Project ReWIND
(Returning With Initiative, Networks and Determination)
Project ReWIND (Returning With Initiative, Networks and Determination)
Black youth being housed in juvenile detention centers and correctional institutions
Palm Beach, Broward, and Miami-Dade Counties
Enhance re-entry through academic and occupational skills training coupled with case management, counseling/therapy, and provision of social services
Project ReWIND works with youth in juvenile detention centers and correctional institutions to address re-entry challenges they face when re-entering their communities and the workforce. Acknowledging the value of giving justice-involved individuals a second chance, the project’s efforts help to reduce recidivism by increasing the self-sufficiency of Black/Afro-Caribbean Americans (including Haitian Americans) in South Florida with a focus on those returning to Palm Beach, Broward, and Miami-Dade Counties. This is done through evidence-based strategies that enhance re-entry into their communities through academic and occupational skills training coupled with case management, counseling/therapy, and provision of social services.
The program supports youth pre- and post-release and provides the following services:
- Individual and family-based case management
- Life skills, occupational skills, and soft skills training
- Work readiness training
- Job placement and retention services
- Other support services identified through assessments including emergency needs (transportation, housing, food, work clothes) and trauma-focused cognitive behavior therapy
Gang Alternative, Inc. uses its network of education, workforce development, and re-entry service providers, including its Registered Apprenticeship Program in the Construction Industry, to enhance employment prospects for individuals re-entering the workforce.
Project ReWIND gives pre-release participants case management that includes job preparation, identifying and addressing barriers to employment, needs assessment, career planning, assistance with linking inmates to social services and mentoring. It also gives post-release participants the opportunity to earn stackable credentials that enable upward movement in their chosen career pathway, and earn a livable wage.
This workforce product was funded by grant # 15PJDP-22-GG-03278-SCAX from the Office of Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention (OJJDP), U.S. Department of Justice.