John Jay College Of Criminal Justice | The City University of New York

   

A recent report on recidivism by the Pennsylvania Department of Corrections shows that halfway houses do little to reduce the problem. Ann Jacobs, director of the Prisoner Reentry Institute at John Jay College, discussed the role of halfway houses and the impact of privately run houses during an interview on NPR’s The Brian Lehrer Show.

To listen to the NPR interview, click here.

Jacobs joined the Prisoner Reentry Institute in 2011 with over forty years of experience in the criminal justice field. For nearly two decades, she served as the Executive Director of the Women’s Prison Association (WPA) in New York. The WPA is the nation’s oldest and largest social service and advocacy organization for incarcerated women, formerly incarcerated women, and their families. During her time at WPA, she directed 120 staff members who served over 2,500 women and their families per year at five community sites, the city jail, and four women’s prisons in New York State. Jacobs has served as a national spokesperson, consultant and trainer on a range of issues including gender, families and criminal justice, as well as associated issues of substance abuse, mental health, health, housing, child welfare and employment. She has designed and implemented innovative programs for women and families involved in the criminal justice system and has also served as a consultant to the National Institute of Corrections and Annie E. Casey Foundation, among others. As a recognized advocate and reformer, Jacobs also founded the Women’s Justice Alliance, a consortium of over 100 service providers in New York State; she created the Institute on Women in Criminal Justice, a national policy center dedicated to improving the policies and practices affecting women in the criminal justice system; and the Women’s Advocacy Project, a program in public policy and civic involvement for formerly incarcerated women.