Employment Readiness
Our Employment Readiness Training efforts will begin by working to ensure that our participants do not transfer the instant gratification attitude that led to their incarceration into their re-socialization process. These workshops will prepare participants for the interview process. We will help them develop a resume that is tailored to their skills, teach interviewing skills and job maintenance. Interviewing skills and resume assistance is crucial as participants have the increased difficulty of making years of not having a job because of criminal history or being behind bars look palatable on a resume, while handling questions about a conviction. We assist participants in focusing on the positive aspects of these obstacles, knowing that years and months in a jail, prison or juvenile correctional facility usually includes some type of food services, welding and custodial experience that could be used to fill gaps on a resume. Participants also learn how to use interview questions about criminal conviction to outline efforts they overlook to turn life around while incarcerated.
Job Placement
Our employment placement efforts begin when a participant Intensive Care Specialist arranges for him to meet with our Job Developer. Since we have developed numerous relationships with organizations that are willing to hire our formerly incarcerated, we are now able to guarantee at least one job interview for nearly every participant in the program ( some participants may have restrictions and cannot work certain hours we may secure). Additionally what will be an asset to our employers is we will closely monitor our participant’s in order to foresee any patterns of behavior that may be leading towards a termination of employment. At that point we will meet with the participant and input a correction action plan, if the issues continue we will terminate the participant from our program and thus terminating their employment. IPI feels that this interjection benefits both the employer and IPI and keeps the working relationship positive for our agency. Since all of our employment linkages are willing to hire formerly incarcerated individuals, our participants do not experience the despair of seeing employers look shocked after hearing their criminal record. Instead they go with a positive attitude to the interview.
Jail Transition Services
This program is designed to assist inmates serving sentences of one year at the Elkhart County Jail. IPI will work with the inmate pre-release in developing their Independent Living Skills,Living arrangements, documentation, support networks and to identify other needed services that they access immediately upon release. IPI along with the Elkhart County Jail will identify those inmates 90 days prior to their release in preparation for community re-entry. If the inmate chooses he may stay on with the organization post-release.
Other Services
Our programs here at It’s Possible Inc, Services for formerly Incarcerated People and At-Risk Youth under the Supervision of the Executive Director will oversee the Planning and Implementation of all program services to clients in our communities. These services will encompass the following areas that are barriers effecting successful reentry.
- Transitional Housing/Living Arrangements
- Advocacy
- Outsourcing to Community Service Providers
