As proclaimed by Governor Doug Ducey, April is Second Chance Month, following the fifth anniversary of the Second Chance Centers that have provided comprehensive workforce and reentry readiness services to justice-involved Arizonans. Over the past five years, the Arizona Department of Economic Security (DES) and the Arizona Department of Corrections, Rehabilitation and Reentry (ADCRR) have served nearly 17,000 inmates and individuals on parole through Second Chance Centers, Community-Based Reentry Centers and Parole Offices, providing them with a real second chance of a life after incarceration.
In March 2017, Governor Ducey announced the Second Chance Initiative to help Arizona build safer communities and reduce recidivism by providing individuals with opportunity after incarceration. That same month, the State’s first Second Chance Center opened to provide inmates with a 10-week program designed to prepare them for reentry in our communities and workforce. Today, in addition to the state’s three Second Chance Centers, reentry employment services are also available post-release in the NATIVE HEALTH Central office, parole offices, reentry centers, and DES and ARIZONA@WORK offices throughout the state. This level of support helps former inmates reenter society productively, reducing their chance of recidivism by giving them a pathway to success.
The services we provide are comprehensive, including both hard and soft workforce skills, as well as resume, job search, and interview techniques. Participants also have the opportunity to attend job fairs, enroll in healthcare, and are connected to housing, clothing and transportation resources. With assistance on the front end, individuals are better positioned to overcome a myriad of obstacles that may hinder their progress as they rebuild their lives.
The Second Chance Center initiative represents a commitment to providing all individuals with an opportunity to be successful. Too often are individuals haunted by their past, having already served their time and recommitted themselves to their lives and their communities only to encounter obstacles to self-sufficiency. Through this program, we offer hope to those who strive for a better life so they don’t fall back into the behaviors and activities that led them to prison in the first place. We help remove those obstacles so the way forward is helpful and supportive.
You can learn more about reentry services at des.az.gov/reentry-services. We appreciate your help and support in ensuring individuals are provided a real second chance by spreading the word about this incredible program. Thank you for your partnership over the past five years, and look forward to helping more individuals in the years ahead.
Michael