The PACE Employment Program: An Inmate‐Employer Mutual Development Strategy

Abstract

The PACE Employment Program, funded by the Office of Education's Fund for the Improvement of Post‐Secondary Education, brings together potential employers and employees in a jail setting. The program is administered by the PACE Institute, a private educational organization housed within the Cook County Jail (Chicago). The program seeks to strengthen the nontechnical employment skills of inmate‐students, while also sensitizing prospective employers to the value and employment potential of these students. This is done by having both groups participate in a variety of exercises related to the development and strengthening of personal and interpersonal skills.