life and the need for support systems that reduce the likelihood of returning to jail or prison.

Prisoner Reentry and Community Policing

| W. Dickey | Urban Institute | 2004

This paper explores how police and communities can support reentry using a more restorative model. It focuses on employment, respect, community connection, and the role of public safety agencies in helping people successfully return home.

Reentry and Recidivism

| Prison Policy Initiative | Prison Policy Initiative | Undated

This research collection gathers studies and reports on reentry, recidivism, employment, housing, and collateral consequences. It is useful as a broad source for understanding the barriers people face after incarceration.

National Inventory of Collateral Consequences of Conviction

| National Reentry Resource Center | Council of State Governments Justice Center | Undated

This database documents legal restrictions that follow criminal convictions, including limits on jobs, licenses, housing, benefits, and civic life. It is useful for showing why second chances require removing barriers that continue after a sentence ends.

Ban the Box: U.S. Cities, Counties, and States Adopt Fair Hiring Policies

| National Employment Law Project | National Employment Law Project | Undated

This guide tracks fair-chance hiring policies around the United States. It shows how governments can delay criminal-record questions and give applicants a better chance to be judged by qualifications.

Fair Chance Hiring Toolkit

| National Employment Law Project | National Employment Law Project | Undated

This toolkit explains how fair-chance hiring reforms work and why they matter. It connects employment access to reentry success, family stability, and reduced economic exclusion.

Roadmap to Reentry

| Root & Rebound | Root & Rebound | Undated

This guide helps people leaving incarceration navigate housing, employment, supervision, identification, benefits, and family issues. It is a practical second-chance resource focused on the everyday barriers people face after release.

Model Reentry Housing Law and Policy

| Root & Rebound | Root & Rebound | Undated

This resource offers model approaches to reducing housing discrimination against people with criminal records. It frames housing as a core reentry need tied to safety, family stability, health, and employment.

The Reentry Legal Hotline

| Root & Rebound | Root & Rebound | Undated

This hotline provides legal information to formerly incarcerated people and their families. It shows how legal guidance can help prevent reentry obstacles from becoming crises involving housing loss, job barriers, or supervision problems.

The First 72+

| The First 72+ | The First 72+ | Undated

The First 72+ supports people in New Orleans during the crucial first days after release from prison. Its work includes housing, peer support, case management, and practical help for people returning home.

Hope House

| The Ladies of Hope Ministries | The Ladies of Hope Ministries | Undated

Hope House provides safe housing and support for women returning from incarceration. It is a strong example of gender-responsive reentry that treats housing, trauma recovery, and long-term stability as connected.

The Osborne Association

| Osborne Association | Osborne Association | Undated

The Osborne Association provides reentry, workforce, family, elder, and advocacy services for people affected by incarceration. Its work shows the value of long-term community institutions in helping people rebuild after prison.

Elder Reentry Initiative

| Osborne Association | Osborne Association | Undated

This program supports older adults returning from prison after long sentences. It focuses on health, housing, technology, social support, and the unique difficulties of reentering society at an older age.

JustLeadershipUSA

| JustLeadershipUSA | JustLeadershipUSA | Undated

JustLeadershipUSA trains directly impacted people to lead criminal justice reform. Its work shows how formerly incarcerated people can become public leaders, organizers, and advocates for second chances.

All of Us or None

| Legal Services for Prisoners with Children | All of Us or None | Undated

All of Us or None is a grassroots movement led by formerly incarcerated people and families. It advocates for voting rights, employment access, housing, record relief, and dignity for people with conviction histories.

TimeDone

| TimeDone | TimeDone | Undated

TimeDone works to remove barriers faced by people living with old conviction records. It focuses on record relief, employment, housing, civic inclusion, and the idea that people should not be punished forever.

Prison Entrepreneurship Program

| Prison Entrepreneurship Program | Prison Entrepreneurship Program | Undated

This program teaches business, leadership, and job-readiness skills to incarcerated and formerly incarcerated people. It frames entrepreneurship and character development as tools for rebuilding life after prison.

All Square

| All Square | All Square | Undated

All Square is a Minneapolis restaurant and fellowship program for formerly incarcerated people. It combines paid work, therapy, professional development, and entrepreneurship support in a public-facing second-chance model.

New Zealand Restorative Justice

| New Zealand Ministry of Justice | New Zealand Ministry of Justice | Undated

This official page explains New Zealand’s restorative justice process, including meetings between victims and offenders with trained facilitators. It is useful as an international example of restorative justice built into the court system.

Root & Rebound

| Root & Rebound | Root & Rebound | Undated

Root & Rebound provides legal support, reentry resources, and policy advocacy for people impacted by incarceration. Its work shows how legal empowerment can help people overcome barriers that often block second chances.

A New Way of Life Reentry Project: Legal Services

| A New Way of Life Reentry Project | A New Way of Life Reentry Project | Undated

This page describes legal services for formerly incarcerated women and families, including help with expungement, family law, and reentry barriers. It shows how second-chance support often requires both housing and legal advocacy.

Women’s Prison Association

| Women’s Prison Association | Women’s Prison Association | Undated

The Women’s Prison Association works with women affected by incarceration through housing, family support, alternatives to incarceration, and reentry services. Its programs show how second chances must account for parenting, trauma, poverty, and community support.

The Formerly Incarcerated Convicted People and Families Movement

| FICPFM | Formerly Incarcerated, Convicted People and Families Movement | Undated

This national network organizes formerly incarcerated people and families affected by the criminal legal system. It is useful for understanding second chances as a movement led by people with direct experience of incarceration and reentry barriers.

Legal Services for Prisoners with Children

| Legal Services for Prisoners with Children | Legal Services for Prisoners with Children | Undated

This organization works on family unity, reentry, legal advocacy, and policy reform for incarcerated and formerly incarcerated people. Its work highlights the importance of family connections and community support in successful reintegration.

Rising Tide Capital: Reentry and Entrepreneurship

| Rising Tide Capital | Rising Tide Capital | Undated

Rising Tide Capital supports entrepreneurs from underserved communities, including people facing barriers related to incarceration. Its model shows how business training and community support can help people build income and independence.

Community Justice Project

| Center for Justice Innovation | Center for Justice Innovation | Undated

This project supports neighborhood-based approaches to safety and justice. It emphasizes resident leadership, community healing, and responses to harm that do not rely only on arrest and incarceration.

The National Institute of Corrections Reentry Toolkit

| National Institute of Corrections | National Institute of Corrections | Undated

This reentry resource collection provides guidance for correctional agencies, community partners, and service providers. It covers planning, case management, employment, housing, family support, and transition services.

A New Way of Life Reentry Project

| A New Way of Life Reentry Project | A New Way of Life Reentry Project | Undated

This organization provides housing, legal services, advocacy, and leadership development for women rebuilding their lives after prison. It is a strong example of reentry support that treats housing, healing, and community power as connected.

Homeboy Industries

| Homeboy Industries | Homeboy Industries | Undated

Homeboy Industries provides jobs, training, tattoo removal, counseling, and community support for formerly gang-involved and formerly incarcerated people. Its model centers healing, dignity, and employment as pathways away from violence and incarceration.

Center for Employment Opportunities

| Center for Employment Opportunities | Center for Employment Opportunities | Undated

The Center for Employment Opportunities helps people returning from incarceration find immediate paid transitional work and long-term employment. Its model focuses on the early reentry period, when job access can be especially important for stability.

Defy Ventures

| Defy Ventures | Defy Ventures | Undated

Defy Ventures offers entrepreneurship, career readiness, and personal development programs for incarcerated and formerly incarcerated people. It frames business training as a tool for accountability, self-confidence, and economic independence.

Common Justice

| Common Justice | Common Justice | Undated

Common Justice operates a restorative alternative to incarceration for serious violent felonies in New York City. Its work centers survivors, requires accountability from responsible parties, and shows that even serious harm can sometimes be addressed through repair rather than prison.

Insight Garden Program

| Insight Garden Program | Insight Garden Program | Undated

The Insight Garden Program uses gardening, ecology, and emotional learning inside prisons. It helps incarcerated people develop responsibility, patience, environmental awareness, and life skills that can support healing and reentry.

Resources: Prisoner Reentry Program

| Prison Fellowship | Prison Fellowship | Undated

This resource page provides practical guidance for people leaving prison and for communities that want to support them. It focuses on the everyday needs of reentry, including relationships, stability, faith communities, and staying out of prison after release.

Prison Education, College Access, and Digital Skills

Prison Policy Initiative Testimony Opposing Ohio HB 338

| Prison Policy Initiative | Prison Policy Initiative | June 16, 2026

This testimony opposes a proposal that would restrict higher education access for people in maximum-security prisons in Ohio. It argues that prison education supports safer prisons and better outcomes after release.

BJA FY25 Second Chance Act Improving Reentry Education and Employment Outcomes

| Bureau of Justice Assistance | Office of Justice Programs | May 11, 2026

This federal notice supports education, vocational training, workforce development, and career pathways for people leaving prison and jail. It shows continued investment in programs that connect reentry to employability and long-term stability.

Prison Fellowship Statement After Senate Declares April 2026 as Second Chance Month

| Prison Fellowship | Prison Fellowship | April 29, 2026

This piece reports on the U.S. Senate’s recognition of April 2026 as Second Chance Month. It connects national awareness efforts to the practical work of helping formerly incarcerated people rebuild their lives through employment, housing, education, faith communities, and reduced legal barriers.

The System Will Choose Security Over Humanity Every Time

| Yael Eiger, Nino Migineishvili, Emi Yoshikawa, Liza Nadtochiy, Kentrell Owens, Franziska Roesner | arXiv | April 1, 2026

This paper examines digital technology in prisons and the tension between security, privacy, education, and reentry preparation. It argues that tablets, kiosks, and prison communication systems can either support learning and family connection or deepen surveillance and exclusion.

Prison Fellowship Declares April 2026 as Second Chance Month

| Prison Fellowship | Prison Fellowship | April 1, 2026

This article describes the national Second Chance Month campaign, which brings attention to the barriers faced by people with criminal records. It frames second chances as both a matter of dignity and public safety, emphasizing the need to remove obstacles to housing, work, education, and community belonging after incarceration.

FY25 Second Chance Act Improving Reentry Education and Employment Outcomes

| Bureau of Justice Assistance | Office of Justice Programs | March 26, 2026

This federal funding notice shows continuing national investment in education and employment programs for people returning from incarceration. It supports reentry strategies that connect people to academic credentials, vocational training, job readiness, and long-term employment pathways.

Second Chances: Understanding the Racialized Barriers Formerly Incarcerated Students Face

| J. R. Ford | Frontiers in Education | 2026

This scholarly article examines the structural barriers that formerly incarcerated students face in higher education, especially Black men who are disproportionately affected by both incarceration and educational exclusion. It connects second chances to college access, racial justice, and the need for institutions to redesign support systems.

Improving Academic Supports for Incarcerated Students

| Ashley Mowreader | Inside Higher Ed | October 10, 2025

This article examines how incarcerated students often lack the academic supports that traditional college students receive. It points to tutoring, advising, technology, and reentry planning as important parts of making prison education a true second-chance pathway.

Michigan Expands Program to Help Jailed People Obtain State IDs

| Joey Cappelletti | Associated Press | September 23, 2025

This article reports on Michigan’s effort to help people leaving jail obtain driver’s licenses or state identification cards. It shows how something as basic as an ID can be essential for finding work, housing, transportation, benefits, and stability after incarceration.

More Than 1,300 Incarcerated Individuals Achieve Educational Milestones During 2024–2025 School Year

| Massachusetts Department of Correction | Commonwealth of Massachusetts | September 10, 2025

This article reports on incarcerated students in Massachusetts earning educational credentials and completing academic milestones. It highlights education as a practical rehabilitation tool that can build confidence, skills, and readiness for reentry.

A Dearth of Data on Incarcerated Students

| Inside Higher Ed | Inside Higher Ed | September 3, 2025

This article discusses the lack of reliable national data on incarcerated college students. It argues that better data is especially important after the restoration of Pell Grants for incarcerated students, because policymakers and colleges need to know whether prison education programs are expanding access and improving outcomes.

Diplomas, Proud Parents: High School Graduation in the D.C. Jail

| Kyle Swenson | The Washington Post | July 31, 2025

This article describes incarcerated students graduating from high school inside the D.C. jail through Maya Angelou Academy. It shows education as a source of dignity, hope, and family pride even in the middle of incarceration.

Wayne State Launches Prison Education Program

| Inside Higher Ed | Inside Higher Ed | June 27, 2025

This article reports on Wayne State University’s plan to offer a bachelor’s degree program to incarcerated students. It reflects a broader revival of prison higher education following the restoration of Pell Grant eligibility for people in prison.

Math Can Be a Path to Success After Prison

| The Hechinger Report | The Hechinger Report | March 7, 2025

This article argues that math education can be part of reentry success. It connects basic academic skills to confidence, employability, and the broader evidence that prison education reduces recidivism and improves post-release outcomes.

Balancing Security, Tech Skills for College Students in Prison

| Ashley Mowreader | Inside Higher Ed | January 7, 2025

This article explores the challenge of bringing technology into prison classrooms. It explains that incarcerated students need digital literacy to succeed after release, but prison security rules often limit access to the very tools students will need in modern work and education.

The Reentry Experiences of Higher Education in Prison Program Participants

| A. Cantora | The Prison Journal | 2025

This study explores how people who took part in higher education while incarcerated experience life after release. It emphasizes that college in prison works best when students also receive reentry planning, continuity of education, and support after returning home.

Fair Chance Housing

| Vera Institute of Justice | Vera Institute of Justice | 2025

This publication argues that conviction history should not automatically block people from housing. It frames stable housing as the foundation for employment, education, treatment, family reconnection, and successful reentry.

Collateral Consequences

| Prison Policy Initiative | Prison Policy Initiative | 2025

This resource collects research on the long-term penalties that follow incarceration, including unemployment, housing exclusion, educational barriers, and family instability. It is useful for documenting why second-chance policies must address barriers beyond the sentence itself.

It Used to Be a Notoriously Violent Prison. Now It’s Home to a First-of-Its-Kind Higher Education Program

| Wayne D’Orio | The Hechinger Report | November 12, 2024

This article tells the story of Cal Poly Humboldt’s bachelor’s program at Pelican Bay State Prison. It shows how education can transform prison culture, create hope, and give incarcerated people a serious pathway toward personal growth and future reentry.

Enhancing Reentry Support Programs Through Digital Literacy Integration

| Aakash Gautam, Khushboo Gandhi, Jessica Eileen Sendejo | arXiv | May 24, 2024

This paper explores how reentry organizations can integrate digital literacy support. It highlights barriers formerly incarcerated people face with technology, online forms, employment systems, and service access, and it argues that digital support is now central to second chances.

From Prisons to Programming: Fostering Self-Efficacy via Virtual Web Design Curricula in Prisons and Jails

| Martin Nisser and others | arXiv | April 24, 2024

This study describes a college-accredited web design course taught across correctional facilities. It shows how digital literacy, creativity, and technical skills can strengthen confidence and prepare incarcerated students for modern work after release.

Reinstating Pell Grants in Prisons Moves Slowly After 26-Year Ban

| Sara Weissman | Inside Higher Ed | November 17, 2023

This article looks at the slow implementation of restored Pell Grants for incarcerated students. It shows that policy change is only the first step; colleges, corrections agencies, and students still need practical systems that make education access real.

‘A Second Prison’: People Face Hidden Dead Ends When They Pursue Careers Post-Incarceration

| Tara García Mathewson | The Hechinger Report | July 28, 2023

This article examines occupational licensing barriers that block formerly incarcerated people from many careers. It shows how people can complete training or education only to discover that old convictions still prevent them from working in their chosen field.

How College in Prison Is Changing Lives

| Vera Institute of Justice | Vera Institute of Justice | June 21, 2023

This article explains how prison higher education can transform individual lives and prison environments. It discusses the return of Pell Grant access and the potential for incarcerated students to earn degrees that help them succeed after release.

Imprisoned Students to Get Pell Grant Access This Summer

| Katherine Knott | Inside Higher Ed | May 3, 2023

This article explains the restoration of Pell Grant access for incarcerated students. It frames prison education as a major second-chance policy, allowing people in prison to pursue college credentials that can improve reentry prospects.

Second Chance Policies Help Individuals Leaving Incarceration Build Financial Security

| Center for American Progress | Center for American Progress | April 5, 2023

This article argues that second-chance policies can help people leaving incarceration build financial stability. It focuses on education, workforce training, wraparound services, and reforms that allow people to participate fully in the labor market.

Second Chance Pell: Six Years of Expanding Higher Education Programs in Prison

| N. Taber and others | Vera Institute of Justice | 2023

This report reviews the Second Chance Pell initiative, which expanded access to federal financial aid for incarcerated students. It shows how college-in-prison programs can support rehabilitation, personal development, and stronger reentry outcomes.

Formerly Incarcerated People Deserve Second Chances. I’m Living Proof.

| William Freeman III | The Education Trust | May 12, 2022

This first-person article describes the barriers faced by a formerly incarcerated college student and argues that second chances must be real, not just symbolic. It highlights education as a path to dignity, achievement, and social contribution.

A Criminal Record Shouldn’t Be a Life Sentence to Poverty

| Akua Amaning | Center for American Progress | April 29, 2022

This article explains how criminal records restrict employment, housing, education, and financial security. It argues that fair-chance and record-clearing policies are essential for people trying to rebuild after justice-system involvement.

An Accredited College Inside San Quentin State Prison

| Sara Weissman | Inside Higher Ed | February 7, 2022

This article covers Mount Tamalpais College, an accredited college operating inside San Quentin State Prison. It shows how prison education can move beyond volunteer classes toward fully recognized college credentials.

Second Chances Are Real. Let’s Make Sure More Students Get Them

| The Education Trust | The Education Trust | September 25, 2019

This article profiles a career and college readiness program for incarcerated students and describes strong graduation and low recidivism outcomes. It presents education and job training as practical tools for reintegration.

From Prison to Dean’s List: How Danielle Metz Got an Education After Incarceration

| Casey Parks | The Hechinger Report | July 8, 2019

This article tells the story of Danielle Metz, who pursued education after incarceration and became part of a broader movement to expand college access for formerly incarcerated people. It shows how higher education can turn a second chance into a new life trajectory.

Higher Education Programs in Prison

| Lois M. Davis | RAND Corporation | 2019

This policy perspective discusses higher education in prison and the importance of programs such as Second Chance Pell. It explains why postsecondary education can help incarcerated students prepare for life after release.

Pathways from Prison to Postsecondary Education

| Vera Institute of Justice | Vera Institute of Justice | 2019

This report examines prison-to-college pathways and the implementation of postsecondary education programs behind bars. It highlights how incarcerated students can benefit from academic preparation, advising, and continuity after release.

Investing in Futures: Economic and Fiscal Benefits of Postsecondary Education in Prison

| Patrick Oakford and others | Vera Institute of Justice | 2019

This report analyzes the economic and fiscal benefits of college education in prison. It argues that postsecondary education can improve employment outcomes, reduce reincarceration, and generate savings for states and communities.

Prison Education Saved My Life and Stopped an Environmental Cycle of Incarceration

| Vera Institute of Justice | Vera Institute of Justice | May 11, 2018

This personal article connects prison education to transformation and community repair. It shows how learning can help incarcerated people develop purpose, prepare for release, and interrupt cycles of incarceration.

The Case for Correctional Education in U.S. Prisons

| Doug Irving | RAND Corporation | January 3, 2016

This article summarizes research showing that people who participate in prison education are less likely to return to prison and more likely to find employment. It makes the public-safety and cost-saving case for expanding education behind bars.

Making the Grade: Developing Quality Postsecondary Education Programs in Prison

| Ruth Delaney and others | Vera Institute of Justice | 2016

This report provides guidance for building strong college programs in prison. It emphasizes quality, coordination between colleges and corrections agencies, and the importance of treating incarcerated students as serious learners.

How Effective Is Correctional Education, and Where Do We Go from Here?

| Lois M. Davis and others | RAND Corporation | March 18, 2014

This follow-up report explores the evidence for correctional education and identifies future research needs. It supports the idea that education is one of the strongest tools available for rehabilitation and successful reentry.

Evaluating the Effectiveness of Correctional Education

| Lois M. Davis and others | RAND Corporation | August 22, 2013

This major RAND report reviews evidence on correctional education and post-release outcomes. It found that education programs are associated with lower recidivism and better employment prospects, making it a key source for prison rehabilitation policy.

Partnering with Jails to Improve Reentry

| A. Crayton and others | Urban Institute | 2010

This guidebook explains how community organizations can work with jails to support people returning home. It highlights partnerships with treatment providers, shelters, workforce programs, health clinics, and community colleges.

Unlocking Potential Initiative

| Vera Institute of Justice | Vera Institute of Justice | Undated

This initiative expands access to high-quality postsecondary education in prison and works to reduce racial inequities in college-in-prison programs. It presents education as a long-term tool for dignity, opportunity, and successful reentry.

Clean Slate Initiative

| Clean Slate Initiative | Clean Slate Initiative | Undated

The Clean Slate Initiative supports automatic record-clearing laws for eligible people. Its work shows how record relief can expand access to jobs, housing, education, and civic participation for people who have already paid their debt.

The Ladies of Hope Ministries

| The Ladies of Hope Ministries | The Ladies of Hope Ministries | Undated

This organization supports women and girls affected by incarceration through housing, education, advocacy, and leadership development. Its model centers dignity, safety, healing, and economic opportunity.

College & Community Fellowship

| College & Community Fellowship | College & Community Fellowship | Undated

College & Community Fellowship helps women impacted by the criminal legal system pursue higher education and leadership. It connects second chances to college completion, civic voice, and long-term economic security.

Reentry 2030

| Reentry 2030 | Reentry 2030 | Undated

Reentry 2030 is a national initiative encouraging states to set measurable goals for improving outcomes for people leaving prison and jail. Its focus on jobs, housing, health, education, and cross-agency coordination makes it a strong source for second-chance reform.

Building Second Chances Through Reentry Planning

| Bureau of Justice Assistance | Office of Justice Programs | Undated

This federal overview explains reentry programming supported by the Bureau of Justice Assistance. It highlights how coordinated services before and after release can improve public safety and help people rebuild stable lives.

Prison to Professionals: A Second Chance Through Education

| Prison to Professionals | Prison to Professionals | Undated

This organization supports people with criminal convictions as they pursue higher education and professional careers. Its work highlights the role of mentoring, scholarships, and professional networks in helping formerly incarcerated people move into leadership.

The Fortune Society

| The Fortune Society | The Fortune Society | Undated

The Fortune Society provides housing, employment services, education, health support, and advocacy for people affected by incarceration. Its long-running work shows how comprehensive reentry services can help people rebuild stable and meaningful lives.

Safer Foundation

| Safer Foundation | Safer Foundation | Undated

Safer Foundation supports people with criminal records through employment, education, housing, and reentry services. Its programs show how coordinated support can help reduce recidivism and expand opportunity for people who are often locked out of the labor market.

The Last Mile

| The Last Mile | The Last Mile | Undated

The Last Mile provides technology and coding education for incarcerated people and returning citizens. It connects prison education to modern job markets and shows how digital skills can create real second-chance employment pathways.

Hudson Link for Higher Education in Prison

| Hudson Link | Hudson Link for Higher Education in Prison | Undated

Hudson Link provides college education, reentry support, and alumni services for incarcerated and formerly incarcerated students in New York. Its work demonstrates how higher education can support transformation inside prison and continued success after release.

Bard Prison Initiative

| Bard Prison Initiative | Bard College | Undated

The Bard Prison Initiative offers rigorous college education to incarcerated students and supports alumni after release. It is one of the best-known examples of prison education as a serious academic and reentry pathway.

Northwestern Prison Education Program

| Northwestern Prison Education Program | Northwestern University | Undated

This program provides liberal arts education to incarcerated students in Illinois. It shows how university partnerships can bring high-quality college courses into prisons and help students prepare for civic, academic, and professional life after release.

Mount Tamalpais College

| Mount Tamalpais College | Mount Tamalpais College | Undated

Mount Tamalpais College operates an accredited college program inside San Quentin. It shows how prison education can move from volunteer instruction to fully recognized college credentials that support personal growth and reentry.

Georgetown Prisons and Justice Initiative

| Georgetown Prisons and Justice Initiative | Georgetown University | Undated

Georgetown’s Prisons and Justice Initiative offers education and reentry programs for incarcerated and formerly incarcerated students. Its work connects college access, legal reform, public education, and leadership by people directly affected by incarceration.

Project Rebound

| California State University | California State University | Undated

Project Rebound supports formerly incarcerated students across the California State University system. It provides academic advising, peer support, campus navigation, and community, helping students turn reentry into a path through college.

Underground Scholars

| Underground Scholars | University of California, Berkeley | Undated

Underground Scholars supports formerly incarcerated and system-impacted students at UC Berkeley and beyond. It is an example of peer-led second-chance education that turns lived experience into leadership, advocacy, and academic success.

Correctional Education Policy Impact

| RAND Corporation | RAND Corporation | Undated

This RAND summary explains that correctional education can reduce recidivism and improve post-release employment outcomes. It is a strong evidence-based source for prison education as a practical second-chance strategy.

Youth Diversion, Juvenile Justice, and School Restorative Practices

Restorative Justice Diversion: A Better Way to Provide Meaningful Accountability for Youth

| Richard Mendel | The Sentencing Project | March 26, 2026

Restorative justice diversion programs give young people a path to accountability without pushing them deeper into the juvenile court system. The article highlights evidence that these programs can reduce reoffending, increase victim satisfaction, and help young people understand the harm they caused while remaining connected to family, school, and community support.

How to Design an Intervention to Keep Young People Out of the Juvenile Justice System in Your Community

| Libby Robin | Urban Institute | February 2026

This guide explains how communities can create youth diversion programs that keep young people out of formal court processing. It highlights restorative practices, mentoring, family support, community accountability, and service referrals as alternatives to punishment-first juvenile justice.

Rhode Island’s Juvenile Hearing Boards: An Overview, Case Studies, and Recommendations

| Urban Institute | Urban Institute | February 2026

This report examines Rhode Island’s juvenile hearing boards, which divert many youth from deeper justice-system involvement. It shows how local boards can use restorative principles, family participation, accountability, and service connections to help young people repair harm.

Idaho’s Youth Assessment Centers: An Overview, Case Studies, and Key Takeaways

| Brittany B. Boppre and others | Urban Institute | February 2026

This report profiles Idaho’s youth assessment centers as a model for early intervention. The centers connect young people and families to support before formal justice involvement deepens, making them a practical example of prevention and diversion.

What Do Alternatives to Incarceration Actually Look Like?

| Vera Institute of Justice | Vera Institute of Justice | October 21, 2025

This article explains alternatives to incarceration, including diversion programs, treatment-based responses, and community supervision models. It is useful for understanding how second-chance systems can hold people accountable while reducing jail and prison use.

The Effect of Restorative Justice Interventions for Children and Young People on Offending and Reoffending

| Guy Skinner, Darrick Jolliffe, Hannah Gaffney, Joana Ferreira, Elizabeth Eggins, Angela Higginson | Youth Endowment Fund | October 2025

This systematic review examines whether restorative justice interventions reduce children’s and young people’s involvement in crime and violence. It is useful for understanding the evidence base behind youth diversion, restorative conferencing, and community-based accountability.

Inside San Francisco’s New Restorative Justice Hub

| Megan Rose Dickey | Axios San Francisco | August 4, 2025

This article profiles San Francisco’s restorative justice center, which serves youth, survivors, formerly incarcerated people, and families affected by incarceration. The center combines therapy, diversion, reentry help, and community healing in one welcoming space.

From Gangs to College

| Gail Cornwall | The Hechinger Report | June 24, 2025

This article profiles a program that helped young people connected to gangs move toward higher education. It highlights how targeted support, mentorship, and college access can redirect lives away from violence and into long-term opportunity.

Beyond Reoffending and Rearrest

| N. Chlebuch and others | Justice Quarterly | 2025

This study argues that youth diversion should be evaluated with broader measures than rearrest alone. It supports a more holistic view of second chances that includes youth development, fairness, community connection, and reduced harm.

Assessing Restorative Justice Processes and Values in a Juvenile Justice Diversion Program

| S. Keith | Taylor & Francis | 2025

This case study examines Community Connections, a juvenile diversion program in Tallahassee, Florida. It is useful for understanding how restorative justice values are translated into real program design and youth accountability.

Restorative Diversion: Victim Youth Conferencing Effects on Youth Reoffending

| A. Hobbs | Taylor & Francis | 2025

This study looks at restorative conferencing for youth and its effects on accountability and reoffending. It highlights how victim-youth conferences can result in reparation agreements and can provide a constructive alternative to traditional juvenile punishment.

Statewide Youth Diversion Report 2025

| Washington State Minority and Justice Commission Youth Justice Committee | Washington Courts | 2025

This report examines youth diversion practices across Washington State. It focuses on expanding alternatives that keep young people out of the formal justice system and connect them to support, accountability, and developmentally appropriate interventions.

Midland County Court Awarded $100K to Launch Youth Diversion Program

| Midland Daily News | Midland Daily News | 2025

This article describes a Michigan grant to create a youth diversion program for low-risk youth. The program aims to respond to status offenses and early misconduct with positive youth development and community support instead of formal court involvement.

Victoria Police Backs Cautions Over Charges for Young Offenders

| The Australian | The Australian | 2025

This article reports on a youth cautioning and diversion model in Victoria, Australia. The program uses warnings and support instead of criminal charges for some young people, aiming to reduce reoffending and prevent early justice-system contact from becoming a lifelong burden.

A Second Chance at Schooling

| R. A. Campbell | UC Davis Department of Economics | 2025

This research paper estimates the effects of prison education on outcomes such as reincarceration, employment, and future education. It adds economic evidence to the argument that education behind bars can produce long-term benefits.

Dad Who Was Formerly Incarcerated Graduates from Ivy League School with a Master’s Degree

| David Chiu | People | June 2024

This article tells the story of Thomas Jones, who rebuilt his life after incarceration and earned a master’s degree from Cornell University. It highlights perseverance, family motivation, educational support, and the power of second chances.

He Got a College Degree in Prison. Now He’s Off to a Prestigious Law School

| Gloria Oladipo | The Guardian | April 11, 2024

This article profiles Benard McKinley, who earned a college degree while incarcerated and was later accepted to Northwestern Pritzker School of Law. His story shows how prison education can turn legal punishment into a path toward service, advocacy, and leadership.

Diversion Programs Are a Smart, Sustainable Investment in Public Safety

| Vera Institute of Justice | Vera Institute of Justice | April 28, 2022

This article makes the case that diversion programs improve public safety while reducing unnecessary incarceration. It highlights evidence that youth diversion can reduce future justice-system contact compared with conventional prosecution.

Diversion Programs, Explained

| Vera Institute of Justice | Vera Institute of Justice | April 28, 2022

This explainer describes what diversion programs are and how they work. It is useful for understanding how people can be held accountable while being connected to treatment, services, education, and community support instead of jail or prison.

A Better Way Forward: How Diversion Programs Offer Youth Opportunities for Success

| Center for Public Justice | Center for Public Justice | June 24, 2021

This article explains how youth diversion can keep young people from deeper justice-system involvement. It argues that community-based responses, support services, and civil society partnerships can produce better outcomes than traditional juvenile punishment.

Advocating for the Use of Restorative Justice Practices

| J. M. Pavlacic and others | National Library of Medicine / PMC | 2021

This review explains restorative justice practices and their relevance in schools, communities, and justice settings. It describes how restorative approaches can promote accountability, repair harm, and reduce reliance on exclusionary punishment.

Healing Communities Through Restorative Justice

| Center on Juvenile and Criminal Justice | Center on Juvenile and Criminal Justice | January 24, 2019

This article explains how restorative justice can help communities address harm through dialogue, accountability, and healing. It frames justice as a process of repairing relationships rather than simply punishing individuals.

Getting Back on Course: Educational Exclusion and Attainment Among Formerly Incarcerated People

| Lucius Couloute | Prison Policy Initiative | October 2018

This report examines educational barriers faced by formerly incarcerated people. It shows how exclusion from schooling before, during, and after incarceration limits employment and stability, while also highlighting education as a key second-chance strategy.

The Dimensions, Pathways, and Consequences of Youth Reentry

| Daniel P. Mears and Jeremy Travis | Urban Institute | 2004

This report examines the challenges faced by young people returning from juvenile facilities and prisons. It emphasizes education, family support, community reintegration, and the special needs of youth and young adults.

Drive Change

| Drive Change | Drive Change | Undated

Drive Change supports young people affected by the criminal legal system through food-service training, fellowships, and leadership development. It connects youth justice to stable work and long-term opportunity.

Getting Out and Staying Out

| Getting Out and Staying Out | GOSO | Undated

Getting Out and Staying Out serves young men affected by arrest or incarceration through education, employment, counseling, and court advocacy. It shows how intensive support can help young people move away from jail and toward stability.

Youth Advocate Programs

| Youth Advocate Programs | Youth Advocate Programs | Undated

Youth Advocate Programs provides community-based alternatives to youth incarceration and residential placement. Its model relies on neighborhood advocates, family support, and individualized plans that keep young people connected to home, school, and community.

Credible Messenger Mentoring Movement

| Credible Messenger Mentoring Movement | CM3 | Undated

Credible messenger mentoring uses trained mentors with lived experience to support young people involved in the justice system. It shows how trust and shared experience can help youth accept guidance, repair harm, and choose new paths.

Project Reset

| Center for Justice Innovation | Center for Justice Innovation | Undated

Project Reset gives people accused of low-level offenses the chance to complete community-based programming instead of going through traditional prosecution. It is a practical example of diversion that can prevent criminal records.

Second Chance Act

| National Reentry Resource Center | Council of State Governments Justice Center | Undated

This page explains the Second Chance Act, a major federal law supporting reentry programs for adults and youth returning from incarceration. It connects second chances to public safety, reduced recidivism, and practical support for people coming home.

Restorative Justice in Schools

| Edutopia | Edutopia | Undated

This resource explains restorative justice practices in schools, including circles, relationship repair, and alternatives to suspension. It connects youth diversion to school discipline reform by showing how young people can be held accountable without being pushed out of education.

Restorative Practices: Fostering Healthy Relationships and Promoting Positive Discipline in Schools

| National Education Association | NEA | Undated

This resource explains how restorative practices can improve school climate and reduce exclusionary discipline. It is useful for youth second-chance topics because suspensions and expulsions can become early pathways into the justice system.

Restorative Justice Council

| Restorative Justice Council | Restorative Justice Council | Undated

The Restorative Justice Council supports high-quality restorative justice practice in the United Kingdom. Its materials show how restorative approaches can be used in criminal justice, schools, workplaces, and communities.

Youth Justice Family Group Conferencing

| Oranga Tamariki | New Zealand Government | Undated

This page explains New Zealand’s family group conferencing model for youth justice. It is useful for restorative justice because it centers family, victims, accountability, and community planning instead of relying only on court punishment.

Restorative Justice Project

| Impact Justice | Impact Justice | Undated

This project supports restorative justice diversion that brings together harmed people, responsible youth, families, and community members. It offers an alternative to prosecution that focuses on accountability, repair, and preventing future harm.

Community Works West

| Community Works West | Community Works West | Undated

Community Works West provides restorative justice, youth diversion, family support, and reentry programs in California. Its work focuses on healing the harm of incarceration and keeping young people connected to family and community.

Restorative Justice for Oakland Youth

| Restorative Justice for Oakland Youth | RJOY | Undated

Restorative Justice for Oakland Youth works to replace punitive school and justice practices with restorative approaches. Its programs emphasize circles, relationship repair, youth leadership, and community accountability.

Addiction Recovery, Behavioral Health, and Treatment Courts

Ten Juveniles Complete Webb County Rehabilitation Program

| Laredo Morning Times | Laredo Morning Times | June 2026

This local article reports on young people graduating from Webb County’s Youth Success Court, a rehabilitation program focused on substance abuse, counseling, supervision, and family support. It presents youth justice as a chance to recover and grow rather than simply punish.

OJJDP FY 2025 Second Chance Act Youth Reentry Program

| Office of Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention | Office of Justice Programs | February 18, 2026

This program supports reentry services for youth returning from juvenile placement. It emphasizes education, family support, behavioral health, housing stability, and community reintegration for young people who need help rebuilding their lives.

25 Reentry Wins in 2025: How States Are Removing Barriers to Reentry Success

| Reentry 2030 | Reentry 2030 | January 2026

This article highlights state-level improvements in reentry policy, including better access to identification, jobs, housing, health care, and cross-agency support. It is useful for showing how second-chance reform can become measurable public policy rather than just a symbolic promise.

Breaking the Cycle of Incarceration With Targeted Mental Health Outreach

| Kit T. Rodolfa and others | arXiv | September 17, 2025

This paper examines a targeted mental-health outreach effort for people at high risk of returning to jail. It shows how treatment, proactive support, and community services can help address the health and homelessness problems that often drive repeated incarceration.

A Promising Jail Reentry Program Revisited

| ISSUP | International Society of Substance Use Professionals | June 30, 2025

This article summarizes research on a jail reentry program that addressed common post-release challenges such as housing, employment, substance use treatment, and mental health care. It shows how coordinated support can reduce the instability that often leads people back into jail.

What Breaking Cycles of Crime Actually Means

| Vera Institute of Justice | Vera Institute of Justice | April 17, 2025

This article argues that real public safety requires housing, work, health care, education, and stability. It challenges punishment-only thinking and explains why second-chance systems must address the conditions that make reoffending more likely.

Second Chance Month 2025

| National Reentry Resource Center | National Reentry Resource Center | 2025

This page highlights Second Chance Month as a national effort to identify and reduce barriers faced by people with criminal records. It focuses on housing, employment, health care, family reunification, and public awareness around successful reentry.

Expanding Access to Basic Reentry Services Will Improve Health, Well-Being, and Public Safety

| Center for American Progress | Center for American Progress | October 29, 2024

This article makes the case for basic reentry supports such as health care, medication, case management, treatment, and job placement assistance. It shows how reentry is not only a criminal justice issue but also a public health and community stability issue.

The United States Criminalizes People Who Need Health Care and Housing

| Vera Institute of Justice | Vera Institute of Justice | October 17, 2023

This article argues that many people are pushed into the criminal legal system because of unmet health, housing, and substance-use needs. It supports a restorative and public-health approach that responds to harm and instability with services rather than punishment.

A Promising Approach to Reduce Jail Populations: Behavioral Health Diversion

| The Pew Charitable Trusts | Pew | August 8, 2022

This article explains how behavioral health diversion can keep people with mental illness or substance use disorders out of jail and connected to treatment. It supports the argument that many justice problems are better addressed through care and community services.

Reentry Essentials: Prioritizing Treatment for Substance Addictions

| CSG Justice Center | Council of State Governments Justice Center | December 12, 2018

This article explains why substance-use treatment is central to reentry success. It emphasizes continuity of care, medication-assisted treatment, peer support, and coordinated planning as people move from incarceration back into the community.

Medication-Assisted Treatment for Opioid Use Disorder in Jails and Prisons

| The Pew Charitable Trusts | Pew | October 3, 2018

This brief explains how medication-assisted treatment can improve outcomes for people with opioid use disorder. It is important for reentry because the period after release is especially dangerous for overdose risk, making treatment continuity a second-chance and public-health priority.

Reentry Interventions That Address Substance Use

| K. E. Moore and others | National Library of Medicine / PMC | 2018

This scholarly article reviews reentry interventions for people with substance use needs. It highlights the importance of treatment continuity, health care, housing, and social support during the high-risk transition from incarceration to community life.

The Practice and Promise of Prison Programming

| Sarah Lawrence and others | Urban Institute | 2002

This report reviews prison programming, including education, vocational training, substance abuse treatment, and behavioral programs. It is useful for understanding the long-running debate over rehabilitation inside prisons.

Health and Healthcare

| Prison Policy Initiative | Prison Policy Initiative | Undated

This research collection examines the health effects of incarceration and the need for medical care during and after release. It supports reentry discussions focused on addiction recovery, mental health, overdose prevention, and continuity of care.

National Reentry Resource Center

| National Reentry Resource Center | Council of State Governments Justice Center | Undated

This resource hub collects research, toolkits, funding information, and examples of reentry programs across the United States. It is useful for documenting how communities support people after incarceration through employment, housing, behavioral health care, and family reconnection.

Healing to Wellness Courts

| Tribal Law and Policy Institute | Tribal Law and Policy Institute | Undated

Healing to Wellness Courts are tribal court programs that address substance use and justice involvement through culturally grounded support, accountability, and treatment. They show how recovery, community, and restorative principles can work together.

Tribal Healing to Wellness Courts

| Office of Justice Programs | U.S. Department of Justice | Undated

This page explains how tribal wellness courts support people with substance use disorders through treatment, supervision, cultural connection, and community support. It is useful for addiction recovery and restorative justice topics.

Treatment Courts Work

| All Rise | All Rise | Undated

This resource explains the evidence and principles behind treatment courts, including drug courts, mental health courts, and veterans treatment courts. It frames recovery-focused courts as alternatives that combine accountability with treatment and support.

Drug Courts

| All Rise | All Rise | Undated

This page explains how drug courts respond to substance use and criminal legal involvement through treatment, judicial supervision, testing, and recovery support. It is useful for second-chance topics because it focuses on addressing addiction rather than relying only on incarceration.

Veterans Treatment Courts

| All Rise | All Rise | Undated

Veterans treatment courts connect justice-involved veterans to treatment, peer mentors, and services. They show how specialized courts can recognize trauma, addiction, and service-related needs while still requiring accountability.

Mental Health Courts

| Council of State Governments Justice Center | CSG Justice Center | Undated

This resource explains mental health courts, which connect people with behavioral health needs to treatment and supervision instead of traditional punishment alone. It is useful for showing how second chances often require health care, not just legal consequences.

Stepping Up Initiative

| Stepping Up | Council of State Governments Justice Center, NACo, and American Psychiatric Association Foundation | Undated

Stepping Up helps counties reduce the number of people with mental illnesses in jails. It supports diversion, treatment connections, data tracking, and collaboration between justice and health systems.

Jail Diversion for People with Mental Illness

| SAMHSA | Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration | Undated

This SAMHSA resource explains the Sequential Intercept Model, which helps communities identify points where people with mental illness or substance use disorders can be diverted away from jail. It is useful for designing humane, treatment-oriented alternatives.

Sequential Intercept Model

| Policy Research Associates | Policy Research Associates | Undated

The Sequential Intercept Model maps opportunities to divert people from the criminal legal system into services before, during, and after justice involvement. It is useful for connecting crisis response, courts, jail reentry, and community treatment.

Jail-Based Medication-Assisted Treatment

| SAMHSA | Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration | Undated

This resource explains medications and counseling used to treat substance use disorders. It supports second-chance work by showing how evidence-based treatment can help people stabilize during and after incarceration.

How Communities Can Build a Jail-to-Community Continuum of Care

| Bureau of Justice Assistance | Office of Justice Programs | Undated

This federal program page describes support for communities addressing substance use and overdose among justice-involved people. It connects reentry, treatment, overdose prevention, and public safety.

How Norway Is Teaching America To Make Its Prisons More Humane

https://www.huffpost.com/entry/norway-american-prison-system-reform_n_5d5ab979e4b0eb875f270db1 Huffington Post 8/22/2019

Recidivism rates in Norway are among the world’s lowest. Around 20% of those released from prison are arrested within two years. In the U.S., about 68% of released prisoners were arrested within three years. 
The gap between the two countries narrows significantly when you look only at reincarceration (and ignore arrests) — Norway’s rate is 25%, compared with 28.8% in the U.S. 
But there’s another important statistic to take into account: The percentage of the total population each country puts behind bars. While America jails 665 of every 100,000 residents, Norway’s rate is less than a tenth of that ― just 63 of every 100,000.

Amity Foundation

| Amity Foundation | Amity Foundation | Undated

Amity Foundation provides treatment, education, housing, and reentry services for people affected by addiction, incarceration, homelessness, and trauma. Its work connects recovery to community support and long-term reintegration.

Delancey Street Foundation

| Delancey Street Foundation | Delancey Street Foundation | Undated

Delancey Street Foundation is a residential self-help organization for people rebuilding after incarceration, addiction, and homelessness. It emphasizes accountability, work, education, peer support, and developing practical life skills.

Restorative Justice Practice, Community Healing, and International Models

An Interim Process and Outcome Evaluation of Oakland’s Measure Z–Funded Group Violence Response Strategy

| Jesse Jannetta and others | Urban Institute | December 2024

This report examines Oakland’s group violence response strategy, which uses community organizations and trusted messengers to reach people at high risk of violence. It is useful for restorative justice themes because it focuses on relationships, support, and prevention.

Peacemaking Program

| Center for Justice Innovation | Center for Justice Innovation | Undated

This program draws on Indigenous restorative traditions to address conflict through dialogue, accountability, and community participation. It highlights justice as relationship repair rather than punishment alone.

Center for Court Innovation: Restorative Practices

| Center for Justice Innovation | Center for Justice Innovation | Undated

This page describes restorative practices that bring together people harmed by crime, responsible parties, families, and community members. It emphasizes accountability, repair, healing, and alternatives to conventional punishment.

Red Hook Community Justice Center

| Center for Justice Innovation | Center for Justice Innovation | Undated

The Red Hook Community Justice Center uses a community court model that connects people to services, accountability, and local problem-solving. It is useful for restorative justice topics because it shifts the focus from punishment alone to community repair.

Restorative Justice Partnership

| Restorative Justice Partnership | Restorative Justice Partnership | Undated

This organization promotes restorative justice in the United Kingdom through training, advocacy, and practice development. It is useful for international examples of community-based accountability and victim-centered repair.

Restorative Justice Victoria

| Government of Victoria | Victoria State Government | Undated

This page explains restorative justice programs in Victoria, Australia, including processes that allow people harmed by crime and those responsible to communicate in a structured way. It is useful for showing how restorative justice can be supported by public institutions.

Circles of Support and Accountability

| Circles of Support and Accountability Ottawa | CoSA Ottawa | Undated

Circles of Support and Accountability is a restorative reentry model that uses trained community volunteers to support and hold accountable people returning after serious offenses. It shows how public safety and reintegration can be pursued together through structured community relationships.

Research, Reentry Systems, and Prison Reform

An Evaluation of Oakland’s Measure Z–Funded Violence Prevention Services

| Jesse Jannetta and others | Urban Institute | 2025

This evaluation examines Oakland’s community-based violence prevention services, including life coaching, violence interruption, and support for people at high risk of violence involvement. It connects public safety to healing, mentorship, and community investment.

Transforming Prisons, Restoring Lives

| Charles Colson Task Force on Federal Corrections | Urban Institute | January 11, 2016

This report argues for a federal corrections system more focused on rehabilitation, proportionality, and successful reentry. It includes testimony and policy recommendations aimed at reducing excessive punishment and restoring lives.

The Reentry Project

| The Reentry Project | The Reentry Project | Undated

This Philadelphia-based project shares journalism, resources, and information about reentry. It is useful for highlighting local stories and practical services for people returning from incarceration.

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