Securing a Second Chance: An ApprenticeshipNC Spotlight on Operation Gateway

According to Executive Order No. 303, which N.C. Governor Roy Cooper passed in January 2024, 18,000 people are released from North Carolina correctional facilities yearly. For many of these individuals, the transition from prison to society is a daunting task. Upon release, they must find housing, look for job opportunities, secure transportation to make parole appointments, buy clothes, make health appointments, reconnect with their communities, and more. Put simply, reentry is a difficult and complex process.

Understanding the importance of supporting justice impacted individuals as they reenter our communities, Philip Cooper, Founder and Chief Change Agent, Operation Gateway, sought to affect positive change through a program designed to decrease recidivism by addressing the social determinants of the health of returning citizens.

Operation Gateway (OG), headquartered in Asheville, N.C., assists justice impacted individuals across the state both prior to and after their releases by assessing their needs, creating Individualized Reentry plans, welcoming them home upon release, and ensuring a continuity of care.

“We have their back. We welcome them home. We help them get their vital records, food, housing, cell phone. We are here to give them peace and lessen their anxiety.” – Philip Cooper, Founder and Chief Change Agent, Operation Gateway

One of the key components of this process is the Community Health Worker. OG’s Community Health Workers are formerly incarcerated persons who have lived experience with the reentry process. Community Health Workers serve as links between returning citizens, health services, social services, and the community. What makes OG’s Community Health Workers so special is that they are also Registered Apprentices. As such, they are doing a significant amount of training while working in these roles.

OG’s Community Health Workers Registered Apprenticeship Program focuses on providing the apprentices with the skills and knowledge necessary to best help individuals going through the reentry process. Through the program, these apprentices receive training in a range of topics including peer support, motivational interviewing training, recovery coaching academy, computer skills, and more. They complete training through Asheville-Buncombe Technical Community College while working for OG where they gain on-the-job experience working with justice impacted individuals.

Mr. Cooper says that the Community Health Worker is a vital part of their organization, as the role allows the formerly incarcerated individuals they work with to “see somebody who has been in their shoes who is now providing services. It’s an immediate shot of hope. The apprenticeship program takes a person from having lived experience to lived expertise.”

Looking to the future, Mr. Cooper hopes to see the apprenticeship program expand through connections made via the State Opioid Response grant.

“I’m going to offer the apprenticeship route to these organizations that have State Opioid Response funding. We have a Registered Apprenticeship that they can use to get well trained people on their teams. We truly believe that creating partnerships across the state will make it so that the people we serve will have the support they need, and we’ll have a chance at changing the system for the better.”  – Philip Cooper, Founder and Chief Change Agent, Operation Gateway

Operation Gateway works to spread the knowledge and resources needed to improve the reentry process for all, and their Registered Apprenticeship Program is key to their success. When asked why he chose to create a Registered Apprenticeship Program for Community Health Workers, Mr. Cooper said this: “Community Health Workers are the workers we need to create the world we want. This apprenticeship means we are giving them the knowledge that we KNOW they need to succeed.”

OG is just one of many organizations working to positively influence the reentry process and, with April being Second Chance month in the United States, their work is an impactful reminder of the barriers faced by those returning home from prison.

Interested in supporting Operation Gateway? Attend OG’s Inaugural Fundraising Gala April 24, 2024, from 6-8 p.m. at Trinity Episcopal Church in Asheville, North Carolina.

About Operation Gateway: Operation Gateway’s mission is to decrease recidivism by addressing the social determinants of the health of returning citizens. OG has developed a model to leverage the lived experience of certified Community Health Workers (CHW) who are formerly incarcerated and active in addiction recovery to assist in navigating the barriers faced when reentering society. With deep roots in the affected community, OG believes our justice system should be based on the simple premise that once someone completes their sentence, they should have the chance to earn a living, build a life, and participate in our democracy as fellow citizens. Learn more about Operation Gateway here.

About ApprenticeshipNC: Recognized by the Office of Apprenticeship to act on behalf of the U.S. Department of Labor (DOL), ApprenticeshipNC (ANC) is the State Apprenticeship Agency (SAA) operating under the North Carolina Community College System (NCCCS). ApprenticeshipNC registers apprenticeship programs tailored to meet employers’ needs— providing structured on-the-job learning, supplemental education, and a progressive wage scale. Learn more about ApprenticeshipNC here: https://www.apprenticeshipnc.com/

This article was written by ApprenticeshipNC Communications Assistant Margaret Spainhour as a part of the Amplify ApprenticeshipNC Program Spotlight Initiative. The original publication date was April 1, 2024. See the original LinkedIn article here.