As part of Second Chance Month in April, Kentucky Governor Andy Beshear signed Kentucky General Assembly House Bill 5. The bill establishes the creation of the state’s first reentry job training campus, which is expected to be a model for other states to follow.
The 51,500-square-foot, $41.9 million facility will be located at the Northpoint Training Center, a Commonwealth of Kentucky Department of Corrections medium security facility in Burgin, Ky. It will serve up to 400 incarcerated individuals who will be selected from across Kentucky’s 14 state prisons and relocated to the facility for job training. The program excludes those who have attempted to escape and those who have sex offense convictions.
New campus to expand Northpoint Training Center’s program
The campus will dramatically expand the Northpoint Training Center’s existing prison education program, which is operated by the Kentucky Community and Technical College System. The system includes 16 colleges with more than 70 campuses across the state.
Participants will be offered vocational training enabling them to participate in industries that support the state’s economy. These include:
- Advanced manufacturing technology
- Welding
- Diesel mechanics/technology
- Electric lineman technician/fiber optics
- Computerized machining and
- Manufacturing
- Additive manufacturing (3D printing)
- Heavy equipment operations
- Computer engineering technology
Although construction has yet to begin and the completion date has not been announced, some training courses are already in operation.
State economy to benefit
The programs offered at the new campus are expected to benefit not only the participants but the state’s economy as well.
Kentucky will need to fill a total of 250,000 jobs annually to keep up with labor market demand, but the labor participation rate is just 58.2%.
“Good-paying jobs and the dignity of work are essential to preventing individuals from reoffending, making our communities safer and keeping families whole,” Kentucky Department of Corrections Commissioner Cookie Crews said when the new campus was announced late last year. “Not only does this proposal meet our mission, but it has the added benefit of providing qualified, ready-to-work employees for businesses across our commonwealth as we continue to see historic economic investment in our state.”
Kentucky Community & Technical College System (KCTCS) President Ryan Quarles agreed.
“In partnership with the Department of Corrections, KCTCS is excited to propose a model prison education program that builds on our current work across Kentucky to reduce recidivism and expand workforce training,” he said. “Over the next 10 years, Kentucky will need to fill more than 2 million jobs to keep up with labor market demand, and this is an opportunity to expand education and help meet our state’s growing workforce needs.”
Kentucky has been a leader in second chance employment
The state has been innovative in its approach to helping ensure that those who have been incarcerated are able to successfully reenter society and have a fair chance at finding a job. It has accomplished this in a variety of ways:
- Prison-based reentry centers. Each of Kentucky’s 14 state prisons has established its own reentry center. The centers operate inside the prisons and deliver life-skills training designed to prepare incarcerated indviduals for success upon release.
- Second chance employment platform. The state’s secondchance.ky.gov, website is designed to help Kentuckians seeking a second chance find a job, get an education and/or continue recovery. It includes resume help, job listings, state government employment opportunities and a calendar of expungement events. The site also connects business leaders with resources to help them hire second-chance talent.
- Governor’s council of second chance employers. Governor Beshear created the Governor’s Council of Second Chance Employers in 2024. The council has 11 members, including representatives of a wide variety of industries, as well as an educational institution, nonprofits and chambers of commerce. It holds quarterly meetings, publishes an annual report and educates employers on the benefits and best practices of fair chance hiring.
A model for other states
While comprehensive in-prison reentry programs remain relatively uncommon, they have been shown to reduce recidivism, improve public safety and increase post-release employment outcomes.
In addition to Kentucky, a small number of states – including Missouri and Virginia – have implemented successful reentry initiatives. However, Kentucky’s integrated approach, combining centralized vocational training with statewide reentry infrastructure and employer engagement, may offer a scalable model for other states seeking to strengthen workforce development and reduce recidivism.
