NCJ Number
230811
Date Published
January 2010
Length
17 pages
Annotation
After describing the features and benefits of career resource centers (CRCs) as a means of improving offender employment outcomes, this bulletin provides practical guidance for starting and operating a center.
Abstract
CRCs are designated locations within jails, prisons, probation and parole offices, and community-based agencies where offenders can receive career guidance and employment assistance. Although CRCs vary considerably in the scope of services provided, most share four common elements: the delivery of information related to the world of work; the delivery of instruction that prepares offenders for the labor force; the provision of career exploration and assessment services; and acting as a bridge between correctional facilities and community-based resources. Guidance for starting a CRC focuses on resources needed to support the project, skills needed by staff members in supervising a CRC, offenders' role and training for the CRC, and the identification of stakeholders and what they can contribute. The bulletin also provides practical advice in working with inmate career clerks, building community ties, the role of assessment in CRCs, technology resources, finding champions and overcoming resistance, and future directions. In addition, the bulletin lists six annotated resource publications, four CD/DVD-Rom resources, a listing of programs offered by the National Institute of Corrections' E-Learning Center, and a listing of resources on this bulletin's companion DVD.