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Pima County program getting people out of jail quicker, speeding up chances for a new life

Caitlin Schmidt

December 29, 2020 |

Arizona Daily Star |

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1500-3000 Words

Response Location: United States, Tucson, Arizona

An array of services in Pima County, Arizona, greets hundreds of people getting released early from jail or helps keep them out of jail in the first place. By providing drug treatment, housing, job assistance, and other help that people need instead of incarceration, the county's Criminal Justice Reform Unit and Jail Population Review Committee saved the county $2 million in jail costs over just part of 2020. Drug use also declined and officials hope to see longer-range benefits in lower recidivism.

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An Alternative to Police That Police Can Get Behind

Rowan Moore Gerety

December 28, 2020 |

The Atlantic |

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Over 3000 Words

Response Location: United States, Eugene, Oregon

A street-level view of White Bird Clinic's CAHOOTS program in Eugene explains its appeal as a cost-saving, humane alternative to sending the police to 911 calls concerning mostly minor problems involving homelessness, mental illness, and substance abuse. From the decades-old program's countercultural beginnings to today's 24/7 presence, the private agency's publicly funded teams of a medic and crisis worker have helped keep problems from escalating into violence and jail time. But a number of factors call into question how scalable this approach would be in larger, more diverse cities.

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City program sends personal message about gun violence

Elise Kaplan

December 27, 2020 |

Albuquerque Journal |

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800-1500 Words

Response Location: United States, Albuquerque, New Mexico

Albuquerque police make house calls to deliver a carrot-and-stick message to people at high risk of getting shot or shooting others. The Violence Intervention Program's "custom notifications" target people based on their criminal record or victimization in gun violence. The message: accept the offered services that can redirect your life, or suffer the consequences, of arrest or getting shot. Of 74 people notified and helped from March through mid-December 2020, none were known to have committed a new crime. Shootings in the city are up, but more research is needed to pinpoint the program's actual effects.

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Philadelphia's Eviction Diversion Program Extended After Showing Results

Jared Brey

December 22, 2020 |

Next City |

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800-1500 Words

Response Location: United States, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania

Dozens of evictions have been prevented in Philadelphia through a program that calls for mediation between landlord and tenant. The Eviction Diversion Program requires that disputes be worked through before an eviction claim can be filed. The success of the temporary program has led to an extension until March and “the hope is that it will become the new normal.”

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Local initiative helps folks with cannabis-related charges find jobs—while pushing to decriminalize pot

Courtney Duchene

December 22, 2020 |

The Philadelphia Citizen |

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1500-3000 Words

Response Location: United States, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania

When Pennsylvania's largest medical-marijuana dispensary, TerraVida Holistic Centers, struggled to find enough employees, given the state's ban on the industry's employment of people with marijuana convictions, TerraVida joined with the Urban League of Philadelphia to expand aid to the formerly incarcerated. Through Urban League's Out4Good program, the partnership helps people expunge their drug convictions. It also counsels and financially helps groups of 10 trainees at a time, dozens of whom have started careers and stayed out of trouble. The group also seeks a longer-term fix: marijuana legalization.

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NYC Court Summons Redesigned With Human Behavior in Mind

Ben Levine

December 22, 2020 |

Government Technology |

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800-1500 Words

Response Location: United States, New York, New York

New York City courts significantly reduced no-shows for court dates by redesigning court summons forms and sending text reminders to people of their upcoming court dates. An estimated 30,000 fewer arrest warrants were issued, thanks to the behavioral "nudges" that researchers designed with one realization in mind: People often miss court dates accidentally, not intentionally. The changes were made to summons systems, used for low-level offenses, but they could also be used in more serious criminal cases.

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Nashville's ‘Navigator' Tries to Keep Students in Remote Learning From Getting Lost in the System

Linda Jacobson

December 20, 2020 |

The 74 |

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1500-3000 Words

Response Location: United States, Nashville, Tennessee

In order to keep track of students and prevent them from dropping out, the Nashville district created “Navigators.” A corps of 5,600 school employees- teachers, lunchroom workers, and bookkeepers, who track students through weekly phone and video calls. The navigators have “completed roughly 220,000 calls to parents and students since school started in August,” each with a caseload of 6 to 12 students. Their conversations have led from everything to helping students complete assignments, to buying groceries, to finding out students are homeless.

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These Buses Bring School to Students

Kathleen Gray

December 17, 2020 |

The New York Times |

Multi-Media |

Under 800 Words

Response Location: United States, Jackson, Michigan

In Jackson, Michigan, 1 in 5 children have access to wifi through school buses. Out of the roughly 5,000 children, 70 percent qualify for free and reduced lunch. The buses guarantee they have reliable access to the internet during a pandemic. The buses park outside apartment complexes, a homeless shelter, and the rec center from 8 a.m. to 4 p.m. It’s just one way the school district is adapting to student needs during a health pandemic.

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Unique Housing Project Eases the Path to Re-Entry for Single Parents

Jared Brey

December 15, 2020 |

Next City |

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800-1500 Words

Response Location: United States, King County, Washington

Single parents readjusting to life after incarceration face numerous hurdles to re-entering society. A housing program in Seattle now provides access to transitional housing alongside services that help parents reconnect with their children, access to mental health care, and work toward permanent housing. Passage Point’s wraparound services are an effective and unique resource for a population that is commonly blocked from accessing public housing.

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‘Backpacks full of boulders': How one district is addressing the trauma undocumented children bring to school

Kavitha Cardoza

December 14, 2020 |

The Hechinger Report |

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Over 3000 Words

Response Location: United States, Adelphi, Maryland

Prince George's County in Maryland ranks fourth in the country for the number of unaccompanied students with sponsors. Often, these students have experienced a lot of trauma by the time they arrive at school. School officials are using their budget to spend it on resources to help educators and undocumented students succeed academically by hiring trauma specialists, bilingual liaisons, and teacher aides. “The most important reason is it is morally, really spiritually, inappropriate to mistreat the children who come from these families and not give them equal opportunity.”

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