HOW WE DO THE WORK

Providing for Community Needs

SOCIAL SERVICES

We provide resources to an underserved, vulnerable population. Oklahoma remains one of the leaders in incarceration, specifically women. However, there are limited resources that address the needs of formerly incarcerated women.

We provide gender specific programming for justice impacted women.
We share advocacy and employment opportunities with justice impacted men.
Our advocacy over the years has helped reach hundreds of justice impacted people through the ripple effect of our advocacy. Additional programming, policies and resources have expanded to meet the needs of justice impacted communities.

Our activities include:

Hygiene Kits and Clothing
Sowing Hope Resource Fair
Resource Specialist Support

HOUSING

Nia's Place is A SAFE home to welcome formerly incarcerated women back into the community. Our housing will multi-dimensional holistic services; gender specific programming, personal agency, community based, power building and social transformation. The desired outcome is to achieve systemic change and structural barriers to reentry.

CREDIBLE MESSENGERS

As directly impacted people, we have led the problem and now we are leading the solution by bringing forth innovative solutions as alternatives to incarceration.

An approach centered in Restorative Justice. We’re joining a mentoring movement that has reduced violence and developed pathways out of incarceration.

According to the Equality Indicators report, “ Black juveniles are more than 3 times more likely to be arrested than white juveniles. Our youth are suffering and being funneled into the prison industrial complex; conditioned into institulization. We need an approach that focuses on the root causes of violence and offers an escape. This is an effective transformative approach.

“The Credible Messenger movement is emerging based on a holistic, comprehensive approach to justice that transforms and improves individual lives, rearranges the relationship between communities and the justice system, and empowers neighborhoods to use the resources they have within to maintain public safety. Using this people-up perspective, the Credible Messenger approach seeks to build trust and inspire change from within communities so that they can feel positive about possibilities rather than facing a future of frustration."

Referenced: https://cmjcenter.org/approach/

FELLOWSHIPS

TRANSFORMATIVE CHANGE:

Transformative Change Fellowship - A 12 week behavior cognitive program that is a trauma informed approach to change. It is designed to remove mental barriers and build participants’ confidence to envision a better life. It is also a workforce development course. The end goal is to connect participants with education and employment opportunities that enhance their quality of life.
It is a tactic that addresses the 8 Dimensions of Wellness.

ENTREPRENEURSHIP:

Builderz aims to rebuild a Black Wall Street mindset by investing in Black entrepreneurs. Economic instability is a root cause for incarceration. “The Prison Policy Initiative has also reported that formerly incarcerated people are five times more likely than the general public to be unemployed.