Partnership with ABCD to Strengthen Prison Education Program

August 28, 2024

Franklin Cummings Tech, Action for Boston Community Development, Inc. (ABCD), and the Massachusetts Executive Office of Public Safety and Security’s School of Reentry (SOR) announced a joint initiative providing comprehensive support to individuals transitioning from incarceration to community. Through ABCD’s Bridges Returning Citizens Center and the college’s facilities and programming, students from the School of Reentry will have access to a tailored, comprehensive support system focused on education, vocational training, and career readiness that will allow them to reenter the workforce successfully.

The initiative, the Building Reentry and Vocation Opportunities (BRAVO), seeks to offer justice-impacted students training in clean energy careers, including HVAC&R, heat pump technology, EV maintenance, practical electricity, and engineering technology. It will also work with current and future Franklin Cummings Tech employer partners to place justice-impacted students into jobs upon completion. Furthermore, BRAVO connects students to a broader network of community and judicial resources for additional support, such as case management and counseling services.

“We believe education, career training, and wraparound student support are key to successful reintegration. With this alliance, Franklin Cummings Tech continues its mission of providing career paths and better outcomes to students regardless of their life experience,” said Marvin J. Loiseau, Ed.D., Dean of Academic and Student Affairs. “ABCD is at the forefront of supporting returning citizens, and this partnership will ensure that together, we provide access to technical skills training and support services to empower individuals to build fulfilling careers while contributing to their communities.”

In addition to providing educational opportunities, the BRAVO initiative allows Franklin Cummings Tech and ABCD to collaborate on securing scholarships and Pell Grant funding, ensuring no out-of-pocket expenses for returning citizens pursuing a degree.

“Our partnership with Franklin Cummings Tech represents a step forward in supporting justice-impacted individuals,” said Sharon Scott-Chandler, President and CEO of ABCD. “By combining our resources, experience, and expertise, we will expand essential educational opportunities and ensure that returning citizens have the support they need to succeed professionally and in community. This program is an important part of realizing ABCD’s broader mission to build pathways out of poverty so that everyone can thrive. Empowering returning citizens with the resources and opportunities they need to become self-sufficient and prosperous is vital.”

“SOR’s education, job training and mentoring services are based on the core belief that with active stakeholder collaboration and access to resources, we can deliver transformative services to uplift, stabilize, and re-engage returning citizens. This holistic and restorative approach bridges the gaps between individuals and the support systems available, leading to more effective life planning and a reduction in re-offending behaviors,” said Lisa Millwood, Executive Director of the School of Reentry. “Our office has worked successfully with Franklin Cummings Tech and Action for Boston Community Development for years, and their new BRAVO initiative is a powerful example of two organizations joining forces to generate life-changing results for returning citizens.”

The ABCD partnership is one of three Franklin Cummings Tech programs designed to create sustainable pathways to employment for justice-impacted individuals, with a particular focus on clean energy careers. The other two programs have been developed in collaboration with the Executive Office of Public Safety and Security’s School of Reentry and the Massachusetts Trial Court’s Boston Community Justice Support Center.

To date, Franklin Cummings Tech’s Prison Education Program has provided employment, educational reentry, and supportive services to 61 students who have successfully completed courses at the technical college. This program aligns with state and federal efforts to reduce recidivism, provide economic benefits through employment, break the cycle of poverty and incarceration, and support citizens successfully returning to the community.

“The new BRAVO initiative provides life-changing opportunities to populations facing various barriers to education, including criminal records, by offering access to Franklin Cummings Tech’s clean energy programs along with essential case management services. These services are crucial for creating a seamless transition from incarceration to education and back into the community while helping Massachusetts achieve its zero carbon goal,” said Dr. Damany Fisher, Franklin Cummings Tech’s Prison Education Program Coordinator. “Training justice-impacted students for careers in clean energy is a win-win for our society and the environment.”

Serving a student population comprised of first-generation college students (46%) and students of color (73%) from Boston and surrounding towns, Franklin Cummings Tech is a non-profit, two-year college with best-in-class graduation and job placement outcomes in growing workforce sectors. Through collaborations with key corporate partners and industry experts, Franklin Cummings Tech has developed flexible, affordable, and entrepreneurial curricula to pair career-ready students with job opportunities in evolving industries in sustainability and green jobs.

About Action for Boston Community Development, Inc. (ABCD)
ABCD is a nonprofit human services organization that each year impacts 100,000 residents with the tools and resources needed to transition from poverty to stability and from stability to success. To fulfill this purpose, ABCD uses a comprehensive approach that systematically addresses the range of barriers faced by households in poverty, from day-to-day crises to long-term needs for jobs and education. Learn more at www.bostonabcd.org.

About School of Reentry
Founded in 2016 by the Massachusetts Executive Office of Public Safety and Security, the School of Reentry (SOR) is a 12 to 18-month residential school located at the Boston Pre-Release Center, a Massachusetts Department of Correction minimum-security facility. SOR deploys an all-inclusive model that encompasses education, vocational training, counseling, job preparation and the development of a moral compass in a returning citizen’s cognitive ability to make positive decisions upon release. SOR has developed high quality college-in-prison programming designed to empower incarcerated individuals as they prepare to rejoin the community. SOR has pioneered and expanded partnerships to provide programming both in-person and virtually assisting students as they reach their full potential and prepare for reentry. Learn more at www.mass.gov/orgs/school-of-reentry