02/01/2016

Volunteer Career Services in a Prison

By Ron Elsdon

Securing work that provides adequate financial support is challenging when re-entering society after incarceration. Barriers are significant, whether in the form of hurdles to employment or lack of resources to pursue self-employment. We can assist by offering career counseling expertise. Building on an example, this article explores the rewards and challenges and how we can contribute.

If I, a white male, with a funny (U.K.) accent and no prior prison experience, can provide useful volunteer career assistance to those in a Federal women’s prison, this opportunity is accessible to anyone in our profession. The prison where I volunteer houses about one thousand women, mostly in the prison proper, some in a minimum security, adjacent facility. I connected initially through our local, progressive church when the prison needed career services. In providing volunteer career services in prison, I find most women are struggling to put their lives back together, some rather anxious, most open, respectful, and welcoming of career support. The following perspectives and resources may assist others considering such volunteer work.

Approach to Career Services

Not surprisingly, emotional aspects are particularly significant for those approaching re-entry. Conviction, incarceration, and the prospect of formidable barriers to financial self-sufficiency are daunting. Offering hope that it is possible to re-engage with work by weaving affirmation of personal potential throughout is central. This includes emphasizing learning occurring inside the prison; including work experience, educational activities, and interpersonal skills.

Group delivery accommodates well the many people seeking career services support. The content of my volunteer career work evolves based on input from participants and the re-entry affairs coordinator at the prison. It currently consists of two series of classes, the first series of five classes addresses conventional job search. The second series of four classes, expanded in scope at the request of participants, addresses nontraditional career paths/self-employment. To accommodate prison scheduling, classes are delivered in two-hour modules once a week. To encourage interaction, class size is limited to twenty-five people.

The conventional job search series helps participants build self-understanding, learn how to explore opportunities, and develop communication capabilities. It addresses particular needs of this population, for example, how to discuss in an interview employment gaps due to incarceration.

The five classes cover:

• Skills, interests, strengths, and values

• Exploration/networking, and education as a bridge

• References, job applications, and resumes

• Interviewing

• Mock interview practice in small groups.

Resources include: “Step Ahead Workbook: Career Planning for People with Criminal Convictions” (Goodwill/Easter Seals and iSeek Solutions, 2013), a DVD from Cambridge Educational (2008) on job interviewing for ex-offenders, and material from the ex-offenders section of the careeronestop web site (careeronestop web site for workers with a criminal conviction). Additional volunteers add much. For example my wife, Linda, delivers education as a bridge, having expertise in the going to college process. Linda, and an experienced volunteer from the HR world, Terri Jones, help facilitate the mock interview session.

Content for the nontraditional career path/self-employment class series, which includes handouts and exercises, is based on my recent book How to Build a Nontraditional Career Path: Embracing Economic Disruption (Elsdon, 2014). The series of four classes addresses:

• The what and why of a nontraditional career path/self-employment, benefits and challenges, building self-understanding

• Making the path sustainable so it lasts

• Creating a foundation to start – practical steps

• Moving forward to launch and implementation.

Participants complete a template over the four sessions, creating an outline of their nontraditional career/self-employment path. In the fourth session each person reviews her approach with a small group. As a result, participants gain both insights from others about their own endeavors and contribute input to their peers' paths.

Participants complete an evaluation at the end of each class series. This evaluation includes both qualitative and quantitative questions, based on the first three levels of the Kirkpatrick framework: reaction to the classes, knowledge gained, and behavior change (Erickson and Elsdon, 2010).

Challenges of Working in a Prison Environment

Flexibility is important when working in a prison setting as there are challenges:

• Difficulties with the fingerprint approval process to secure initial clearance as a volunteer

• When there is fog, the prison closes to visitors and classes are cancelled, so avoid early morning sessions, fog-prone times

• Participants come with a wide range of experience and backgrounds

• Competing commitments mean participants sometimes miss sessions

• Donations of materials such as books are restricted, so content is best provided in copy form

• Electronics such as computers or cell phones are not allowed on prison premises so class support material includes handouts and aids such as white boards

• Inmates do not have access to the Internet while in prison, so web links are for future reference

• Contact with participants after their release is prohibited (volunteers can work with people in prison or outside but not both), so evaluation processes need to be self-contained within the class series.

Observations and Benefits

From my perspective as a volunteer, here are some observations and benefits that you could anticipate:

• Participants bring much experience and insight that strengthens the classes

• Institutional support is critical to the success of these initiatives

  • The re-entry affairs coordinator and her staff have been encouraging, resourceful, and supportive

• Providing career services in this setting is rewarding, fulfilling, and appreciated

  • The satisfaction rating from participant evaluations, based on ten questions from five class series, is 97%

  • Positive word-of-mouth is leading to sign-ups exceeding class availability

• Class evaluations help in refining the content and nature of career services

• Cultural differences complement rather than diminish the class experience.

Here is a quote from one participant’s evaluation: “Wonderful class. I looked forward to coming every Wednesday.” The feeling is mutual. I encourage you to consider volunteering in this way.

References

Cambridge Educational. (2008). The Job Interview. New York: Films Media Group. Retrieved from http://www.films.com/ecTitleDetail.aspx?TitleID=15317

Careeronestop web site for workers with a criminal conviction. Retrieved from http://www.careeronestop.org/ResourcesFor/WorkerCriminalConviction/worker-with-a-criminial-conviction.aspx

Elsdon, R. (2014). How to Build a Nontraditional Career Path: Embracing Economic Disruption. Santa Barbara, California: Praeger.

Erickson, R., & R. Elsdon. (2010). Designing, Developing and Measuring Effective Career Development Processes and Systems. In R. Elsdon (Ed), Building Workforce Strength: Creating Value through Workforce and Career Development. Santa Barbara, California: Praeger.

Goodwill/Easter Seals and iSeek Solutions. (2013). Step Ahead Workbook. Minnesota: Minnesota Department of Corrections. Retrieved from http://www.iseek.org/exoffenders/workbook.html

Ron Elsdon is a founder of organizations in the career and workforce development fields. His published works include: How to Build a Nontraditional Career Path: Embracing Economic Disruption (Praeger, 2014); editor of Business Behaving Well: Social Responsibility, from Learning to Doing (Potomac Books, Inc., 2013); editor of Building Workforce Strength: Creating Value through Workforce and Career Development (Praeger, 2010); and author of Affiliation in the Workplace: Value Creation in the New Organization (Praeger, 2003). He holds a doctorate in chemical engineering from Cambridge University, a master’s in career development from John F. Kennedy University, and a bachelor’s in chemical engineering from Leeds University. Ron can be reached at renewal@elsdon.com, for example for questions about handouts. His web site is www.elsdon.com