A mid-Michigan sheriff’s office is asking the public to sponsor jail inmates so they don’t return.
The Ingham County Jail has a program that provides information about entrepreneurship, critical thinking, healthy relationships and other topics, all covered in a 350-page workbook written by people who were locked up in the past.
It also includes case studies and testimonials by people with criminal histories, the Lansing State Journal reported.
“It’s a benefit for not only the inmates, but a benefit for the community if they take hold of what they’ve learned in the book,” said Cynthia Johnson, program coordinator.
Each workbook costs $50. Inmates must complete an application and explain what the program could do for them.
“Being here can be depressing,” Johnson said. “We have to give them hope.”
A 32-year-old man who is waiting to start the program said he has spent seven years in custody. He said he would like to display and sell art by inmates.
“I want to be someone my family, and in particular my son, can be proud of,” he wrote in his application.