CommunityHealth IT (CommHIT) is proud to be one of the organizations nationwide that actively contributes to improved workforce outcomes for previously incarcerated individuals.
The Bureau of Justice Statistics approximates that roughly 60% of previously incarcerated individuals grapple with securing employment. This is due to a lack of education degrees, literacy, and confidence in their ability to convince an employer to provide them with a job opportunity—much less a career.
CommHIT constructed the Rural Roads to Connected Care (RRCC) program, supported by the U.S. Department of Labor, to train the healthcare workforce that serve Florida’s rural communities. Part of the RRCC program is to serve individuals who have previously been involved with the criminal justice system. Thorough RRCC, individuals residing in underserved communities received up to $3,000 in grant-funded support to pursue education in direct patient care occupation. Almost 5% of the total RRCC participants disclosed that they were ex-offenders. Since receiving RRCC training, the trainees previously involved with the criminal justice system have been able to secure employment.
For example, one RRCC participant that was an ex-offender worked as a general manager in the fast-food industry for years following incarceration. She believed that she could not pursue a career due to her background. She took a “step out on faith” and contacted CommHIT about RRCC. Through RRCC, she acquired Medical Assistant and Phlebotomy certificates and found “a true love for the field of medicine.” RRCC gave her the boost she needed, and she is now in the process of opening her own mobile health unit and serving individuals in her community who may not normally be able to afford care.
There are many stories like hers in the RRCC program—stories of success and perseverance regardless of past setbacks. CommHIT hopes that RRCC trainee outcomes encourage those who have been involved in the criminal justice system and those who feel that they are coming from behind to know that there is light at the end of the tunnel. To learn more about CommHIT’s RRCC program, go to www.communityhealthit.org/rrcc.
About CommHIT: CommHIT is a 501(c)(6) at the Kennedy Space Center that ensures that rural organizations and small to mid-sized businesses have access to the same resources and opportunities as their urban and large business counterparts. At the Kennedy Space Center, CommHIT is an integral part of a cluster of cybersecurity organizations that protect and monitor the digital security of key business sector entities and critical infrastructure. CommHIT specializes in workforce development and provides apprentices and employers opportunities through the Technology and Health Apprenticeship Program (THAP). THAP is CommHIT’s Florida Department of Education-registered apprenticeship program.