Upper Peninsula parolees can finally get jobs, housing, counseling, and education before they rejoin society under the statewide Prisoner Reentry Initiative that was expanded to the U.P. in October. The program, which has been available in lower Michigan for two years, represents a new approach in dealing with Michigan's ex-prisoners, and it is expected to reduce the number that return to prison, saving the state money.

"This is a major cultural shift," said Dave Murray, who coordinates the initiative in the Upper Peninsula. The project coordinates state agencies in addressing the needs of ex-prisoners before and after their release.

The first prisoners returning to U.P. communities are in the early stages of the program, Mr. Murray said. In a few years, the initiative is expected to be expanded to all parolees, as well as ex-prisoners who are not paroled.

When most prisoners are paroled, they return home to the communities in which they were sentenced, or to communities where they have resources to make a fresh start. With the exception of some help by parole officers, he said, the general attitude in the state was that prisoners had done their time, and the rest was up to them. Parole officers know that parolees often have difficulty finding employment and affordable housing, and this fuels statistics that show about 50% of parolees in Michigan commit crimes and are returned to prison within two years.

It costs about $30,000 to $35,000 a year to house a prisoner, Mr. Murray said, and with associated expenses for police, lawyers, and courts, it grows to about $117 million. The state hopes putting comprehensive services in place will help parolees start anew, reduce repeat offenders, and reduce expenses.

Research, Mr. Murray said, shows that providing six to nine months of structured help dramatically reduces the chance that a parolee will return to prison.

To reduce the anxiety that former prisoners experience when returning to the outside world, he said, they need jobs, housing, and sometimes psychological care set up for them ahead of time. Parole officers have always tried to address these needs, but many lack time or funding, and budget cuts have exacerbated the problem.

Now, local community agencies will provide ex-prisoners with several months of housing and support services.

Prisoners will spend the last two months of their sentences at Pugsley Correctional Facility in Kingsley, where a transition plan will be developed. Tests will determine personal strengths and weaknesses and whether they are prone to violence, substance abuse, or likely to flee from the observance of their parole officers. A transition team will assess what inmates need, such as identification cards, birth certificates, and determines if they have employment lined up outside the prison system. Parole officers receive the information one month before a prisoner is released. Then, they contact Mr. Murray's office in Sault Ste. Marie.

A Prisoner Reentry Initiative resource specialist meets with potential employers and organizations that provide housing, and coordinates other services, such as therapy for sex offenders, who also may have special housing requirements.

Once paroled, prisoners know where they will live, at least initially, and which agencies to contact, Mr. Murray said.

The Eastern Upper Peninsula Employment and Training Consortium, which operates the Michigan Works! system in Chippewa, Luce, and Mackinac counties, is operating the program in the U.P.

The program is in place throughout the United States, but Michigan, which has conducted pilot programs downstate for the past three years, is now at the forefront in terms of its breadth and development, Mr. Murray said.

So far, in conversations with potential employers and residents from Iron Mountain to Sault Ste. Marie, Mr. Murray said he has received only positive comments. People have asked him how they can help, and, he said, believe that the initiative is a good way to assist former prisoners.

Business managers are concerned about employing former prisoners, he said, but the state has offered tax credits as incentives, and participants are eligible for $5,000 bonds to cover them, if a parolee does something that costs them money.

Parole boards now decide which inmates will use the Prisoner Reentry Initiative, however, Mr. Murray expects all parolees to be using the system within a few years.

The program is not now offered for prisoners who serve their full sentences, who face the same challenges as parolees, but Mr. Murray expects the program will eventually be available to those prisoners, too.

Annually, about 11,000 prisoners are paroled in Michigan. In 2006, 116 returned to U.P. communities, and seven of those people returned to Mackinac County. Marquette and Dickinson counties received 21 each, Delta received 18, Chippewa received 15, Houghton 10, Luce, Iron, and Gogebic each received six, Schoolcraft 5, and Ontonagon one. Baraga, Keweenaw, Alger, and Menominee had no parolees in 2006, according to the Department of Corrections.

Through the program, Mr. Murray said, the state expects to save money on prisons and generate success stories about prisoners who rejoin society and become taxpaying contributors in their communities.