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Investing Justice Resources to Address Community Needs in Colorado

February 7, 2018 by Richard R. Ramos Leave a Comment

Investing Justice Resources to Address Community Needs highlights Colorado’s Work and Gain Education and Employment Skills (WAGEES) program, which represents one of the first partnerships between a state department of corrections and local community organizations to invest in expansive, community-driven public safety goals. The report describes the WAGEES program and shares lessons learned for other states interested in exploring a community-based public safety investment strategy. Qualitative interviews with stakeholders suggest that directing resources to community-based organizations can strengthen efforts to support people returning home from prison.

Key takeaways include:

  • Each community has unique needs and, as such, programs should give community partners the opportunity to address those needs in a way best suited to the community.
  • Community partners should reflect the populations they serve.
  • Local community advocacy organizations can be catalysts and create momentum for change.
  • Building relationships across agencies, communities, and people most impacted by the criminal justice system is key to success.
  • Sharing information across partners and within the community fosters shared goals and a culture of building knowledge.

An overview of the policy brief can be found in this one-page executive summary.

Filed Under: News Tagged With: Colorado, Policy, Re-entry, WAGEES

Latino Coalition Deputy Director Receives The Rupert-Tate “Game Changer” Award

September 27, 2016 by Richard R. Ramos Leave a Comment

richard-morales-1

We are proud to announce that our very own Richard P. Morales, Deputy Director of the Latino Coalition for Community Leadership (LCCL), was awarded the Rupert-Tate “Game Changer” award, which is given to the individual recognized for making the most positive impact in challenging the criminal justice status quo throughout the State of Colorado.

Richard leads the LCCL WAGEES project – a U.S. Department of Labor/Employment and Training Administration grant which has expanded funding for community-based re-entry support for people leaving prison. His leadership and skill has built a network of eight community-bimg_0138ased organizations in Aurora, Denver, Boulder, Colorado Springs, Ft. Collins, Greeley, Pueblo and Grand Junction that has strengthened not only these programs but has also elevated the role of formerly incarcerated people in this field.

He is credited as having negotiated and navigated a whole new relationship between community organizations and the Department of Corrections to forge a better partnership.

The Rupert-Tate “Game Changer” award event was sponsored by The Colorado Criminal Justice Reform Coalition (CCJRC) that has been successfully advocating for sensible criminal justice reform in Colorado for almost two decades. CCJRC was founded in 1999 when Senator Dorothy Rupert, in alliance with Representative Penfield Tate, introduced legislation calling for a three-year halt on prison expansion and the creation of a task force on sentencing reform.

Congratulations Richard!! The LCCL staff and Board are so proud and we look forward to more from you and all of our Colorado partners!

 

Filed Under: News

LCCL in Action: Scott Rollins: Parolee’s Clean-up Project Gets a Community Boost

July 12, 2016 by Richard R. Ramos Leave a Comment

This article originally appeared on Westword.

When Scott Rollins started hacking away at the weeds and trash in the 4200 block of York Street a few months ago, he wasn’t looking for a hand — or a handout. Recently released on parole after 31 years in prison, the 59-year-old former bank robber was just seeking to contribute something positive to the long-neglected neighborhood around his halfway house.

I’m not doing this to get a pat on the back,” he told me a few weeks ago about his one-man quest to clean up Denver’s meanest street. “I don’t give a fuck about that. But everyone looks at people like me and writes them off, and I wanted to show them that they shouldn’t.”

No, they shouldn’t. A Westword article about Rollins’s project — and how he cadged tools from local businesses, paid out of his own pocket to haul trash away, and devoted his spare time to the mission between required stints at the halfway house and a regular job for a CDOT contractor — caught the attention of Colorado Department of Corrections officials, community groups and others. And last Saturday, an unlikely coalition of more than three dozen volunteers, ranging from prison-reform activists to a prominent conservative ex-legislator, showed up in the blazing heat to work hours alongside Rollins, sprucing up the block and reclaiming the sidewalk from overgrowth and debris.

Richard Morales, deputy executive director of the Latino Coalition for Community Leadership — and one of the organizers of the event — noted that there’s a lot more dialogue among corrections officials and community groups about re-entry issues than anyone could have anticipated a few years ago. “This is a good project for us to get together on,” he said.

Some of those who turned out to bag heaps of trash have been longtime supporters of Rollins, including family friend John Andrews, former state senator and founder of the Independence Institute. Others had never met the man before Saturday’s sweaty get-together. Rollins directed the work as best he could, in between being interrupted by well-wishers and trying to get some shovel time himself.

Boy, it sure goes a lot faster with all these people,” he said. “What a humbling experience to get so many people out here who believe in me.”

Filed Under: News, Success Stories

Boulder’s Bridge House Turns Offices into Transitional Housing

March 13, 2015 by Richard R. Ramos Leave a Comment

BridgeHouseLogoBridge House, one of the LCCL’s sub-grantees,  is doing incredible work on creating housing that so many need.

Offices and conference rooms in south Boulder are being turned into bedrooms, classrooms and community living space that will provide a path out of homelessness for 48 men and women.

Read more at the Daily Camera.

Filed Under: News, Success Stories Tagged With: Bridge House, Latino Coalition for Community Leadership, Sub-Grantees, Success Stories

Re-Entry Matters Because People Matter

March 12, 2015 by Richard R. Ramos Leave a Comment

success-storyColorado Public Radio produced a 4-part story about one man’s re-entry journey.

Kevin Monteiro shares many of the same challenges and hopelessness that other people face upon release from prison.  The Second Chance Center based in Aurora, Colorado highlights why community based organizations are critical in helping people make a successful transition back into society.  This story is inspirational for those who provide re-entry services and gives hope to those who receive them.  For the past two years the Latino Coalition has provided sub-grant funding, capacity building and technical assistance to the Second Chance Center.

We applaud the Second Chance Center’s leadership and thank them for providing a positive example of effective re-entry services.

Read or listen to Kevin Monteiro’s Story:

Part 1 | Part 2 | Part 3 | Part 4 | Part 5

Filed Under: News, Success Stories Tagged With: Latino Coalition for Community Leadership, Second Chance Center, Sub-Grantees, Success Stories

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