More than 95 percent of people who enter Missouri Department of Corrections facilities ultimately are released, with about 12,000 Missourians reentering the community every year.
We want to make sure they're good neighbors.
To ensure a smooth transition, the Reentry Unit connects Missourians involved with the criminal justice system with the resources they need to rejoin the community. Our reentry teams work with organizations and agencies that help Missourians leaving prisons access vital documents, housing, employment, medical care, behavioral health treatment and other tools that support post-incarceration success.
Reentry Centers
The Missouri Department of Corrections operates reentry centers in all 19 Missouri Department of Corrections prisons and both transition centers. Staffed by housing and employment specialists, these one-stop shops support people preparing for release from incarceration. Staff and resident assistants help Missourians returning to the community with vital documents, vocational certifications, employability skills, job searches, housing searches, family reunification, health care plans and more. Mirroring community job centers, the inviting office spaces set Missourians up for success.
The department has extended digital access to reentry services, partnering with St. Louis University to provide residents of eastern-region facilities with Transformative Workforce Academy (TWA) access, with the Department of Higher Education and Workforce Development (DHEWD) to create the Career Edge Missouri Reentry Connect site, and with MO HealthNet on Medicaid application access.
In Fiscal Year 2025, nearly 70,000 residents of state prisons and transition centers visited on-site reentry centers.
Reentry 2030
Missouri was the first state in the U.S. to sign on to Reentry 2030, a national initiative that aims to dramatically improve reentry outcomes for people exiting prison. By 2030, we plan to expand collaborations and partnerships with public and private entities, connect incarcerated Missourians to employment and prepare people to stay employed after incarceration. We aim for all incarcerated Missourians who need career services to receive them; for formerly incarcerated Missourians to be employed within 30 days of release; and for formerly incarcerated Missourians to maintain their employment for at least nine months after release. At the 2023 kickoff event, fellow state agencies, partners in corrections and national organizations have come together to pledge support.
Resource Fairs
To help prepare our residents for post-incarceration success, the depart regularly holds resource fairs at facilities releasing the largest numbers of residents into the community. Representatives from local, state and national organizations meet with residents to provide information about employment, housing, behavioral health, family reunification and other resources they might need after release from incarceration.