Launching the Impact Justice Reentry Incubator to Increase the Capacity of Housing-focused Reentry CBOs

Impact Justice (IJ) Community-based Reentry Housing Incubator Initiative will transfer knowledge of evidence-based and promising practices in reentry housing to 20 culturally specific CBOs (three cohorts of six-seven CBOs; up to $140,000 to implement, sustain, or expand reentry housing programs selected through a competitive process). IJ will administer grants and provide TTA to help CBOs build capacity to meet reentry needs; support staff members; and sustain; scale and evaluate programming. With a track record of successfully managing large federal and state grants and delivering effective TTA to community and faith-based organizations across the country, IJ is well positioned to build a reentry capacity-building model. Through its Community-based Reentry Housing Incubator Initiative, IJ will serve as an intermediary with BJA to deliver subaward funding to 20 culturally-specific CBOs (three cohorts of six to seven each) and provide TTA to sustain their efforts. IJ will feature a “Housing First” approach, which prioritizes access to a decent, safe place to live without pre-conditions and best positions the individual to improve their health, reduce harmful behaviors, and become employed. This in turn leads to declining recidivism rates, reunited families, and healing. The Community-based Reentry Housing Incubator Initiative will occur over four phases: 1) RFP process; 2) capacity development planning; 3) administering resources and TTA; and 4) process evaluation. Eligible applicants will be CBOs and faith-based reentry providers working with people at moderate to high risk for recidivism upon leaving incarceration and during reentry, whose services are primarily directed toward racial and ethnic minority groups. Small CBOs and newly established CBOs will be eligible. IJ will administer both programmatic and organizational assessments to inform individual Capacity Building Plans to improve its reentry housing programming and organizational capacity. This will include the LINCS validated Self-Assessment for Determining Readiness for Implementing a Reentry Continuum to establish a baseline understanding of adopted framework components in place for reentry and to identify areas of need. IJ will also administer the Corporation for National and Community Service (CNCS) Organizational Capacity Assessment Tool to determine strengths and challenges in leadership, service capacity, management operations, evaluation abilities, and community engagement.