By Dr. Jarrod Sadulski | 02/03/2026
From the moment the prison doors close on someone for the first time, their thoughts about getting out begin. Over the past six years, I have spent many hours counseling people incarcerated in the Belize Central Prison in Central America.
I've led teams offering strategies to help these individuals escape gang life while in prison and once they’re out on the streets. Life skills training such as anger management, critical thinking, problem solving, and job skills training are integral to this work.
All of this training prepares people for reintegration back into the community once their sentence is served. Many ex-offenders, especially those people with felony convictions, face substantial challenges with reentry into society. The criminal justice system needs a great deal of improvement when it comes to programs designed to aid former inmates.
Correctional Facilities and Gang Affiliations
One challenge that exists in correctional facilities is the presence of gangs. An estimated 230,000 gang members are incarcerated, according to the National Gang Intelligence Center.
Many people in custody align with gangs while serving their time. They seek protection or a sense of community or family. However, gang activity may result in inmates piling up further criminal convictions while they are still locked up.
In the prison system, someone is permitted to exit gang involvement if they wish. However, as in the case of the Mexican Mafia in California and other states, prisoners who leave a gang must not participate in any criminal activity and stay away from any current gang member in a correctional facility. Violating these unwritten rules can be a death sentence when someone is behind bars.
Collateral Consequences and Reducing Barriers
Study after study has shown the financial and societal fallout of mass incarceration in the U.S. Many states spend tens of thousands of dollars every year to lock up a single individual.
Long after their sentence is up, ex-offenders struggle with the collateral consequences of serving time. They experience difficulties securing jobs and housing, leading to high recidivism rates. In a study, the U.S. Sentencing Commission found that roughly half of individuals who committed a federal offense were rearrested within eight years.
Employment barriers are one of the most common problems that face people acclimating to society after prison, especially if they were charged with a felony.
Communities should ensure that basic needs of people who served their sentence are met. Once released, former prisoners often need aid in securing:
- Job opportunities
- A driver’s license
- Access to social services programs such as food stamps
Useful Reentry Strategies
There are several approaches that can help support many former prisoners in gaining employment, including:
- Raising awareness among potential employers – The average employer does not understand how reintegration programs help ex-offenders to become productive members of society and viable candidates for employment. However, holding meetings with human resources personnel can mitigate this problem.
- Providing on-the-job training – Often, people enter the prison system with limited work history. Teaching trade skills and providing other employment training can be a part of effective rehabilitation.
- Increasing educational opportunities – Earning an education while in prison can lead to gainful employment following release. Offering online high school degree programs in prison is very important to help inmates who are disadvantaged educationally. Employers may be more inclined to provide employment to ex-offenders if they show motivation and have earned an education while incarcerated.
- Teaching life skills – Life skills training may include money management, dispute resolution in the workplace, and resume writing training. Other life skills training to aid someone with finding employment opportunities include interview preparation, workplace etiquette, and job searching basics. These skills could be taught either online or in person.
- Encouraging entrepreneurship – Former prisoners can start a business by offering a product or service, mitigating the stigma they may experience in the business world after leaving prison.
Family Support to Reduce Recidivism
In my experience counseling people who are incarcerated, many grew up in homes without a father present and without parental guidance. I encourage those inmates who grew up with an absent father to break that generational cycle for a more positive reentry experience after leaving prison.
They can begin by being intentional and involved in the lives of their children. There are many strategies for starting this work while behind bars and becoming more involved in their children’s lives after prison.
Also, families are often placed in a difficult situation when a loved one is released from prison. They may not know how to help their family member to:
- Find employment
- Get to access public benefits
- Overcome a criminal record
Community-based training for families can teach both families and former prisoners how to access employment and community services. Families can also support positive reentry experiences by encouraging civic participation to help released prisoners overcome the stigma they may feel and discourage them from committing new crimes.
Families should be forgiving and supportive. However, it is important that they do not enable the behaviors that previously led to criminal records.
Reducing Barriers to Transitional Housing
Residential instability contributes to recidivism. Public housing exclusions, landlord discrimination, and a lack of transitional housing put more pressure on ex-offenders trying to find a safe, affordable place to live.
State governments can support prisoner reentry by funding programs for transitional housing, commonly referred to as residential reentry centers or halfway houses. Residential reentry centers provide a structured, supervised living arrangement. Their staff can aid former inmates with:
- Navigating the labor market and interviewing with employers
- Counseling to assist with reentry into society
- Training in life skills to overcome a limited education
- Overcoming drug use
- Rebuilding community ties and relationships with family members
Part of the effectiveness of residential reentry centers is that they hold former prisoners accountable after they’re released. This accountability can also support meeting parole supervision requirements.
Additionally, reforms to housing programs may help overcome barriers. For example, the Urban Institute found many landlords screen potential tenants for criminal records.
Amid severe shortfalls in affordable public housing, three states and 11 cities have passed Fair Chance Housing Laws to address this barrier. Although these laws vary by jurisdiction, they typically involve:
- Some restrictions on discriminating against an applicant exclusively based on criminal history
- Shortening the lookback period
- Limiting lookbacks for nonviolent ex-offenders
Recovery Support
According to the Prison Policy Initiative, one in five people are locked up due to a drug offense. Roughly 65% of the U.S. prison population has a substance abuse disorder, yet only a small fraction of those people receive adequate treatment while behind bars.
Offering recovery programs in prison and after release can be life-altering. These programs support people in curbing destructive habits and building coping skills.
Studies show that providing recovery programs within corrections facilities have the potential to reduce overdose deaths by 30%. Experts find that recovery programs both lower the rate of relapse and reduce crime.
Recovery programs may consist of:
- Cognitive behavior therapy
- Contingency management therapy
- Medical-assisted therapy such as naltrexone
- Harm reduction and overdose education
Successful Nonprofit Programs
Nongovernment organizations like Hope for Prisoners can assist with reintegration into the community. This nonprofit organization was founded by Jon Ponder and inspired by his own rehabilitation.
While incarcerated, Ponder found faith in God, which was the catalyst to change his life and leave a life of crime. After his release, he wanted to provide meaningful reentry supports, including job readiness training and substance abuse treatment. He created an organization focused on mental, physical, and spiritual growth and development while reducing social barriers for released prisoners.
To set clients up for success, the Hope for Prisoners program provides long-term mentorship up to 18 months after release. Based on the impact of his work, Ponder received a presidential pardon from the White House.
These types of effective programs can help people with criminal records to:
- Leave their past behind and lead a normal life
- Find employment opportunities
- Become leaders in their communities
Connecting with reputable nonprofit organizations that offer prisoner reintegration support can be very effective. In the case of Hope for Prisoners, they’ve assisted roughly 6,500 clients and have an astonishing low recidivism rate of 8%.
Studying Data to Aid Decisions
The hurdles faced by people who have been in prison are likely exacerbated by regulations that are well-intentioned but harmful. Restrictions on financial aid, for example, can make it even harder for former inmates looking to improve their lives after prison. Similarly, denying public food assistance to people with a criminal background may leave some with no way to support themselves, leading to further increases in crime.
Communities can start to build prisoner reentry programs that are effective by looking at data when making decisions. The Urban Institute is one credible source of information about prisons and prisoner reentry.
This nonprofit organization serves as a national research leader, working to strengthen communities. Agencies like the Bureau of Justice Assistance often look to the institute’s data on:
- Recidivism trends
- Employment barriers
- Community safety and prisoner reintegration strategies
Sharing Stories to Discourage Other Criminals
In my experience working with people in the prison setting and post release, I’ve noticed it’s very effective when people share their experiences with being behind bars. By being open with others about their lives before and during incarceration, they encourage others not to make the same mistakes they did.
Some former prisoners share their experience with their families to help prevent loved ones from entering a life of crime. Many released prisoners speak at schools or even return to prison as volunteers.
Successful Reentry Starts with Addressing the Causes of Criminal Behavior
Overcoming the challenges to the reentry process requires first addressing the underlying causes that led someone to commit a crime. This work also requires addressing and overcoming the interconnected barriers that exist before, during, and after incarceration.
Rehabilitation and effective reintegration should serve as part of effective public safety strategies throughout the country. The goal should be to create a pathway to enable people who have served their time to become positive, contributing individuals as they reenter society.
The Bachelor of Arts in Criminal Justice at APU
For adult learners interested in studying various aspects of the criminal justice system, American Public University (APU) has an online Bachelor of Arts in Criminal Justice. For this bachelor’s degree, students can take courses in U.S. law enforcement, corrections and incarcerations, and criminal investigation. Other courses include ethics in criminal justice and constitutional law.
For more information about this bachelor's degree in criminal justice, visit APU’s security and global studies degree program page.
Note: This degree program is not designed to meet the educational requirements for professional licensure or certification in any country, state, province or other jurisdiction. This program has not been approved by any state professional licensing body and does not lead to any state-issued professional licensure.
Dr. Jarrod Sadulski is an associate professor in the School of Security and Global Studies and has over 20 years in the field of criminal justice. He holds a bachelor’s degree in criminal justice from Thomas Edison State College, a master’s degree in criminal justice from American Military University, and a Ph.D. in criminal justice from Northcentral University.
His expertise includes training on countering human trafficking, maritime security, mitigating organized crime, and narcotics trafficking trends in Latin America. Jarrod has also testified to both the U.S. Congress and U.S. Senate on human trafficking and child exploitation. He has been recognized by the U.S. Senate as an expert in human trafficking.
Jarrod frequently conducts in-country research and consultant work in Central and South America on human trafficking and current trends in narcotics trafficking. Also, he has a background in business development.