North Carolina’s Reentry Council

Why North Carolina Took Action

Reentry is a public health, economic, and community safety issue, and success requires
coordination and meaningful collaboration among state, local, and community partners.
North Carolina’s Joint Reentry Council offers a roadmap for how other states can take
this whole-of-government approach to improve reentry outcomes. (Learn about our national Reentry 2030 initiative.)

In January 2024, then-Governor Roy Cooper signed Executive Order 303, launching North Carolina’s Reentry 2030 initiative and setting bold goals to

• Improve economic mobility;
• Expand access to education, employment, health care and behavioral health services;
• Ensure Medicaid coverage upon release;
• Reduce the number of people returning to homelessness; and
• Remove barriers to successful community reintegration, especially for people returning to historically underserved

To achieve these goals, the Executive Order created a new statewide commission—the Joint Reentry Council (JRC)—that directs all North Carolina state agencies to coordinate efforts to improve reentry outcomes for people returning to the community from incarceration.

This whole-of-government approach is critical because it recognizes that reentry is not just a criminal justice issue. By engaging health, housing, workforce, and community stakeholders, North Carolina built a collaborative framework to ensure that reentry efforts are holistic and address the full spectrum of challenges that returning North Carolinians face.

North Carolina’s Blueprint for Collaboration

Establishing Structure: The Joint Reentry Council (JRC)

Executive Order 303 established a unified, whole-of-government approach to reentry. North Carolina’s JRC serves as the coordinating body for this effort, bringing together representatives from each cabinet agency, the Post-Release Supervision and Parole Commission, the Office of State Human Resources, the Office of State Budget and Management, and the First Lady. The council is chaired by the secretary of adult correction and supported by dedicated staff who coordinate meetings, manage communications, and track progress toward shared goals.

The full council meets every two months to review progress on the statewide reentry strategy, share data, and hear updates from agency leaders, community partners, and researchers. Meetings often feature presentations from departments such as transportation, commerce, and health and human services, as well as from local reentry councils and community-based organizations that highlight innovative practices or identify barriers to successful reentry. These sessions serve as coordinating and learning opportunities to strengthen collaboration across agencies and ensure that the council’s priorities are grounded in evidence-based practices and meet the needs of returning North Carolinians.

Driving Action: The Role of Subcommittees

To translate vision into action, the JRC created seven subcommittees:

1. Strategic Planning*
2. Reentry Preparation
3. Career Readiness and Employer Engagement
4. Education
5. Behavioral and Physical Health
6. Housing Support
7. Community Resources

Each is co-chaired by a representative from the Department of Adult Correction and a representative from another state agency. These subcommittees function as the operational backbone of the council, driving progress in key areas. Each subcommittee includes not only JRC members and government representatives, but also community stakeholders who bring on-the-ground expertise and insight into the reentry needs of diverse communities across the state.

For example, the housing subcommittee includes leaders from the Departments of Adult Correction, Military and Veterans Affairs, Public Safety, and Health and Human Services, alongside local reentry councils, sheriffs’ offices, the Parole Commission, policymakers, and community-based reentry organizations that connect people to housing resources in the community. Subcommittees report regularly to the Department of Adult Correction, which compiles progress updates and performance data.

By creating these subcommittees, North Carolina was able to garner support from key state leaders while engaging organizational staff with the capacity to carry out the work.

The subcommittees drive day-to-day implementation of the strategies identified in the strategic plan and continually report progress to the JRC. This structure effectively balances leadership and action: High-level officials provide authority and decision-making, while subcommittees, which include program staff working more directly in facilities and communities, have the capacity to advance operational work and respond to emerging challenges.

Councils limited only to high-level officials can lack capacity for day-to-day work, while overly large councils may be unwieldy. North Carolina solved this by pairing cabinet-level leadership with subcommittees that included frontline staff and community members.

*This subcommittee was limited to the first six-month period of the JRC, starting to oversee the development of the strategic plan and provide support to the other subcommittees on ensuring each strategy has a metric.

How the Council Advances North Carolina’s Reentry Goals

The JRC began with monthly meetings to establish momentum, deepen members’ understanding of existing efforts happening across state government to support people returning home, and foster collaboration across agencies. In the first few months, the JRC directed the subcommittees to map strategies for achieving the state’s goals and identify actions that state agencies can take collectively.

Building a Statewide Strategic Plan

The JRC’s first priority was developing a Strategic Plan for Reentry 2030, which recognizes that successful reentry requires more than just securing employment; it involves access to housing, health care, education, technology, and community support. By focusing on these interconnected areas, North Carolina aims to create a robust support system that addresses the multifaceted needs of people returning to their communities from incarceration. The strategic plan explicitly defines key outcomes and metrics for success, guiding both state-level coordination and local implementation. Strategies are prioritized based on need, feasibility, and potential impact, and subcommittees are responsible for leading initiatives in their respective areas.

One of the plan’s major objectives centers on expanding digital access and literacy. Recognizing that digital connectivity is essential for everything from job searches and employment training to telehealth and family connection, the Department of Information Technology (NCDIT) is investing in digital literacy training programs inside correctional facilities and ensuring access to digital navigation in all 100 counties in the state for people returning home to their communities. These programs help people obtain accessible internet services, access devices that meet their needs, and build the digital skills necessary to participate fully in modern life. By integrating digital inclusion into the state’s reentry framework, the strategic plan ensures that technology is a bridge, not a barrier, to opportunity and successful reintegration.

Investing in Local, Community-Led Solutions

A defining feature of North Carolina’s reentry approach is investing directly in communities. Reentry is a hyperlocal issue, and statewide reentry efforts have often faced the challenge of using state government to alleviate local challenges. In North Carolina, state agencies are already investing new funding to support people in reentry through local efforts. The North Carolina Department of Commerce awarded $750,000 in grants to support the creation of new local reentry councils. These local reentry councils deliver direct services and connect people returning from incarceration to housing, employment, and other supports.

The North Carolina Department of Transportation (NCDOT) developed a new transitional work pilot program to train incarcerated people in highway construction, and formerly incarcerated individuals are already being hired to do this work in Raleigh. A $274,000 NCDOT contract with the Center for Employment Opportunities in Charlotte is partnering to employ formerly incarcerated people in roadside maintenance and traffic control.

North Carolina’s Commitment to Accountability and Transparency

A critical element of North Carolina’s JRC is building accountability into its process. The strategic plan details measurable objectives tied to the state’s broader reentry goals, ensuring that progress is tracked and reported.

Regular reporting to state leadership and the public reinforces accountability and builds trust with communities. North Carolina released its Reentry 2030 Dashboard in September 2025, which offers clear visualizations of progress on all 26 objectives and 133 strategies detailed in the strategic plan. The JRC reports on progress toward its goals annually through a Progress Report each December. Transparency has been a key factor in maintaining credibility and allows stakeholders, especially people directly impacted by the criminal justice system, to see how decisions are made and how resources are deployed.

Lessons Learned from North Carolina

North Carolina’s experience shows that successful reentry requires strong cross-system leadership, inclusive participation from agencies and community stakeholders, clear accountability, and strategic investment efforts in local reentry efforts. By embedding reentry in a whole-of-government framework, North Carolina has created a replicable model that other states and counties can adapt to improve public health, economic opportunity, and community safety for people returning home from incarceration.