Break the Cycle: Proverbs 226
On August 11th, Changed Choices staff viewed a new documentary, Break the Cycle, from Proverbs 226. Proverbs 226 creates the positive momentum in a child’s life that opens doors, allows healing and drives change. The nonprofit began in 2012 with founder, Cyril Prabhu, working with men held at Kershaw Correctional in South Carolina, and has […]
Could Second Chance hiring fix the labor shortage?
Second chance hiring could be a way to provide opportunity to justice involved people and help build a resilient workforce. According to the Chamber of Commerce, one in three adults (about 77 million Americans) have a criminal record. That’s a lot of qualified applicants knocked out of the job market with an estimated $78-$87 billion […]
Mental Health options
North Carolina’s mental health system is lacking psychiatric hospital beds, and the issue has continued to grow. On any given day, an average of 350 North Carolinians waited in emergency rooms because no psychiatric beds were available. WFAE Charlotte recently completed a nine part series on mental health care in North Carolina, and highlighted a […]
Pell Grants for incarcerated students
On July 1, Pell Grant eligibility will extend to incarcerated students ending a ban that prevented most incarcerated individuals for receiving federal aid for continuing education. This momentous change invalidates the ban put in place in 1994. This change will make 760,000 eligible incarcerated students eligible for $7,395 in Pell Grant awards. A Bureau of […]
A day of celebration!
On Saturday, our clients, volunteers, and staff gathered to celebrate 19 women’s accomplishments over the last year. Each year, Changed Choices celebrates pre-release and re-entry clients reaching their goals at our annual graduation party. This year, goals included: A big thank you to Matthews United Methodist Church for providing amazing food and fellowship. We can’t […]
How do we find new clients?
Each quarter, our admissions committee gathers to identify new clients for Changed Choices. The process begins long before that quarterly meeting. Before the pandemic, we met potential clients through our work at the Mecklenburg County Detention Center, and our classes, counseling, and mentorship program. During COVID, we entrusted our current clients to be our advocates […]
The power of continuing education
Last month, our staff had the opportunity to cheer for two clients continuing their education journey. Each women achieve a their goal of receiving their associate’s degree. Not only is this achievement something to celebrate, it’s an investment in their future. A Bureau of Justice Statistics study showed there is a 43% reduction in recidivism […]
How are federal clients released?
Release from federal prison is a multi-step process:
Incarcerated parents and the foster care system
Nearly 30,000 children, or approximately 6% of all children entering foster care, are placed due to parental incarceration. About 11% of women and 2% of men in prison report having children in foster care. May is Foster Care Awareness Month, and in North Carolina there are about 12,000 children are in the child welfare system. […]
How does incarceration impact your health?
February is American Heart Month, and we join in raising awareness about cardiovascular disease–the number 1 killer of women. Incarceration creates multiple risk factors for heart disease including: Studies have shown that the health risks only increase upon release. “People recently released from incarceration are more likely to die; in the first two weeks following […]