Refoundry is a nonprofit that supports justice-involved individuals by providing job training, business skill development, and overall support in order to thrive in a world outside of incarceration. With a focus on entrepreneurship, Refoundry aims to provide members with the skills and opportunities to achieve financial independence and become leaders and job creators in their communities.
“One of our coworkers initially contacted Revivn because we had a stock of printers that needed to be discarded, and we wanted to see if Revivn would accept our donation. That's how the relationship started. Then, we connected with them about getting laptops donated to our organization because we were in need of electronics for our program,” shared Adam Blackman, Refoundry’s Program Director.
Refoundry’s pilot program has helped introduce digital skills to people who have been previously excluded from a technology-dependent world, allowing them to assimilate into society more seamlessly and setting them up for a successful career. Many jobs require computer skills, and employees are expected to have basic computer literacy in today's world.
“Traditional models of reentry organizations tend to be lacking something. I think a big missing part was a sense of true integration. A lot of existing organizations are more concerned about the number of members getting jobs, regardless of whether or not those jobs were going to lead to strong careers and a full life afterward.”
With the help of Revivn’s donations, Refoundry has been able to supply technology to the individuals involved with their Brooklyn and Los Angeles pilots. Refoundry now plans on fully launching its program nationwide and will continue to support justice-involved individuals by helping them properly integrate into the digital world they have been isolated from.
“It is important that people at all income levels have digital access because it can be a genuine barrier of entry when it comes to employment and mobility. In order to properly serve those in your community, we definitely encourage non-profits to make partnerships like the one we have with Revivn.”
Learn more about Refoundry at: https://www.refoundry.org/.
