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HARRISBURG -- The State Correctional Institution at Huntingdon recently hosted a virtual reentry/career fair in collaboration with the Department of Corrections' Reentry Office.
Nearly 30 soon-to-be-released inmates participated in a day of virtual presentations with employers and service providers, the Department of Corrections said in a release.
Each state prison normally hosts a reentry/career fair for inmates who are within 12 months of reentry to allow them to meet employers and financial and housing institutions. Due to COVID-19 mitigation efforts, all 2020 fairs had to be canceled.
Organizations submitted videos for the inmates to watch prior to the event before morning and afternoon virtual sessions. Participants included Liberty Ministries, Flagger Force, Triangle Tech, Pennsylvania Housing Finance Agency, PACE, Veteran Services, White Deer Run, Small Business Administration and the Pennsylvania departments of Aging and Banking.
For security purposes, inmates could see and hear the presenters, while the presenters could not hear or see them. Huntingdon education staff typed questions on behalf of the inmates to directly ask the presenters for more information.
After positive feedback, the DOC is now exploring the viability of a statewide event to be held in December.