Economic Mobility
Our reentry work aims to help communities create access to economic opportunities for people who have criminal records.
Creating upward mobility for people who have criminal records has manifested into three key areas of work for the CSG Justice Center:
- Ensuring untapped workers have the skills and resources to meet the needs of businesses;
- Dismantling unnecessary policy barriers to employment and education opportunities;
- Cultivating understanding and action among business executives and hiring professionals.
Momentum on these issues is growing as interest in criminal justice reform enjoys strong bipartisan support. With the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission’s release of guidance on the consideration of criminal records in hiring decisions; the proliferation of local hiring initiatives, such as Ban the Box; and the growing need for qualified candidates in the workforce; policymakers and employers are increasingly aware of this issue.
Economic Mobility News
November 10, 2021
As states struggle with labor shortages, the Fair Chance Licensing Project provides…
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October 5, 2021
Oregon state leaders launched a new initiative in late August to improve…
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April 26, 2021
COVID-19 has left state and federal policymakers with painfully long to-do lists.…
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March 16, 2021
A first-of-its-kind analysis from the CSG Justice Center examines education- and employment-related…
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February 2, 2021
A new report from the CSG Justice Center highlights the nearly 30,000…
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December 23, 2020
State and local justice systems faced unprecedented challenges in 2020. We look…
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October 26, 2020
Few receive training in Kansas prisons. Thaddeus Watts is one of the…
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June 15, 2020
Federal officials on Friday agreed to ease restrictions that blocked some people…
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It costs us close to $30,000 a year in taxpayer money to keep each person incarcerated. So, we get a whole lot better bang for our buck by investing in workforce training programs ... so that these people can be successful when they reenter society.
Laura Kelly
Governor, Kansas
Key Staff
Former Deputy Division Director, Corrections and Reentry
Le’Ann
Duran
led
the
CSG
Justice
Center’s
efforts
to
design
and
implement
strategies
to
support
economic
opportunity
and
prosperity
for
people
with
criminal
records.
She
spent
the
past
two
decades
working
with
nonprofits
and
government
agencies
to
design
and
implement
...
research-informed
policies
and
practices
to
address
crime
and
incarceration.
Previously,
Le’Ann
directed
the
National
Reentry
Resource
Center
and
served
as
the
administrator
of
the
Office
of
Offender
Reentry
for
the
Michigan
Department
of
Corrections,
where
she
managed
the
state’s
Prisoner
Reentry
Initiative.
Le’Ann
also
served
as
the
executive
director
of
the
Center
for
Employment
Opportunities.
She
received
her
BS
from
Texas
Tech
University
and
her
MS
from
Colorado
State
University.
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Former Deputy Program Director, Corrections and Reentry
Chidi
Umez
provided
direction
and
support
for
projects
that
reduce
policy
barriers
to
economic
opportunity
for
people
with
criminal
records.
Projects
in
this
portfolio
addressed
the
impact
of
a
criminal
record
on
job
participation,
occupational
licensing,
and
business
engagement.
Prior
...
to
joining
the
CSG
Justice
Center,
Chidi
served
as
a
court
attorney
in
the
New
York
Civil
Supreme
Court
and
as
an
indigent
defense
attorney
in
Harris
County,
Texas.
She
received
a
BA
in
English
and
corporate
communications
from
the
University
of
Houston
and
a
JD
from
Texas
Southern
University,
Thurgood
Marshall
School
of
Law.
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Project Manager, Corrections and Reentry
Erica
Nelson
oversees
initiatives
focused
on
improving
collaborations
between
corrections,
reentry,
and
workforce
development
agencies
to
improve
the
economic
mobility
of
people
involved
with
the
criminal
justice
system.
She
provides
training
to
federal
grantees
and
technical
assistance
to
service
providers
...
on
evidence-based
and
best
practices
in
the
corrections
and
workforce
development
arenas
and
promotes
public
and
private
sector
dialogues
around
employment
and
reentry
issues.
Erica
has
co-authored
best
practice
guides,
articles,
and
other
resources
to
support
local,
state,
and
national
reentry
and
employment
efforts.
Prior
to
joining
the
CSG
Justice
Center,
Erica
worked
for
more
than
a
decade
in
corrections
and
workforce
development.
As
a
work
coordinator
for
the
Montgomery
County
(Maryland)
Department
of
Correction
and
Rehabilitation
and
the
Baltimore
County
Department
of
Corrections,
she
leveraged
employer
partnerships
to
help
people
with
criminal
justice
system
involvement
obtain
and
retain
employment.
Erica
earned
a
MA
in
public
administration
from
the
University
of
Baltimore
and
a
BS
in
criminal
justice
from
Coppin
State
University.
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Deputy Program Director, Corrections and Reentry
Josh
Gaines
focuses
on
issues
involving
the
collateral
consequences
of
criminal
conviction,
barriers
to
work,
and
relief
from
the
long-term
impacts
of
a
criminal
record.
In
addition
to
providing
direct
technical
assistance
to
state
leaders
and
other
stakeholders
working
to
...
safely
expand
opportunities
for
workers
with
criminal
histories,
he
also
oversees
the
CSG
Justice
Center's
Fair
Chance
Occupational
Licensing
Project
and
the
National
Reentry
Resource
Center's
Clean
Slate
Clearinghouse
and
National
Inventory
of
Collateral
Consequences
of
Conviction.
Josh
received
his
BA
from
North
Carolina
State
University
and
his
JD
from
the
Washington
College
of
Law
at
American
University.
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