After a prison sentence ends, the return to wider society can be a challenge for many.
A new program linking Pennington County educators and law enforcement aims to make those second chances more valuable.
“Ignite” is the name of the newly implemented program which looks to increase education and employment opportunities for those leaving the legal system.
Pennington County Sheriff’s Office is the first South Dakota agency to take part.
Ann Bolman is president of Western Dakota Tech, one of the programs’ two partnering institutions. She said she supports the efforts of law enforcement to get involved in education.
“Everybody wants to do their best, to take care of themselves, but we can only do what we know how to do," Bolman said. "Once you start showing people some different strategies, different ways, to approach life you’re giving them the opportunity to be that type of person that can contribute in a much more positive way.”
Doing things like offering job preparedness courses, offering rewards for participation, and referring to participants as “students” contribute to this change of mindset seen through the program.
Bolman said she saw the benefits of inmate education firsthand during WDT’s prior experience working with incarcerated Pelle Grant recipients.
“It gives them a lot better sense of what they themselves are worth," Bolman said. "I think they start seeing themselves as people who can go out and make a positive contribution in the world. One of the key points of the Ignite program is reframing the types of conversations that are happening within the jails themselves.”
Also joining the program is Rapid City Area Schools, which is helping participants finish diplomas and get their GEDs. Superintendent Nicole Swigart said these programs can change lives.
“Education opens doors - we in Rapid City Area Schools want to be in the position to keep the door open," Swigart said. "Giving this opportunity to receive education, especially when you walked away from it and maybe wish you hadn’t, opening that door and saying, ‘you can come back in,’ I think will instill the desire not to end up in jail again.”
Swigart said no resources are being diverted from Rapid City public school students or facilities for this program. Instead, services like these are paid for specifically in the funding formula.