Alabama Bureau of Pardons and Paroles Director Cam Ward this week met with Congressional leaders on Capitol Hill in Washington to discuss the importance of the Second Chance Act and share success stories related to reentry in the Yellowhammer State.
As part of a delegation of criminal justice executives and policy experts, Director Ward participated in a panel and presented findings on the impact of the PREP Center. He met with members of the Alabama Congressional delegation and stakeholders from the Senate Judiciary Committee.
“We’re proud to represent Alabama and Governor Kay Ivey by sharing our testimony with key Congressional leaders, including Senator Katie Britt, Congresswoman Terri Sewell and Representative Barry Moore,” Director Ward said. “They have been staunch supporters of our work — especially the award-winning PREP Reentry model, and we are grateful for their dedication and advocacy on behalf of the people of our state.”
Alabama’s Perry County PREP Center was a core component of Ward’s presentation. Since opening in 2022, zero graduates of the program have recidivated or returned to prison. It will be a part of a soon-to-be-release book to celebrate the 20th anniversary of the Second Chance Act as a case-study for what works in reentry.
The PREP Center encourages incarceration diversion as a sanction response and is an option for justice-involved individuals to receive support services and resolve barriers to successful reintegration. The primary program providers at the PREP Center are GEO Group under the advisement of the Alabama Department of Mental Health, J.F. Ingram State Technical College and Alabama Power.
The model has been recognized nationally for its innovation – most recently as a finalist for the State Transformation in Action Recognition by the Council of State Governments. The number of Alabamians directly impacted by the Bureau’s reentry work will continue to grow as a new class at the PREP Center graduates on December 20, 2024.