Richard Garland receives $1.5 million grant for Reimagine Reentry project

On Oct. 12, Richard Garland, assistant professor of behavioral and community health sciences in the Graduate School of Public Health received word that the Hillman Foundation awarded his program, Reimagine Reentry, a $1.5 million grant for three years.

Reimagine Reentry is a program for people returning home to Allegheny County after incarceration. The program is committed to reducing recidivism by offering holistic services to returning citizens, including case mentoring and management, workforce training, family reunification education and housing assistance planning in a state where 63 percent of parolees return to corrections within three years.

The program's mission is to offer these resources to counteract systemic barriers and ensure the success of program participants. To enroll in the three-year program, applicants must obtain a referral from the state's Department of Corrections, submit an application and complete an interview.

Reimagine Reentry is in partnership with Operation Better Block, the Pennsylvania Department of Corrections and the University's Graduate School of Public Health.

Reimagine Reentry is one of four programs that make up the Violence Prevention Initiative — a project dedicated to addressing community violence. Garland leads this initiative with Steven Albert, professor of behavioral and community health sciences in the Graduate School of Public Health and the Philip B. Hallen Endowed Chair in Community Health and Social Justice.