Award Information
Description of original award (Fiscal Year 2022, $900,000)
Empowering People Program (EPP)
Department of Justice/ Bureau of Justice Assistance Award #15PBJA-22-GG-04607-SCAX
FY 2022 Improving Reentry Education and Employment Outcomes
Original Award Amount: $900,000
Description of original award (Fiscal Year 2022, $900,000)
The Pinellas Ex Offender Reentry Coalition (PERC) proposes the Empowering People Program (EPP), a comprehensive pre-release to community-based program geared towards improving employment services and connections for returning citizens. The primary subrecipients are Abe Brown Ministries, the Florida Dream Center, and the Institute for Equitable Development.
Geographic Target and Correctional Partner
The project will prioritize medium and high-risk male and female adults returning from the Florida Department of Corrections to targeted underserved communities located in Pinellas and Hillsborough Counties through the Polk Correctional Facility and Work Camp, the Largo Road Prison, and Community Release Centers releasing to Hillsborough and Pinellas.
Goals and Objectives
The overall goal of the Empowering People Program (EPP) is to demonstrate impact, social service efficiency and the public safety benefit of utilizing pre-release assessment, services and both soft and hard skills training with post release intensive case management, peer coaching and mentoring, and employment placement services to ensure public safety through the long-term success of our clients.
Pre-and post-release RNR assessment leading to individualized case plans and career pathways for post-release employment and services will be combined with stacked certifications obtained pre-release including but not limited to NCCER Core, NCCER carpentry, OSHA 30, Forklift licensing, advanced manufacturing and low voltage credentialing, and workplace readiness skills.
Partnerships of PERC for this project are based on the highest targeted in demand occupations for Tampa Bay and Florida as outlined by the Florida Department of Economic Opportunity, which will lead to WIOA based training grants through the local workforce board CareerSource Hillsborough/Pinellas.
Specific objectives include the recruitment of 90 participants in the 24-month program with a completion rate over 80% based on tracking/monitoring; tracking and monitoring of personal networks in the reentry process; centralized data system based around the RNR assessment tool with progress note features; increased community awareness geared towards sustainability; and Employment Placement (75%) and Retention Rates (75% and scaling) tracked in the system developed for this program.