Alpena Sheriff’s IGNITE program aims to reduce recidivism and promote rehabilitation – 9&10 News

ALPENA — The Alpena County Sheriff’s Office has launched a new jail program, IGNITE, in partnership with the National Sheriffs’ Association, which aims to prepare inmates for release and make jails safer.

The National Sheriffs’ Association’s IGNITE (Inmate Growth Naturally and Intentionally Through Education) program is a national prison initiative that aims to create positive change within the jail, placing inmates on a path to a more productive and successful future. law-abiding.

This initiative aims to provide inmates at the Alpena County Jail with the tools and support necessary to promote their personal growth, rehabilitation and successful reintegration into society. The program began in Genesee County, Michigan under the direction of Sheriff Chris Swanson.

“The IGNITE program highlights what a community can accomplish with a rehabilitation program to help inmates successfully reenter society after release and the goal of reducing recidivism,” said Alpena Sheriff Erik Smith.

Inmates enrolled in IGNITE spend two hours a day, five days a week in the classroom. They can access courses to earn credit toward a GED, participate in virtual reality to learn a skilled trade, or take enrichment classes in everything from American Sign Language to financial literacy, which will help them hone their interests and find employment after graduation.

“We are pleased that Sheriff Smith is taking this important initiative,” said NSA Executive Director Jonathan Thompson. “IGNITE makes it clear that sheriff’s offices across the country are returning imprisoned individuals to their communities, better equipped to lead productive lives. »

The Alpena County Sheriff’s Office is a smaller law enforcement agency. The Sheriff’s Office has been working to implement this program for some time and has worked in partnership with Nicole Hatch of IRESA to bring this vision to life. The Alpena County Sheriff’s Office is the 19th location nationally and the third location in Michigan to offer the IGNITE program.

The Sheriff’s Office hopes to break the cycle of incarceration and enable participants to become self-sufficient, responsible, law-abiding citizens upon reentry into society. With a focus on education and skills development, we believe participants will be more likely to obtain employment and lead productive lives.

NSA IGNITE has also launched in: Hennepin County, Minnesota; Mecklenburg County, North Carolina; Sandusky County, Ohio; Cass County, North Dakota; Roanoke City, Virginia; Collin County, Texas; Pennington County, South Dakota; Bonneville County, Indiana; Iron County, Utah; Chautauqua and Ulster County, New York; Stearns County, Minnesota; Fayette County, Pennsylvania; Kalamazoo, Michigan; Greyson, TX; and Blount and Montgomery counties, Alabama.

In every county, it’s about breaking the trend of generational incarceration across the country, while making education and rehabilitation the two main focuses of the prison.

The National Sheriffs’ Association is one of the largest nonprofit associations of law enforcement professionals in the United States, representing more than 3,000 elected sheriffs across the country and with a total membership of approximately 14,000.

The NSA is dedicated to raising the level of professionalism among sheriffs, their deputies and others in the areas of law enforcement, public safety and criminal justice. Throughout its 84-year history, the NSA has also served as a source of information for all law enforcement agencies, as well as local, state and federal government agencies.