The UNICOR, the Prison University Project, and the Safer Foundation

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Table of Contents

Introduction
Summary/Evaluation
Conclusion
References

Introduction

Reentry refers to efforts to promote former prisoners’ transition to normal life in their communities. Three-year recidivism rates remain elevated in the U.S., creating the need for effective reentry programs (Mamun et al., 2020). Reentry’s goals include offering post-release services, preparing inmates for reintegration by means of training, and ensuring long-term support following parole completion. The UNICOR, the Prison University Project (PUP), and the Safer Foundation meet the reentry objectives to a different extent, with the first two programs emphasizing only the preparation goal.

Summary/Evaluation

The UNICOR program offers protection/preparation services to assist inmates with developing marketable job skills while also benefiting the public through offering products. The UNICOR fosters inmates’ professionalization by engaging them in the production of 80 goods/services (Federal Bureau of Prisons [FBP], n.d.a). Its mission centers on encouraging inmates’ participation in clothing/textile, electronics, office furniture manufacturing, and other manufacturing activities at more than 40 factories (FBP, n.d.a). Hourly wages vary between 23 cents and $1.15 (FBP, n.d.a). The leaders are responsible for financial maintenance, purchasing materials from private businesses, and offering safe labor conditions for inmates, whereas probation officers’ duties are not specified (FBP, n.d.a). The community’s involvement is minimal, and the program emphasizes only the first goal of reentry.

Next, the UNICOR program is partially successful in reaching goal one of reentry. When it comes to generalized statistics for diverse work experience programs, the FBP (n.d.b) cites the medium hourly wage ranging from 12 to 40 cents, which is substantially lower than the UNICOR’s offer. The UNICOR might be more effectively designed for preventing recidivism compared to similar programs. Other programs do not offer the same range of professional opportunities and lack jobs in electronics, metals, wood products, wire and plastics, and vehicle repair (FBP, n.d.b). UNICOR participation decreases recidivism in 24% of participants and increases the chance of employment by 14% (FBP, n.d.a). The Minnesota EMPLOY program, which also offers employment assistance in the first year after release, has been shown to reduce the recidivism risk ratio by at least 32% (Duwe & McNeeley, 2020). Therefore, post-release supervision might need to be intensified to improve UNICOR’s effectiveness even more.

To continue, the PUP at San Quentin Prison has been designed to meet the protection/preparation objective by expanding inmates’ access to education. The program has been providing liberal arts education for 25 years and has 60 courses to grant the Associate of Arts degree (Mount Tamalpais College [MTC], n.d.a). Regarding supervision criteria and leaders’ responsibilities, the Program Director oversees curriculum development and monitors teachers’ safety, and accreditation from the ACCJC also guarantees supervision in terms of service quality (MTC, n.d.a). The program serves only currently incarcerated people, so probation officers’ involvement is limited.

The PUP seems to be effective in meeting the specified goal of reentry. The program offers flexible learning opportunities and collaborations between teachers and inmates, benefiting both parties by fostering the exchange of experiences between imprisoned populations and the general public (MTC, n.d.a). Over 3.700 students have enrolled and taken one or more courses since the program’s start (MTC, n.d.a). Amy Lerman demonstrates that PUP graduation decreases recidivism rates for new offenses from 19% to 4% (MTC, n.d.b). PUP graduation totally eliminates subsequent incarceration for violent crimes, but course completion and post-release employment rates remain unclear (MTC, n.d.b). However, qualitative data suggest that PUP graduates perceive the program as a crucial factor in their career progression (MTC, n.d.b). From meta-analytical research that summarizes all U.S.-based programs, enrollment in prison education programs makes inmates 48% less likely to commit subsequent crimes and increases employment chances by 12% (Mamun et al., 2020; Wood, 2022). Therefore, the PUP outperforms many education-based programs in addressing recidivism but offers less occupationally-oriented services, so addressing it is an opportunity.

The SF represents a sophisticated program focused on the control/restore and the sustain/support goals. The program’s leaders are responsible for offering education-based services, including job placement assistance, vocational training for released individuals, and GED or other basic adult education opportunities (GuideStar, n.d.; Safer Foundation [SF], n.d.). With support from Chicago neighborhoods and religious communities, it provides mentoring and reentry services to about 10.000 clients every year (GuideStar, n.d.). The Advancing Careers & Employment (ACE) initiative links former inmates to employment counselors (GuideStar, n.d.). The supervision and evaluation criteria vary between the initiatives and include fiscal integrity and feasibility, and probation officers’ responsibilities depend on service type (GuideStar, n.d.). Advantages for inmates include experiential/skill gains and job opportunities, and the general public could benefit from new job creation.

Because of statistical results, the SF’s practices are rather effective in meeting the two objectives and addressing recidivism. Compared to the PUP and similar programs, it offers an increased variety of education services, ranging from basic literacy education and HSED diplomas to specific vocational training (SF, n.d.; MTC, n.d.a; Wood, 2022). The overall enrollment/completion rates are unreported, and employment rates might also vary depending on extraneous variables. Recidivism-related outcomes from the previous reporting periods suggest a 62% reduction in three-year recidivism resulting from the SF’s (2019) services. The UNICOR and the Minnesota EMPLOY programs mainly provide training in low-wage specialties, whereas the SF (n.d.) offers opportunities in a vast array of jobs, including entry-level positions in higher-paid fields, such as healthcare and hospitality. However, the foundation does not explore its clients’ average earnings, which is another opportunity for improvement.

Conclusion

Finally, the UNICOR and the PUP show satisfactory results in promoting preparation for reintegration, and the SF focuses on long-term support/post-release education. The PUP seems to be the most effective based on the effects on re-incarceration rates. Importantly, since all programs emphasize only a part of reentry goals, all of them could be used in combination with other initiatives to improve participants’ outcomes even more.

References

Duwe, G., & McNeeley, S. (2020). The effects of prison labor on institutional misconduct, postprison employment, and recidivism.Corrections, 5(2), 89-108. Web.

Federal Bureau of Prisons. (n.d.a). UNICOR: Program details. Web.

Federal Bureau of Prisons. (n.d.b). Work programs.Web.

GuideStar. (n.d.). Safer Foundation: A road to a better future. Web.

Mamun, S., Li, X., Horn, B. P., & Chermak, J. M. (2020). Private vs. public prisons? A dynamic analysis of the long-term tradeoffs between cost-efficiency and recidivism in the US prison system.Applied Economics, 52(41), 4499-4511. Web.

Mount Tamalpais College. (n.d.a). Our story. Web.

Mount Tamalpais College. (n.d.b). Research and evaluation. Web.

Safer Foundation. (2019). Safer Foundation three-year recidivism study 2008. Second Chance Georgia. Web.

Safer Foundation. (n.d.). How we help. Web.

Wood, S. (2022). Prison education programs: What to know.U.S. News. Web.

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The UNICOR, the Prison University Project, and the Safer Foundation

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