The state of Missouri shared best practices and success stories at a two day conference focusing on efforts to assist Missouri’s ex-prisoners in their efforts to return to their families, secure jobs and avoid returning to a life of crime.

The third annual Missouri Reentry Conference was held November 18-20, 2008 at the Inn at the Grand Glaize Resort at Lake of the Ozarks, MO. The conference featured speakers and workshops related to job/skills training, community/family re-engagement programs, housing issues and faith-based support for Missouri’s ex-offender population. A record 320 participants attended.

Conference speakers included: 

• ARCHS
• Barak Christian Church
• Big Brothers Big Sisters of Eastern Missouri
• Boone County Community Partnership
• Center for Effective Public Policy
• Employment Connection
• Family and Community Trust (FACT)
• Hamilton Heights Neighborhood Organization
• Missouri Department of Corrections
• Nonprofit Services Consortium Center
• Mission Gate Ministry
• Missouri 4-H LIFE Program
• Missouri Board of Probation and Parole
• Missouri District 8 (Lincoln/Warren Counties)
• Missouri Juvenile Division, Community Justice Project
• Missouri State University
• Missouri Supreme Court –Justice William Ray Price, Jr.
• Missouri Veterans Commission
• NovaSource
• Operation Weed & Seed of St. Louis
• Pettis County Community Partnership
• Positive Alternatives for  Youth
• Project REACH
• Society of St. Vincent DePaul, Criminal Justice Ministry
• St. Louis Metropolitan Police  Department
• State Rep. Danny Moore (R-20th Dist.)
• U.S. Parole Commission (Commissioner Cranston  J. Mitchell)
• VISTA

ARCHS is a partner of the Missouri Reentry Process (MRP), created in 2005 by the Missouri Department of Corrections.  Early recidivism results of MRP are encouraging, with a 12-month rate of 24% compared to 35% for those who did not participate in the MRP. ARCHS’ reentry program achieved a one-year recidivism rate of 5.3%.

BELOW: (Left to Right): ARCHS' Chief Executive Officer, Wendell E. Kimbrough, U.S. Parole Commission Commissioner Cranston J. Mitchell, Missouri Supreme Court Justice William Ray Price, Jr., and Missouri Dept. of Corrections Deputy Director David Rost visit during the Missouri Reentry Conference.