Reentry Works
If you have been involved in the justice system, we want to help you find a good job!
- Sign up for reentry services by emailing reentryworks@workforce.org
- Scroll to the bottom of this page for a list of other organizations supporting justice-involved individuals
- Call a career center
Learn about how these reentry programs have opened doors for others
From mandatory supervision to union representation
Reentry Works helps participant with life ‘on the outside’
First job fair in a jail connects inmates and employers
More Reentry Works Stories
Who else can advance your journey?
The Workforce Partnership has created a reentry resource matrix—a list of organizations that support justice-involved individuals. Whether you are a client looking for services or a provider looking for referrals, we encourage you to use this list to identify organizations you can partner with.
Have information to add to the matrix or update? Email research@workforce.org.
Who It's For
- Age 18+
- Experience in the justice system
This program offers help:
- Deciding what career is right for me
- Finding a temporary job or internship
- Finding a long-term job
- Learning new job skills
How to Apply
Contact Deona Dorsey
Phone: (619) 228–2979
Email: deonadorsey@workforce.org
About Reentry Works
Evidence continues to demonstrate critical links between employment and successful reentry of justice-involved individuals into our community. Reentry Works invests and innovates in evidence-based solutions to best serve the justice-involved population by providing pre-release employment and training services, links to jobs and post-release employment services, earn and learn opportunities, supportive services (such as transportation, housing and access to technology) and community-based connections.
To hear about how Reentry Works helped turn participant Windy Ortiz’s life around, watch her testimonial below.
Job Centers in Jails
The San Diego Workforce Partnership collaborates with Second Chance, the San Diego County Probation and Sheriff’s departments and other key organizations to run career centers within the East Mesa Reentry Facility and Las Colinas Detention and Reentry Facility.
Outcomes:
- State Average Recidivism Rate = 65%
- Our Participants Recidivism Rate = 18%
- Average Job Placement Rate = 80%
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Prison to Employment
The latest addition to Reentry Works is Prison to Employment (P2E), a three-year, $37 million grant to integrate workforce and reentry services across California. The goal is to serve justice-involved individuals by creating a systemic and ongoing partnership between rehabilitative programs within the California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation (CDCR) and the state workforce system. The program goal is to serve 250 individuals through post-release employment services.
For more information, contact reentryworks@workforce.org.
Read about Juan’s experience with the program:
After graduating JRT, Juan enrolled at City College, works at the shipyard and looks forward to a career in HVAC. He also has reconnected with his mom, his sisters and his grown son, who now proudly tells his father, “I can talk to my friends about you!”
Windy Ortiz had been involved in the justice system and got connected to our Reentry Works program, Prison to Employment. We connected with Windy to hear about her personal experience and what advice she’d give to others who are interested in the program.