INITIATIVES

We are working closely with the Office of Faith-Based and Community Initiatives ("OFBCI") and others in a strategic partnership to help break the cycle of generational poverty in Oklahoma. Poverty is a root factor in the incarceration cycle that devastates many families and individuals. Breaking the poverty cycle is one of the most strategic things we can do to reduce recidivism in the State of Oklahoma. (Learn more...)

OPSR has signed on to be a supporter of the statewide Justice Reinvestment Initiative, which is led by the governor and other state leaders. It involves sweeping reforms to the criminal justice system in our State, including prisoner reentry. More information on this initiative can be found here.

We are the selected partner of the Oklahoma Department of Corrections (ODOC) to co-sponsor a formal implementation of the Healing Communities movement in Oklahoma. Local churches are the key to bringing healing and meaningful prisoner reentry solutions to our communities. You can read more about how to involve your congregation to become a "Station of Hope" here.

ODOC, in conjunction with the National Reentry Resource Center, has launched a very strategic initiative to re-engineer the entire system of incarceration in Oklahoma around 23 "national best practices" for prisoner reentry. Spanning the entire incarceration life-cycle, from reception to release back to the community, these "reentry policies" will eventually bring a completely innovative culture to the ODOC institutions and the inmates they manage. We are excited to be working on the planning sessions for this project as a strategic partner. More information will be added on this initiative soon.

The first draft of the model can be viewed or downloaded here (PDF - 80 pages - 1.4Mb)

OPSR has been privileged to co-sponsor a long series of Prisoner Reentry Initiatives ("PRI") educational and networking seminars in the state. These events (see list of previous PRI's here) have been instrumental in educating leaders, practitioners, and citizens to the various issues surrounding the reintegration of ex-felons into society.

OPSR has our own strategic project that we have launched, to supplement and complement the OPRI Model from ODOC. Our vision is to raise up an "Army of Volunteers" to assist ODOC in the mentoring and rehabilitation of inmates. We will tap the Oklahoma faith-based community for volunteers and provide a complete system of recruitment, training, and coordination that will bring rehabilitative and vocational training into the institutions, services that are much needed but ODOC does not have the budget or manpower to do today. The RIO System Model can be read online here.