Non-profit to add new resources for former inmates on the Eastern Shore
PRINCESS ANNE, Md. – One local non-profit is working to help decrease the rate of recidivism among formerly incarcerated individuals by increasing the resources that are available as they transition back to normal life.
Positive Reinforcements Inc., a non-profit, community based service based out of Princess Anne, is working diligently to provide increased educational and career opportunities to help set their clients, who were recently incarcerated, up for success.
“We want to be able to make them comfortable,” explained the organization’s CEO/Founder Aprilstar Alexander. “We want to have a support system for them. We don’t want them to fall back into the prison life.”
Helping the formerly incarcerated get back on their feet and transition to a normal life, that’s the goal of Positive Reinforcements, which aims to reduce recidivism and improve public safety.
“We have different, various resources such as case management, mentorship, financial literacy, anger management, if they need a birth certificate, social security card we help with that,” Alexander said. “We have a wide variety of resources.”
Alexander tells us they’re adding even more services, including a new GED program that is aimed at inspiring their clients to achieve their educational goals to build a successful career.
“We want them to be educated, we want them to be successful, a lot of times, a lot of the things that are hindering them are education,” Alexander explained. “They’ll be able to come to us and say ‘hey we want to go the GED program,’ and we’ll be able to connect them with classes, and once we connect them with the classes, we’ll be able to help them if they need that extra help with tutoring and things of that nature.”
The organization is also exploring ways to increase job opportunities for those they help, specifically a new program that would help their clients get their CDL license.
“We are working so we can try to help them to get to that point where they want to do their CDLs,” Alexander tells us. “A lot of them have requested information about that program as well.”
The work they do is critical because without these resources, in many cases, former inmates almost always end up back behind bars.
“Eventually, what’s going to happen is, they’re going to be like ya know what, why not just commit another crime, and they end up getting caught and going back to prison,” Alexander said. “These resources are critical for their success.”
The organization says they’re always on the lookout for volunteers, mentors, and donations such as professional attire and suits for job interviews. If you’d like to volunteer, get involved, or donate, you can do so by visiting their website: www.positivereinforcements.org
