Prisoners turn over a new leaf with programs help

Program helps prisoners turn over a new leaf

By Christopher Shuttlesworth

Chicago Neighborhood Initiatives Micro Finance Group (CNIMFG) recently announced the Pathway to Enterprise for Returning Citizens (PERC), an initiative supported by Citi Community Development to create entrepreneurial training for returning citizens being released from the Illinois Department of Corrections.

David Doig, president of the Chicago Neighborhood Initiatives (CNI), explained that the PERC initiative has been a year-long collaborative effort amongst nonprofits such as Bethel New Life, Chatham Business Association, North Lawndale Employment Network, The Safer Foundation and Sunshine Enterprises.

“We’re very excited to launch it and all of the [partnering nonprofits] are great community base groups who have been

conducting entrepreneurship training so they are focusing on

providing training for returning citizens,” Doig said.

More than 28,000 men and women were released from Illinois prisons in 2016 but based on current rates of recidivism, nearly half of them will return to prison over the next three years, according to a CNI press release.

Doig said CNIMFG representatives are planning to go to 10 correctional facilities in Dec. 2017, to make presentations to the inmates who are being released within the next three to six months.

“We will be recruiting interested returning citizens through the existing pipeline of inmates being released,” he said “We feel like it’s a great opportunity to serve neighborhood businesses, but to also cut down on the recidivism rate.”

After successfully completing the PERC program, 125 people will be eligible to receive up to $50,000 in capital to open a business that could create community based jobs.

“CNIMFG offers microloans of up to $25,000 for start-up businesses (in operation less than six months) and $50,000 for established businesses, as well as credit builder loans ranging from $1,000 to $3,000, according to a CNI press release. In addition, CNIMFG offers an array of services ranging from technical assistance and professional referrals to business and personal financial health consulting.”

For more information, visit https://www.cnigroup. org/neighborhood-lending/.

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