Author: Jerry Higgins, Communications Officer
RALEIGH -- Nearly 100 incarcerated women gathered in a prison auditorium in Raleigh for a simulation that gave them a real taste of the challenges they will face upon release.
At the North Carolina Correctional Institution for Women on Jan. 30, the NC Department of Adult Correction held its first reentry simulation for females, and it was a success for both the women and the agency. The women walked away with a better sense of what they need to do to be prepared for release.
In a large room, volunteers were stationed at tables representing the various organizations and situations a newly released person would have to deal with once leaving a prison, including:
-- Identification/DMV
-- Rent
-- Social Services
-- Counseling and treatment
-- Banking
-- Discount medical care
-- Homeless Shelter
-- Food assistance
-- SSI/disability/Vocational Rehabilitation/family support
-- Probation
-- Courthouse/jail
Each woman received a packet with life situations, artificial money and some identification. Not all packets are the same and obtaining many necessary services required multiple forms of identification. Someone who can’t pay rent could spend time at the homeless shelter. Those who didn’t pay child support could land in jail.
“It was eye opening,” said NCDAC Secretary Leslie Dismukes, who participated in the entire simulation and actually ended up in “pretend” jail after selecting a card from a station that indicated she was disruptive during a treatment session. “We have an amazing group of folks who really want to help our offenders. I am lucky to have gone through this experience with the women in our custody and to have had a chance to talk to them about their frustrations and experiences.”
The simulation was broken up into four 15-minute segments that represented the first four weeks after leaving prison. Each week had different challenges and requirements, and there can be great confusion in Week 1 without assistance. Even in a simulation, some participants didn’t know where to go or what to do.
The lines for IDs and the DMV tended to be the longest. “The DMV just hired extra staff,” said Guy Buckner, the special projects administrator for the Division of Reentry and Rehabilitation, who expertly ran the simulations as more staff joined the DMV table in Week 2 to ease the lines.
Peer support counselors were provided after Week 2 to assist offenders and Week 4 was used to finish up items not completed. Real-life situations were thrown into the simulation including bad weather closures and lunch breaks. The simulation could be stressful, just like real life.
Offenders are exposed to reentry services shortly after entering state prison. That exposure increases as the sentence nears its end, and they work with case managers to learn about what is needed once they return to society.
“This really hit me as I was going through it,” said Jorgie Brown, an offender with a few months left to serve. “It was hard to figure out what you had to do and where to go, which was frustrating. It shows you really need a good support system. This was a powerful exposure to what we will have to deal with.”
NCCIW Assistant Warden Michelle Carlton said this event provided great exposure to not only the incarcerated women, but her staff as well.
“Having to stand in long lines to get a state ID and finding out how important the ID and Social Security cards are really gives them real life exposure. I really love that they were all so engaged and at times had to rely on one another for help. That is so important,” she said.
Rehabilitative and Correctional Services Chief Deputy Secretary Maggie Brewer, who assisted at one of the tables, told the offenders at the end, “The Department does all it can from Day 1 to provide you a smooth transition back into society. I appreciate you being the first female offender population to do this.”