OIC of Clark County gets $600K to train offenders, reduce jail numbers

Since then, he’s spent six years with OIC and OND, teaching inmates in county jails and state prisons how to make better decisions so they don’t wind up behind bars again.

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“Thinking controls behavior. So what we teach them is if you think negative, you’re going to act negative. If you think positive, you’ll have positive results,” Simms said.

He got a second chance to turn his life around, and now more people can have the same opportunity thanks to a federal grant.

OIC of Clark County’s Reentry Coalition recently received $636K in federal money to provide job training and other services for recent offenders who are 25 and older.

The grant will be for participants who were released from prison or jail within 180 days of enrollment to receive training or credentials to become employed.

“This is a huge win for Clark County,” said Executive Director, Mike Calabrese. “This grant will allow us to supplement an existing grant we received — a very similar one — that offers the same services only to a younger population, 18-24 year olds.”

The Reentry Coalition’s mission is to reduce recidivism by providing assistance with the challenges that individuals with criminal backgrounds face in the real world.

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“Getting out of jail is a huge — almost insurmountable sometimes task — when it comes to turning their lives around and starting all over again,” Calabrese said.

He thanked several community partners for their help, including the Clark County Sheriff’s Office.

“It’s impossible to do it without having the committed partners we have here in Springfield and Clark County,” Calabrese said.

Calabrese said criminal justice eats up over half of the county’s yearly budget, so finding ways to keep crime down is at the forefront of everyone’s goals.

Clark County was one of four OICs in the country to receive the grant, including two in Pennsylvania. The grant is funded by the United States Department of Labor Employment and Training Administration.