$6.7M In Post Inmate Service Contracts Approved By County Supes

SAN JOSE, CA — The Santa Clara County Board of Supervisors approved $6.7 million in contracts this month for services intended to help individuals exiting jail and prison access to critical resources such as employment, housing, healthcare, legal assistance and coping skills for rebuilding their lives in the community.

“These investments improve public safety, strengthen families and reduce our reliance on costly and ineffective mass incarceration,” said Supervisor Cindy Chavez, chairwoman of the Santa Clara County Reentry Network. “This can have a huge impact in helping reentry clients to heal, rejoin their families and become self-sufficient.”

The Office of Reentry Services collaborates with many county agencies and community-based partners to provide services through the Reentry Resource Center, a one-stop shop connecting clients to resources. Contracts approved for nine community organizations on June 4 and 18 are effective July 1:

• Pro Bono Project Silicon Valley will provide legal services to address barriers to reentry through informational workshops or legal representation related to family law and civil law matters.
• Goodwill of Silicon Valley and Catholic Charities of Santa Clara County will provide comprehensive employment programs including job readiness training, transitional employment, employment connection services and peer support.
• Goodwill and ConXion to Community will provide an employment services program providing immediate short-term placements, job readiness training and support services.

• Breakout Prison Outreach, a division of California Youth Outreach; Mental Health Systems Inc. and San Jose State University Research Foundation will provide case management helping link reentry clients to resources such as housing, mental health services, substance use treatment services, physical health services, peer mentoring, education, legal services and other resources.
• HealthRight 360 and Carry the Vision will provide life skills and psychosocial programming with evidence-based curricula focusing on client coping, reasoning, social and problem-solving skills.

“This is a client-centered approach, in which we are building on our experience working with clients and channeling our resources into effective services that best meet their needs,” said Javier Aguirre, Office of Reentry Services director. “We are constantly working to improve the county’s reentry infrastructure of services and support.”