For two decades, the U.S. Department of Labor (DOL) has invested substantial funding toward programs serving justice-involved individuals. Among its recent investments, DOL awarded over $243 million in Reentry Projects (RP) grant programs between 2017 and 2019 to improve participants’ employment and justice outcomes. DOL prioritized awarding grants to programs that were evidence-informed, and many went to experienced providers. They were awarded across a broad range of intermediaries and non-profit community-based organizations serving a total of 17,361 participants across 34 states, Washington DC, and Puerto Rico. RP grants were 36-39 months long and were at different phases when the COVID-19 pandemic began in March 2020. RP grantees served a total of 9,098 adults (individuals over 24) and 8,263 young adults (individuals between ages 18 and 24) after their release from jail or prison.

In 2017, the Chief Evaluation Office, in collaboration with the Employment and Training Administration, funded the Reentry Project Grants Evaluation. This implementation and impact evaluation aims to identify and evaluate promising practices used in reentry employment programs, which are comprehensive strategies to address the range of challenges formerly incarcerated adults and young adults who have been involved in the justice system face in making a successful transition back to the community.

The implementation study has three main goals: (1) describe the structure of RP grant-funded services over two grant cycles (2018 and 2019), including how funding was used during these cycles, the ways in which grantees operated their programs, and the services grantees delivered; (2) highlight unique and potentially promising strategies to support justice-involved individuals, including strategies that grantees used during the COVID pandemic; and (3) inform the interpretation of impact study results by identifying structural differences across programs as well as variations in implementation. An impact study is ongoing, and findings are expected in 2024.

Some key findings from the implementation report include:

• Connecting participants to education and training helping them to find and retain jobs and growing and building grantees RP partnerships were among the greatest implementation successes.
• Work readiness services laid the foundation for grantees efforts to connect participants with employment.
• Case management was an integral component of program service delivery.
• Despite outreach efforts and the availability of education opportunities, RP grantees frequently reported encountering challenges enrolling, recruiting participants; and providing or connecting participants to these opportunities.
• Meeting participants’ basic needs was a primary challenge.
• Common barriers to employment among individuals with justice involvement in communities served by the grant included perceived employer bias, skill gaps, and substance use.