Openings in the Transitional Employment Program The Philadelphia Furniture Bank has several openings in our Transitional Employment Program. These are paid, part-time opportunities for people who have been out of the workforce for several reasons and need extra support in transitioning back to work. If you have clients that might benefit please email your contact information and their resume to PFB Director Tom Maroon.

CRIMELINES A 20 Year Story of Crime and Incarceration A new infographic from the Pennsylvania Department of Corrections illustrates crime trends from 1998 to 2018 and shows how the overall crime rate has changed against the backdrop of different gubernatorial administrations, the openings and closings of prison facilities, and the passage of a variety of criminal justice reforms, including Justice Reinvestment legislation. Crime rates in Pennsylvania have consistently dropped

Doulas at the County Jail Women in jail typically have limited prenatal support and return to custody soon after giving birth. One Chicago program is testing a different approach. Sarah Conway - 12/20/19 Inside a tier reserved for pregnant women in Chicago’s Cook County Jail, a doula said to a group of six round-bellied women sitting at a metal table, “Tell me, who has had an epidural before?” A few hands darted into the air. The doula, Lanise Washington, asked what has to ha

Leaders in the PA House of Representatives announced the chamber will take up a bipartisan package of bills to reform Pennsylvania’s probation and parole system, to reduce recidivism and to help formerly incarcerated individuals find jobs that will help them avoid some of the pitfalls that keep many in the state’s penal system. “People who break our laws need to be held accountable, but we also understand we must continue to address the root causes of crime. Reforming our pro

Criminal Justice Reform: Restoring Equity to a Broken System MacArthur Safety and Justice Challenge The first year of the Mayor’s term, 2016, brought a landmark announcement: Philadelphia became the largest grant award recipient of the John D. and Catherine T. MacArthur Safety and Justice Challenge, receiving $3.5 million to reduce Philadelphia’s jail population by 34 percent over three years. The funding helped jumpstart transformational change in the City’s criminal justice

Marc Levy - December 18, 2019 Pennsylvania enacted a new law Wednesday that is designed to limit the stays of lower-risk offenders in prison in its latest effort to reduce the state’s prison population and to stop first-time offenders from becoming repeat offenders. Gov. Tom Wolf, a Democrat, signed the two-bill package shortly after the Republican-controlled Senate approved the bills. The GOP-controlled House did the same Tuesday. Key provisions involve getting shorter-sente

New America has released a report that seeks to facilitate conversations around the potential of correctional post secondary education and/or job training programs as tools to mitigate the gap in skills and employment challenges for justice-involved individuals. In preparing individuals for reentry, it is important to understand whether those who are currently incarcerated have the necessary education and skills to obtain employment and what types of correctional programming

The process of reentry for formerly incarcerated persons can be a burdensome, stigma-laden transition, and any difficult transition requires resilience. African Americans—the group most impacted by incarceration trauma—commonly depend on faith leaders in times of crisis to provide meaning, encouragement, and guidance, fostering spiritual resilience. This study conceptualizes spiritual resilience and proposes it as a vital quality for successful reentry; giving credence to the

Eastern State Penitentiary Historic Site is currently accepting applications for a Specialist, Institutional Giving in its Advancement Department. Reporting to the Director of Institutional Giving, the Specialist, Institutional Giving will support the grants strategy for annual operations, restricted programs, strategic initiatives, and capital projects. Duties include assisting with the preparation of letters of inquiry, grant applications, grant reports, grant attachments,

CLS is seeking a staff attorney to support and further advocacy issues that impact low-income immigrant and Limited English Proficient communities. This includes issues that affect their access to benefits, courts, government agencies, systems, and services. This new staff attorney will work collaboratively and potentially supervise one other staff attorney who is also working part-time to support this advocacy. This position entails becoming an expert in language access la