Reentry Into Society
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Overview of Prisoner Reentry
Prisoner reentry is a complex issue. The transition from jail or prison to the community can be challenging not only for the offenders but also for their families and communities.
According to the Bureau of Justice Statistics, nearly 730,000 state and federal prisoners returned to their communities in 2009. [1] The goal of reentry programming is to assist former offenders with the transition from incarceration to their communities. Reentry planning may begin while offenders are still in correctional facilities and may carry into the community after they are released. An offender's active link between in-prison services and community services may involve a mentor, case manager or steering committee.
Common reentry services include:
- Housing
- Education
- Employment assistance
- Peer mentoring or case management
- Physical and mental health services
- Family reunification
Programmatic activities based on prisoners' risk level and need levels can help them reintegrate into society.
Need for Coordinated Reentry Services
Reentry programs have traditionally focused on a specific area, such as job training and placement or treating substance abuse disorders. [2] However, given the complexity of the challenges faced by returning offenders, a reentry program focused on a single area may not adequately address the issues faced by this population. More recently, practitioners have recommended that agencies, including those not traditionally involved in reentry services (such as community colleges), coordinate with each other to provide more comprehensive reentry strategies. [3]
NIJ's Reentry Research Portfolio
NIJ's reentry research portfolio continues to support the evaluation of innovative reentry programs, particularly statewide reentry initiatives, and research that examines the process of reentering society within the context of the community, neighborhood and family into which the former offenders return.
Given the number of individuals under criminal justice supervision in the community — more than five million by year-end 2009 — reentry issues have garnered considerable attention from researchers in the last two decades. Much of this attention has been paid to more traditional approaches to reentry programming — e.g., job training and substance abuse programs. In recent years, several federal initiatives (such as the Serious and Violent Offender Reentry Initiative and the Second Chance Act of 2007) have redirected research attention to coordinated approaches to offenders returning to communities.
Learn more about research and evaluation in reentry:
- Evaluation of the Serious and Violent Offender Reentry Initiative (SVORI)
- Evaluation of Second Chance Act Demonstration Programs
- Research on Reentry and Employment
Notes
[1] West, H.C., W.J. Sabol and S.J. Greenman, Prisoners in 2009 (pdf, 38 pages), Washington, D.C.: U.S. Department of Justice, Bureau of Justice Statistics, December 2010, NCJ 231675.
[2], [3] Lattimore, P.K., and C.A. Visher, "The Multi-site Evaluation of SVORI: Summary and Synthesis" (pdf, 176 pages), Washington, D.C.: U.S. Department of Justice, National Institute of Justice, April 2010, NCJ 230421.
