|
Michael Vick is back in the NFL, with the Eagles.
Michael Vick is pictured with Philadelphia Eagles head coach Andy Reid during a news conference yesterday. |
BY AMY FLOWERS UMBLE
A case manager for people leaving jail hopes area employers take a lesson from the Philadelphia Eagles.
The NFL team signed Michael Vick for $1.6 million yesterday, just months after the standout quarterback left federal prison after serving a sentence for conspiracy and running a dogfighting ring.
Getting a job would be a boon to anyone struggling in this economy, but LaToya Brown, case manager for the local Virginia CARES office, said the work would be particularly welcome to people with criminal rec-ords.
"It's really bad right now, so many people are out of work, and then to have a criminal background on top of that, it's especially difficult," said Brown, who works with more than 200 area residents coming out of Virginia jails. "Because of the economy, employers are being super selective."
She cold-calls area businesses, meets with employers and searches high and low for those willing to hire someone with a record.
In the past, she has had success. But in the recession, she's finding fewer employers willing to hire an ex-offender.
She tells her clients they need to make themselves as marketable as possible.
Those who help former inmates re-enter society have long said a personal contact makes for the best possible outcome. Chaplains at the Rappahannock Regional Jail, local social workers and nonprofits all help develop those relationships and convince employers to take a chance on an ex-offender.
They say there are key ingredients for a successful life after jail: a system for accountability, a mentor and a job.
Jail volunteers have created a faith-based program that helps ex-offenders take responsibility for their actions. And using volunteers from area churches, The Christian Brothers Transition Program has been able to find jobs for its members.
The group also meets once a week to provide support, said Jack Richards, jail chaplain.
A Fordham University theology professor said those leaving jail could learn lessons from Vick's situation.
"Vick re-enters society with stable employment, formal and informal networks of support, and structures of accountability," Maureen O'Connell said in a press release. "Unfortunately, many of these supports are not available to ex-offenders."
Locally, those leaving jail can seek help from the King George County Department of Social Services, Brown's office and the regional jail's community services program.
Still, those who work with ex-offenders said it's an uphill battle. Unable to find work, many end up homeless or go back to committing crimes.
"They are more likely to return to what was familiar: hustling on the streets, stealing, dealing drugs," Brown said.
A recent Pew Charitable Trusts survey found that one in every 94 adult Virginians is on probation or parole.
In Vick's soon-to-be state of residence, more than 250,000 adults are in the community but under the supervision of corrections; that is one out of every 37 Pennsylvanians.
In Philadelphia, football fans not known for their charity are debating whether Vick deserves a second chance.
For many, it will depend on his throwing arm and running game.
But Brown thinks it should be a little more basic.
"I truly believe that everybody deserves a second chance," she said. "If you come to the realization that what you've done is wrong, and the realization that you have to take the higher road--which is to leave all that junk alone--then I believe you deserve the opportunity to make it right."
vacares.orgAmy Flowers Umble: 540/735-1973
Email: aumble@freelancestar.com
If you're an employer willing to hire someone with a record, LaToya Brown wants to talk with you. Call her |
