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Ventura Youthful Offenders Graduate from Construction Program that Offers Productive Life after Prison
CALPIA Program Provides Construction Labor Certification for Soon-To-Be Paroled Offenders
VENTURA – Today, ten juvenile offenders at the Ventura Youth Correctional Facility received certificates during graduation ceremonies.
The graduates completed the California Prison Industry Authority’s Career Technical Education (CTE) program and finished the necessary steps to receive CALPIA certification in Construction Labor.
“These graduates are learning valuable skills setting the groundwork for success,” said California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation’s (CDCR) Secretary and Prison Industry Board Chairperson, Jeff Beard. “Rehabilitative programs that include education and job training are vital for these young men as they head on a positive path and transition back to their communities.”
With a recidivism rate of less than 7 percent, CALPIA’s Pre-Apprentice Construction Labor CTE program is one of CDCR’s most successful vocational training programs.
To increase the chance of employment, all CALPIA offender employees are required to obtain a high school diploma, or complete a GED, within two-years of beginning the program.
“By choosing to participate in CALPIA’s training, the CTE graduates successfully completed several projects around the facility, learned construction skills, and significantly reduced their chances of returning to prison,” said Charles Pattillo, General Manager of CALPIA. “This program ensures that offenders are job-ready when they leave and the vast majority of CALPIA graduates will become lawabiding, taxpaying citizens.”
CALPIA’s CTE program trains offenders in various pre-apprentice construction skills that include welding and ironwork, general labor, and finished carpentry. CALPIA provides paroled graduates with a set of tools and a tool belt so they are ready for the first day at their new job.
CALPIA is a self-financed state entity that provides training and productive work assignments for approximately 7,000 offenders in California. CALPIA receives all of its revenue from the sale of the products it manufactures. CALPIA funds the CTE program from proceeds derived from CALPIA enterprises. The recidivism rate among CALPIA’s programs is 26-38 percent lower than the general prison population, a success attributed to the job skills and industry certifications obtained by participating in the program.
