Inner Circle core members at the Lincoln Correctional Center (LCC) hosted Don Nevins from the Lincoln Parole Office, Jeffrey Beran from the Omaha Parole Office, and Rafael Hernandez with the Reentry Team to present to a group of approximately 25 incarcerated men on Feb. 21.
The speakers presented on the parole process and opportunities available to people transitioning through community corrections and work release. John Flowers, event host and Inner Circle member, stated the purpose of the panel was “to bridge the gap in information. We want people to know the opportunities that are available to them and work to get rid of the misconceptions and misinformation.”
Panelists Nevins and Beran focused their message on the role of a parole officer and services available to parolees while in the community, while Hernandez presented about the work and educational release process and how people get connected to vital support services while at a community corrections center.
Incarcerated individual Justin Chilcott said he found these presentations especially useful stating, “I’m getting ready to go to work release in a couple of weeks and this really helped to answer a lot of the questions I’ve had.”
The presentations elicited questions from the audience about job seeking, sponsorships, passes and furloughs and programming opportunities, as well as describing an appropriate parole residence, transitional housing options, association with other felons while on parole, electronic monitoring, employment opportunities and common barriers that people face.
Incarcerated individual Brandon Woodruff described his reason for attending the event by saying, “I always think there is a trick to it, but learning from the people involved in the process helps me understand and work through the questions I have. This was very helpful because usually we get information from other inmates who leave and come back and sometimes that isn’t always the most helpful.”
Nevins wrapped up the event by saying that he is proud of the men for attending. He encouraged them to work on themselves during their incarceration by changing their mind and changing their way of thinking. Nevins reminded the population that there are a number of services and opportunities in the community, but they have to be prepared with the right mindset to take advantage of what’s out there.