NYC Justice Corps
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- Who We Are
Investing for Effectiveness
- Corps Highlights
- History
- Project Partners
- Investing for Effectiveness
- Funding Sources
- Press and Publications
Phyllis Hurd Director of Community Relations, Bridge Street Development CorporationNYC Justice Corps members have given me new hope that, with the right resources and programming, individuals returning home can change their life outlooks.
The NYC Justice Corps maximizes investments made by New York City taxpayers to improve public safety and lift New Yorkers from poverty to self-sufficiency.
Every year, New York State taxpayers spend $3.5 billion to incarcerate New York City residents, most of whom come from 14 community districts including Bedford-Stuyvesant and the South Bronx. The Bureau of Justice Statistics estimates it costs roughly $37,000 per year to imprison an individual and operate correctional facilities; in contrast, it costs roughly $16,300 to enroll and graduate each Corps member.
We anticipate program participation will:
- Broaden opportunities available to Corps members,
- Reduce rates of incarceration and poverty,
- Justify the City’s investment in the NYC Justice Corps.
The independent research firm Westat, Inc., in partnership with Metis Associates, is evaluating the NYC Justice Corps; first-year findings will be available in the winter of 2010. The evaluation will measure and report on the effectiveness of a range of intended impacts at three levels:
- Recidivism, employment and education outcomes of Corps members.
- Target communities’ development resulting from community benefit service projects and capacity to reintegrate young adults who have been involved with the criminal justice system.
- Ability of community-based organizations to provide services to young adults with criminal justice involvement.
In partnership with the Pratt Center for Community Development, Corps members engaged in graffiti removal at seven locations, community garden renovation, and the weatherization of 25 homes whose owners will benefit from reduced energy costs and improved home energy efficiency. Corps members also completed a mural on a wall of the garden, depicting scenes from the community.
The Black Veterans for Social Justice Project engaged Corps members in renovating apartments at four housing facilities in Bedford-Stuyvesant. This work included ensuring that various heating and electrical systems were functional. Through training from project partners, Corps members were provided with the opportunity to become certified in areas of carpentry, boiler and sprinkler functioning, along with other areas of building maintenance.
The William Hodson Senior Center is the oldest senior center in the United States. Corps members undertook an intensive clean-up campaign, restored the stage in the main dining room, and repainted the walls of the auditorium to create a vibrant atmosphere for the seniors.
Crotona Park is the largest park in the South Bronx and has partnered with the Justice Corps on a variety of outdoor and indoor projects. Corps members have repainted basketball courts and playground areas, as well as the walls of the pool house. Most recently, they helped design and plant a new garden landscape by building a fence around newly installed flowerbeds to prevent erosion.