Ten years ago, Scott’s life was in a downward spiral. He was addicted to heroin, violating his probation, and about to make the worst decision of his life.
Egged on by friends he never should have been associated with, Scott robbed a gas station at gunpoint. Initially, he got away with the crime. That same year, he was picked up on his probation violation and served seven months in jail. When he got out, he got married and had a child. But the crime caught up with him. He was arrested and charged with armed robbery. He served 60 months in various correctional facilities.
But that is where Scott began to change his life. He started taking vocational classes at the Macomb County Jail and focused on a more positive future.
Today, the 36-year-old Warren resident is employed by American Axle as a maintenance technician, repairing presses at the company’s Auburn Hills facility. And he is going to school to earn a degree in mechatronics engineering. It was all made possible by his participation in the state’s Department of Corrections vocational education programs.
Prisoners like Scott who are serving out the last portions of their sentences in state penitentiaries now have a chance to exit with marketable vocational skills thanks to Vocational Village.
The Vocational Village is a first-of-its-kind program that aims to give offenders intensive, hands-on job training experience. The Village program was created by the Michigan Department of Corrections in 2016 and installed at the Richard A. Handlon Correctional Facility in Ionia that same year. A similar program began at the Parnall Correctional Facility in Jackson in 2017. And female prisoners at the Women’s Huron Valley Correctional Facility in Ypsilanti were offered the program for the first time in 2021.
“It gives people the opportunity to obtain a livable wage,” said Nicole Odom, a workforce development specialist with the Michigan Department of Corrections Offender Employment Opportunities Unit for Macomb and Oakland counties. “It gives them the tools, confidence, and skills that they didn’t have before coming home.”
Offenders have the option to train in one of 11 vocational trades, including auto mechanics, carpentry, CNC machining, electrical, forklift, masonry, plumbing, robotics, truck driving, welding and tree trimming.
At the Women’s Huron Valley Correctional Facility in Ypsilanti, offenders are offered vocational training in eight different vocational trades, including carpentry, robotics, cosmetology, 3D printing, truck driving, food technology, forklift, and horticulture.
Odom said offenders are encouraged to pursue their own interests in choosing a vocational path, but they may also be steered to a different vocation based upon jobs that are available where they will be living and their access to transportation. Training for the various vocations can last anywhere from eight weeks to a year, depending upon the vocational path and individual learning curves of the offender. If offenders complete the program early, Odom said they can stay on and be tutors to the next group of students.
Scott, whose last name isn’t being used to conceal his identity, earned a certificate in food technology as well as his GED and the ACT WorkKeys test while transferring to various institutions within the penal system.
He counts as his most valuable piece of training the graduation from the MDOC VPP (Violence Prevention Program), a course for violent offenders. It teaches class members alternatives to using anger when resolving conflicts. Scott, who never met his father, grew up in poverty, and was evicted from every home he lived in as a child, had anger issues. He was expelled from school more than once.
“I found that program very useful,” Scott said. “I’ve had a couple of situations since where I learned to direct my anger elsewhere and determine my response based upon how people are approaching me."
“I used to be one of those people who if somebody came at me wrong, I was ready to throw hands on the spot. Now, I bite my tongue and walk away or apologize if I offended someone,” he added. “The program gave me skills to deal with the real world and deal with people, be more of a people person. The atmosphere in a prison is very, very petty and dangerous. You don’t have to deal with as many of those kinds of people in the real world.”
To qualify, offenders must be misconduct clear and must be willing to transfer to a facility that offers the training. After the transfer, offenders live in designated housing areas, separate from the general population. While training, offenders work six hours a day, five days a week.
Within 24 months of their release date, potential trainees must have completed a GED or a high school diploma, must write an application, and must be accepted by the education department of the facility. There is also an interview process to enter the program.
All Vocational Villagers are required to complete an employment readiness course that prepares them to enter the workforce. All vocational trade graduates are issued a certificate from the state of Michigan stating which specific tasks are completed and the number of hours trained for the class.
Eligible students who pass the ACT WorkKeys test will receive nationally recognized career readiness certificates. Building trades earn NCCER certification and OSHA 30 hour card. Welding grads earn NCCER certification and an AWS-Sense Level 1 card. Auto mechanics earn up to eight different state of Michigan mechanic licenses. CNC Machining grads earn four certificates issued from immersive software recognized by HAAS. And masonry grads earn NCCER certification.
For the female vocational trades, students earn FANUC iRVision 1 &2 and Stratasys and Additive Manufacturing certificates for 3D printing and robotics. Carpentry students earn NCCER CORE, NCCER Carpentry and OSHA 30 certificates. Cosmetology students earn a cosmetology license from the state of Michigan. Truck driving and forklift operators can earn a commercial learners permit, temporary instructional permit, and equipment operator permit (forklift). Food technology graduates earn ServSafe manager, ProStart levels 1 and 2, and START training 1 certificates. And horticulture students can earn certificates for turfgrass pest management, ornamental pest management, right of way, field crop, fruit, and vegetable grower, and certified green industry professional.
Students discuss goal setting, learn interview tips, and are taught workplace etiquette. They complete I9 paperwork and learn how to use debit cards to access payments made by direct deposit. Upon graduation, Vocational Village students can participate in facility job fairs and can be interviewed by employers prior to their release. Quite often, the offenders will already have a job lined up prior to being released from the penal system.
While Scott graduated with food tech certification (not part of the Vocational Village program for men), his parole officer sent him job postings at felon-friendly companies that could utilize his mechanical skills. He interviewed and was offered an entry-level job running a press. In the 13 months he has been with American Axle, he has been promoted twice – first to run his own line as a press operator and then to his current position as an automated press technician. He called the raises he has received “life-changing money,” and he likes the freedom the new job provides moving around the plant, as opposed to being stuck in one area.
Scott is also pursuing a degree in mechatronics engineering, first by going through M-TEC training at Macomb Community College. Upon completion of the M-TEC program, he plans to attend Oakland University to obtain his engineering degree. To pay for his schooling, he received a Pell grant, as well as $2,500 per year from American Axle. Once he earns his degree, Scott hopes to apply for a controls position, which would make him completely responsible for maintenance of robotics systems – electrical, programming, and other troubleshooting.
Potential employers are protected from any risks associated with hiring a high-risk job seeker through the Fidelity Bonding Program of Michigan. A fidelity bond is a business insurance policy of the Travelers Casualty and Surety Company of America that insures an employer against employee theft, forgery, larceny, and embezzlement. Fidelity bonding provides an incentive for employers to hire job seekers who are qualified but who are considered high risk due to a factor in their personal background. The FBP allows employers to obtain workers without taking a risk and allows high-risk job seekers to find work. The FBP diminishes the risk for employers and reduces the barriers to employment faced by job seekers.
The FBP provides free bonding for the first six months of employment. Employers must offer 30 hours or more per week of full-time employment for six consecutive months with the stipulation that the high-risk job seeker needs to be bonded.
Employers can also earn a tax credit of between $1,200 and $9,600 per employee, depending on the target group of new employees and the number of hours worked in the first year. Employees must work at least 120 hours in the first year of employment to receive the tax credit. Employers can visit www.doleta.gov/wotc for the maximum tax credit for each WOTC target group.
Odom said while the goal is for the released offender to obtain and maintain employment, developing a relationship with the employer opens the door to hiring additional graduates of the Vocational Village in the future.
Scott said it didn’t take long for him to realize how much American Axle cares about its employees. He said the company took a chance on him, and he hopes other companies will take a chance on other people like him who have graduated from the Vocational Village program.
“I believe that everyone deserves a second chance. If you give someone a chance to prove themselves, then you will have a successful situation,” Scott said. “I’ve reached a point in my life where I have family and kids, and I need to take care of them and be a role model for them. All I care about is getting better and doing better.”
Odom said Macomb County has many offender-friendly employers, and the county has reached monthly highs of 82 percent employment rate and lows of 57 percent through 2021.
For more information on the Vocational Village, visit michigan.gov/vocvillage. For assistance from the Macomb County Department of Planning and Economic Development, contact Economic Developer Todd Seibert at Todd.Seibert@macombgov.org, or Economic Developer Hali Lenney at Hali.Lenney@macombgov.org, or call 586-469-5285.
Don Gardner is a communications specialist for Macomb County Planning and Economic Development.
