Is it time to rethink how to integrate ex-felons back into society? We discuss the Last Mile, a new program at San Quentin designed to help former inmates develop tech skills, get start-up jobs and even start online businesses. What promises does the program hold, and what obstacles persist for ex-inmates entering the job market?
Producer: Susie Britton
Guests:
-Chris Redlitz, co-founder of the Last Mile. Chris is also the Managing Partner of Transmedia Capital, a San Francisco technology investment fund focused on early stage digital media companies. He also works with aspiring entrepreneurs through KickLabs, a technology accelerator that he co-founded in 2009. Earlier in his career, Chris held positions in sales and marketing at Reebok
-Ray Harts, an associate in Business Development at Rally.org, the San Francisco-based crowdfunding website. He is a 2013 graduate of the Last Mile.
-Hadar Aviram, Professor of Law at UC Hastings College of the Law. Professor Aviram’s research focuses on the criminal justice system and examines policing, courtroom practices, and broad policy decisions through social science perspectives. Professor Aviram’s most recent projects and publications, including her forthcoming book with the University of California Press, analyze the impact of the financial crisis on the American correctional landscape and on California corrections in particular. She also runs the California Correctional Crisis blog.
Producer: Susie Britton