Hamilton County forms new housing partnerships and models to help formerly incarcerated individuals
New Partnerships
Dr. Bennyce Hamilton, a faculty member at Miami University in Ohio, is a landlord who recently purchased a four-unit apartment building in the Westwood neighborhood. She will open it up to the individuals recommended by the Hamilton County Office of Reentry.
The organization works to connect residents who are reentering communities, get access to resources to help them navigate the reentry process.
Dr. Hamilton has applied for a grant and is waiting on American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA) funding to finish the rehab of these four units. The units are expected to be made available during the summer of 2025.
Trina Jackson is the Director at the Office of Reentry. She says although Hamilton County doesn’t have a thorough system to track recidivism, it does track rearrest for the first 120 days.
“When people are released from incarceration, those first 120 days are the most critical,” says Jackson. “If certain things are not met–food, clothing, housing, transportation– that individual is often more susceptible to committing a new offense because they need to just sustain themselves.”
Jackson says the office needs more housing and employment partners that are open to giving people a second chance. She added that giving rehabilitated inmates a second chance would help employers as well.
“There’s a skills gap in Hamilton County and all over the country. Who is going to fill it? The feedback that we get from [our current] employment partners are that they are so thankful to have those individuals on staff… they turn out to be some of the greatest employees, because they’re appreciative and they want to work,” she says.
Gap Housing Model
The office also created a new program called The Gap Housing Model. Jackson says the idea comes from a strong belief she has. The idea involves giving individuals housing for 90 days near employment centers or near public transportation as well as wraparound services. She believes that will lead to the individuals having a successful reentry.
The office made the model possible by partnering with Siegal Select, a furnished apartment building that offers extended stays in Springdale, Ohio. Individuals who are housing unstable would stay in these apartments.
The program started this year, and three individuals have utilized it so far. Two of the three have found permanent housing after 90 days. “I believe the opportunity to have closer proximity to jobs and to have a place to land is so important.” said Jackson. The program is supported by Hamilton County as well as the operating dollars.
Jackson emphasizes that more support and funds need to be allocated to reentry housing models such as the Gap Housing Model in order to make housing not only available but affordable.
Brick by Brick’s Ann Thompson reported on other solutions and efforts across the state of Ohio and the country focused on getting formerly incarcerated individuals housing. You can read that here.
The Foundation of Four Goals
Travis Jewell is a mild mannered, 40-year-old equipment operator for a local company in Hamilton County. His top four goals are: getting married on June 12th of 2026, going back to college to get his CDCA certification (Chemical Dependency Counselor Assistant), becoming a peer support specialist and “becoming the best father I can be,” said Jewell. “I don’t want to set too many goals to get overwhelmed with them. So those are my top four.”
It’s hard to believe that nearly six months ago Jewell was just released from prison for a substance abuse related offense. He attributes his increased drug usage to the tragedy he experienced in 2005. “…when dad died, I took off with him. It was a different drug, after different drug, after different drug. I just kept going down the line for 20 years.” said Jewell.
Jewell describes his five months at the Butler County Jail as transformative due to the prison ministry program he joined called M.A.N.A. (Mentoring Against Negative Actions). “Before [the M.A.N.A. program] I didn’t have a care in the world. Not even for myself. I was 135 pounds and now I’m 205 [pounds]. I have a healthy family. I make better decisions…I believe I’m a totally different person”.
Although M.A.N.A. made a difference by rehabilitating Jewell and even getting him connected to the local company that he now works for, having a safe place to call home helped sustain his new life. His fiancé provided housing for Jewell. Without that, he says he would’ve been in the streets and “would’ve been dead by now or back in jail.”
M.A.N.A. Program
The M.A.N.A. prison ministry is run by former Bengals Safety David Fulcher and his wife Judy. Fulcher is the founder of the prison ministry and has been running it in collaboration with local prisons’ GED programs since 2002. He has helped countless individuals get their lives back on track by focusing on making better decisions.
The program mainly works with individuals with substance abuse related/minor offenses. “Most of these guys that are here are really smart, I think some of these guys are probably smarter than me,” said Fulcher. “But I think that the difference between me and them is the choice…these guys in my program come with a thirst for change”.
Fulcher grew up in Los Angeles with a father who served as a police officer for 25 years. He attributes his structured upbringing to his father and hopes to impart better common sense to the mentees in his program.
The Vera Institute is a national organization dedicated to reforming the criminal and legal justice systems in the United States. The organization says that “given the proper support and opportunities, all people are capable of growth and change. Incarcerated people who participate in postsecondary education programs, for example, have 48 percent lower odds of returning to prison than those who do not.” The M.A.N.A. program acts as an additional education program that gives their mentees internal tools that prepare the formerly incarcerated individual to enter society as a reformed resident, but are communities prepared to receive these individuals?
The US Department of Health and Human Services came out with a report in 2024 that examined recidivism rates in the country. It discovered that housing is a vital element for successful reentry. “It provides a base from which to reorient to society, rebuild social networks, secure employment, and access behavioral health treatment and other health care”. On top of the affordable and available housing crisis the nation is facing, there is an additional barrier for the formerly incarcerated.
In a Simmons University article, they highlighted the challenges that face formerly incarcerated individuals reentering society. They often face hardships in securing employment, housing, and disenfranchisement. These things often linger and limit an ex-prisoner’s opportunities in life.
Jackson says that there isn’t a clear path to getting housing for released inmates because of the stigma incarceration carries. “There’s a stigma that keeps people from getting into housing. There’s an affordability element as well, and when it comes to federal housing, certain offenses are not allowed.”
Jackson applauded the Department of Corrections for the general training they give inmates but said there is a need for more employment partners as well as housing partners to offer second chance housing to individuals who are rehabilitated and are looking to reestablish their lives.
CORRECTION OR CONDEMNATION?
What is the point of a correctional facility? The general sentiment in United States seems that correctional facility/jails/prisons are meant to; house law breakers and hold them accountable for their negative decisions, remove harm from the public, and deter others from breaking laws. According to the Rapheal Rowe Foundation, a foundation named after and led by a man who was wrongfully imprisoned for 12 years, there needs to be more emphasis on rehabilitation.
The foundation believes if there is more investment into rehabilitation that inmates would be able to “reintegrate back into society and build safer societies”.
If the general sentiment shifted towards more rehabilitation and correctional facilities emphasized that component, it may begin to shift the stigma that Jackson was talking about. It might act as a vetting tool to make society more comfortable engaging with the formerly incarcerated. According to a study posted by the Sage Journal that analyzed the public views on the reintegration of convicted men, they found this to be the case. The study suggested that communities be involved in reintegration efforts in order to feel more comfortable with the idea of reentry.
Fulcher shares the predicament rehabilitated individuals are in because of the stigma attached to incarceration. “They’re asking them to be supermen without a cape. It’s a tough, tough world for them.”
THE PATHWAY TO HOUSING TO INCARCERATED INDIVIDUALS
In a Simmons University article, they highlighted the challenges that face formerly incarcerated individuals reentering society. They often face hardships in securing employment, housing, and disenfranchisement. These things often linger and limit an ex-prisoner’s opportunities in life.
Trina Jackson is the Director at the Hamilton County Office of Reentry. She works with individuals to help them transition back into their communities from incarceration by connecting them to resources. She says although Hamilton County doesn’t have a thorough system to track recidivism, they do track rearrest for the first 120 days.
“When people are released from incarceration. Those first 120 days are the most critical,” says Jackson. “If certain things are not met–food, clothing, housing, transportation– that individual is often more susceptible to committing a new offense because they need to just sustain themselves.”
The US Department of Health and Human Development came out with a report in 2024 that examined recidivism rates in the country. They discovered that housing is a vital element for successful reentry. “It provides a base from which to reorient to society, rebuild social networks, secure employment, and access behavioral health treatment and other health care”. On top of the affordable and available housing crisis the nation is facing, there is an additional barrier for the formerly incarcerated.
Jackson says that there isn’t a clear path to getting housing for released inmates because of the stigma incarceration carries. “There’s a stigma that keeps people from getting into housing. There’s an affordability element as well, and when it comes to federal housing, certain offenses are not allowed.”
Jackson applauded the Department of Corrections for the general training they give inmates but said there is a need for more employment partners as well as housing partners to offer second chance housing to individuals who are rehabilitated and are looking to reestablish their lives.
Hernz Laguerre Jr. – Multi-Media Journalist
Hernz is a Haitian American who was born and raised in Spring Valley, NY. He attended school at S.I. Newhouse School of Public Communications at Syracuse University, where he learned to hone his skills as a storyteller. After graduating with his Bachelors in Broadcast and Digital Journalism and his Masters in Television Radio and Film, he went on to a career in media as a producer, reporter and freelance videographer for companies like ESPN and Court TV. He eventually moved to Detroit, where he worked as a Multimedia Journalist for The Detroit News and then the NPR affiliate, WDET, before starting his work with the Brick by Brick team at CET and ThinkTV. Hernz aims to produce stories that tell the bigger picture while doing his due diligence to educate and inform the public about the solutions-focused work being done in the Cincinnati and Dayton areas.
