Commentary: Making more ex-offenders productive members of society

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Author: Aris Melissaratos

Story Type: Commentary

Statistics show that for those released from a Division of Correction facility in Fiscal Year 2001, a little over 49 percent of the inmates returned to prison with a new conviction within three years.The Ehrlich-Steele administration â€" as well as the Department of Public Safety and Correctional Services (DPSCS) â€" feel these numbers are unacceptable.We believe it's wrong to incarcerate inmates and do nothing to help them change their way of life or enhance employment prospects. Rather, it is our responsibility to treat medical ailments, mental illness and addiction and change behaviors that contribute to the committing of crimes. This can be accomplished through education, vocational training and teaching offenders how to apply accepted moral standards.With an emphasis on state partnerships, the Ehrlich-Steele administration is embracing a bold new philosophy on the way inmates are trained to re-enter the work force. RESTART â€" which stands for Reentry Enforcement Services Targeting Addictions Rehabilitation and Treatment â€" is a coordinated approach to serving the needs of inmates before they are released to prevent recidivism. This philosophical shift is in line with the national trend toward best practices that help ex-offenders become productive members of society.Out of 24,000 inmates within DPSCS, approximately 12,800 were released back into the community in Fiscal Year 2003. Most of the individuals released return to Maryland communities with a myriad of issues, including drug or alcohol addiction. Maryland has a responsibility to do more than merely warehouse offenders.For instance, prisoners can receive training in anger management, employee readiness, cognitive skills and hard skills training before they re-enter their communities. The Department of Business and Economic Development has been a catalyst in educating and encouraging potential employers to hire offenders.Working with Baltimore City Community College, DBED is providing, through the Governor's Office of Business Advocacy and Small Business Assistance, business development assistance by offering training opportunities at a nominal fee to those ex-offenders interested in becoming successful entrepreneurs. And through its work force development efforts, the Department of Labor Licensing and Regulation is staffing career centers to link offenders to employment opportunities and provide incentives such as bonding and tax credits to employers who hire offenders."Providing re-entry services will benefit not only the offenders as they move from prison back to the community, but also the members of the community with whom they come into contact," said Gov. Robert L. Ehrlich Jr., who counts public safety as one of the five pillars of his administration. "Individuals are less likely to re-offend when they are better prepared to return to the community."Gov. Ehrlich not only helped to provide additional funding to get two RESTART pilot programs running at the Maryland Correctional Training Center and the Maryland Correctional Institution for Women, but he also testified before the Judiciary Committee of the U.S. House of Representatives on Nov. 4 in support of the Second Chance Act, national legislation which aims to ensure the safe and successful return of prisoners to the community.Gov. Ehrlich also appointed DPSCS Secretary Mary Ann Saar to the Governor's Workforce Investment Board. This appointment gives the business community a much-needed voice to herald the incentives and types of workers that are available to them to train and hire. Some of these businesses have a large number of entry-level worker positions that could greatly benefit from a re-entry population.With a safer community and a better-trained, more-educated work force at stake, the Ehrlich administration believes that every ex-offender deserves a second chance.Aris Melissaratos is Maryland's secretary of business and economic development. The Ehrlich administration produces a regular column for The Daily Record. The opinions expressed are those of the administration. Dean Storm, an employee at the Maryland Department of Business and Economic Development communications office, contributed to this column. For additional information about the department or its programs, call 1-888-ChooseMD or visit the department's Web site at www.choosemaryland.org.

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