SBCCD Awarded CDCR Contract of almost $3 Million

SAN BERNARDINO >> The Economic Development and Corporate Training (EDCT) Division of the San Bernardino Community College District (SBCCD) has been awarded a three-year contract of $2.92 million through the California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation (CDCR). The contract is an increase and renewal of the $2.6 million contract awarded from July 1, 2013 - June 30, 2016 and will run July 1, 2016, through June 30, 2019, providing a seamless continuation of a successful transitional work experience for parolees re-entering the work world. The EDCT’s Professional Development Center (PDC), in partnership with the California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation (CDCR) and Caltrans, will coordinate the placement of parolees to perform certain labor intensive and transitional work crew assignments, including litter and debris removal, creating firebreaks, plant restoration, storm damage repair, etc. The parolee-participants will receive minimum wage (currently $10 an hour with increases in 2017 and 2018) and will be allowed to work 32 hours per week. This is transitional work program with the goal of having the parolee obtain a permanent job in the local community. Each parolee can work a total of 90 days. An off-site subcontractor, the Center for Employment Opportunities (CEO), will coordinate these daily activities. SBCCD Board President John Longville summed up the value of this program, explaining that “such programs save taxpayers money by teaching the necessary soft skills and work ethic that many parolees had not learned prior to entering the criminal justice system, and helping the parolees break the cycle of repeat crime. The money saved is used by Caltrans for much-needed highway maintenance and construction.” “This multi-agency effort will allow ex-offenders to transition productively into the community while simultaneously increasing public safety,” Chancellor Bruce Baron noted, “The mission of the EDCT is to stimulate the economic prosperity of the Inland Empire through workforce development, and this program exemplifies the Division’s goal.” He also noted that programs that reduce recidivism “are vital to helping keep our communities safe.” Dr. Matthew Isaac, the EDCT Associate Vice-Chancellor, noted that the contract was the product of the hard work and dedication of Robert Levesque, Director, Workforce Development of the PDC. Dr. Isaac said, “As a result of Mr. Levesque’s on-going collaborative efforts with the California State Reentry Initiative (CSRI), the Center for Employment Training (CEO), Caltrans and the California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation CDCR), the PDC was asked to partner in this effort which resulted in EDCT securing the contract.” At present, the CSRI provides post-release services such as personal and drug counseling, agency referrals, and classes in basic skills and anger management. Now entering its sixth year of operation, parolees participating in the CSRI program collectively have a 16.7 percent recidivism rate as compared to a state-wide average of more than 65 percent. The Center for Employment Opportunities (CEO) is an organization exclusively dedicated to providing transitional employment and other vocational services for men and women returning home from incarceration. CEO currently operates 47 parolee work crews in New York, California, Pennsylvania, and Oklahoma.