After being released from prison, coming home can lead to heightened levels of uncertainty. Finding a place to live, securing a source of income, and adjusting to a world that may have changed drastically in the time spent incarcerated can contribute to a sense of unease. COVID-19 and the extreme societal shifts it has brought have only made such a transition more challenging. Now, after the launch of the Re-entry Fund last semester, the University’s Center for Prison Education (CPE) has been working to raise awareness about the pressing challenges facing incarcerated individuals who are preparing for re-entry amid the pandemic. The CPE is also raising funds for these individuals in order to provide material, short-term support to both current and former students in the process of re-entry.

The CPE offers multiple course options each semester to incarcerated students at Cheshire Correctional Institution and York Correctional Institution, in collaboration with the University and Middlesex Community College. The CPE has long been involved with its students in their pursuits beyond graduation, staying in contact with alumni and helping them throughout their transition processes. To CPE alumni, the Center offers programs including tutoring services, skill-building workshops, and lectures from visiting professors. The Re-entry Fund seeks to provide additional aid to students and alumni where needed, complimenting the Center’s already existing programming. The Re-entry Fund seeks to provide additional aid to students and alumni where needed, complimenting the Center’s already existing programming. CPE Program Manager Allie Cislo recognizes the opportunity for the CPE to grow as a reliable asset to its students. 

“Our primary mandate is…providing pathways to degrees for our incarcerated students,” Cislo said. “The benefit of higher education is, in having a degree, around networking, around the increased pay that comes along with having academic credentia[ls.] We are in a unique position—in having built relationships with students inside—to be able to offer additional support as they’re transitioning home, and that has always included academic advising and support for those folks who want to continue their education.”

Before launching the fund, the CPE staff interviewed program alumni to get a better understanding of which needs were most important to them and where the Center should allocate funding. The Re-entry Fund was primarily designed to cover smaller, one-time costs for those after being released from prison. Examples of these costs include obtaining a new driver’s license or ID, move-in fees for an apartment, or technology like a phone or computer.

CPE Fellow Anya Weinstock ’19 noted that these kinds of unexpected expenses can hinder the success of those just starting to reintegrate into society.

“There can be a lot of emergencies, and sometimes those cost money, and those present obstacles to achieving your goals,” Weinstock said in an interview with The Argus. “We wanted to create a fund that was flexible enough and responsive enough to meet those costs.”

Cislo also stressed that anyone who has graduated from the CPE can request support from the Re-entry Fund, no matter how long it’s been since they were released.

“We’re not putting a time limit or a timeframe on [the request],” Cislo said. “It’s not like ‘oh, if it’s been a year or more, you’re no longer eligible.’ The idea is that a person with an incarceration history remains a person with an incarceration history regardless of how long it’s been since they were imprisoned. ”

The launch of the Re-entry Fund has also brought a push to share information related to re-entry and the various ways for students to get involved. The CPE Re-entry Fund Instagram has been active in spreading news that corresponds with the Center’s mission.

CPE volunteer Mary Johnson ’21, explained the connection between what the CPE is trying to accomplish and what is being done to improve prison systems in the state.

“We’ve been trying to share a variety of content to get awareness around the cause, but also around opportunities for legislative action in Connecticut that are related to re-entry and to criminal justice reform,” Johnson said. “There’ve been a lot of bills going into the Judiciary Committee in the Connecticut Senate, and in the house this legislative session, that have a lot of relevance for re-entry. So we’ve also been trying to use the platform to try to get Wesleyan students to participate in supporting those bills.”

The Instagram page also posts fundraising updates and has declared May 17 as the deadline for reaching its $10,000 goal. Funds of this category are not covered by grants, which means that the CPE has been operating entirely on an individual donation basis. As of March 25, the Re-entry Fund has raised almost a third of its target.

“There was definitely a positive initial response, which is why we’re really excited to do a more sustained campaign. Folks have been really generous so far,” Cislo said. “There’s a lot of potential to think about this as a mutual aid opportunity.”

While all CPE alumni can submit an application to cover expenses, Johnson also noted that because the Re-entry Fund isn’t sponsored by a grant, the Center has to be systematic in the way it processes different requests. Funding requests of up to $200, as well as requests for technology for educational purposes, are reviewed on a rolling basis. More substantial requests will be examined on a quarterly basis, with the first evaluation taking place toward the end of May.

“That’s another reason why we’re hoping to get more funds in the bank by then, so that we have the ability to respond to those larger requests,” Johnson said.

In looking at the challenges that re-entry poses, it’s clear that COVID-19 has exacerbated many of these issues and made re-entry more difficult. Cislo spoke to how the pandemic has further strained this already stressful process.

“There’s a lot of social stigma around being formerly incarcerated,” Cislo said. “The ability to reintegrate—it’s already a potentially really scary and anxiety-producing experience, of moving from one kind of state-sponsored social isolation into something that’s then engendered by the larger public health context. [COVID-19] just dilates the timescale on which [people] can expect to get certain goals achieved.”

The pandemic has made finding employment particularly difficult. Many people who aren’t dealing with re-entry have lost their jobs due to pandemic-induced circumstances, making openings even more competitive for those recently released from prison. Additionally, reliable WiFi and adequate technology are not as widely available to those who have just been released. In a climate where Zoom meeting and working from home are the new norm, this can cause further disadvantage.

In addition to speaking about the the demands faced by those looking to rejoin the workforce, Johnson mentioned that fields in which previously incarcerated were more likely to find work, have been some of hardest hit by COVID-19. She also mentioned “Ban the Box,” a movement which has led to legislation in many states and compels employers to eliminate questions about criminal history from job applications.

“It’s very hard to find employment anyway,” Johnson said. “People talk a lot about Banning The Box and that’s a wonderful initiative, but for a lot of people who are formerly incarcerated, the box is banned, so they’ll make it through an initial interview. They might even get hired. But then, after a background check is run, they’ll still lose their job.”

Weinstock further elaborated on these concerns and on how limited choices have led to decreased flexibility.

“Employment just across the board is more precarious. People had entry-level jobs or had jobs they didn’t really like, and they wanted to switch careers. Then, after the pandemic, they just had fewer options or lost those jobs and went to worse jobs,” Weinstock said.

As for the future of the Re-entry Fund, it will continue to evolve based on situational factors, like COVID-19, as well as what’s most pressing in terms of student and alumni needs. Weinstock expressed hope that the Re-entry Fund would one day be connected with mentoring resources.

“It’s not a substitute for mentoring, but it could sort of supplement mentoring,” Weinstock said. “A good example is that I spoke to a student [and] asked him what kind of costs he had faced upon coming home. He said that you need a certain amount of money to open a bank account. This wasn’t something he knew; he had never opened a bank account because he’d been incarcerated. He also felt a little intimidated by going and doing something for the first time. Also, he didn’t have the money to do it.”

Weinstock explained that this is a common issue faced by formerly incarcerated people.

“There [are] three different problems there,” Weinstock said. “There’s not having the money, there’s not having the emotional support, and then there’s also the knowledge issue, [because] nobody ever told him how to do things. The Fund is not trying to solve all of those issues, but it’s trying to solve one of them, and it’s trying to work better with everyone who supports the other areas of need.”

Currently, the Re-Entry Fund is still accepting donations as it works toward completing its end-of-semester goal. In an email to The Argus, Talia Lanckton ’22, another volunteer, wrote that because undergraduates on college campuses are infrequent donors, fostering interaction from the student body for fundraising has been hard. However, she said that if every student donated even a single dollar, the amount raised would nearly double. Johnson echoed this sentiment in a call to action.

“A lot of people, especially students and alums who tutor for the CPE, are always looking for ways to continue to be involved after they’ve graduated, or after they’re not able to tutor anymore or be directly involved. This is a really good way to still continue to support the CPE in general and the students in particular,” Johnson said.

Those interested can donate to the CPE Re-entry Fund on their website, or through their Linktree.

 

Sophie Griffin contributed reporting. 

Emma Kendall can be reached at erkendall@wesleyan.edu