Laura Taylor is the founder of Community Connect, a platform that accelerates service linkage for individuals transitioning from incarceration to community life.

You had over a decade of experience in corrections before starting a referral platform to improve service linkage for people who are incarcerated. How has your corrections background informed the development of the referral platform and the overall mission of your business?

I worked as a casework manager at Branchville Correctional Facility from 2010 to 2014, then started working privately in community reentry until I began developing the Community Connect platform and opening my own company.

When I was employed in reentry in correctional settings, I believed that the reentry process was working as well as it could for the technology that existed at the time. But I kept seeing the same folks returning to incarceration again and again. I learned that this was typically the result of them not knowing where to go for help once they were released or how to navigate the social and human services system. This was especially true for people who had been incarcerated for a long time and who weren’t familiar with changing technology, like filling out an online form versus making a phone call. From the inside, I saw a gap between organizations that wanted to help and their ability to get inside the facility to reach the people who needed them.

I founded Community Connect to be that central connection between those in need and those who could help. Community Connect started as a simple, generic electronic referral form available to incarcerated folks on the local jail’s existing kiosks for phone and other services. An individual could pull up the Community Connect “app” on the kiosk and answer questions about what would make them successful upon release: Did they need food, a job, an apartment, or healthcare?

Depending on the answer, the program filters what is not appropriate for them, and an automated referral would be made to a community agency that offers services fitting the individual’s needs. The agency would then contact the incarcerated individual or a designated proxy, usually by phone or letter, to get services set up before release.

I knew from experience that the average wait time to get a substance use or mental health appointment after incarceration is 67 days, so we set up Community Connect to reach people 60 days before release. This is an exorbitant amount of time to get services initiated and in place. Asking someone in recovery to wait 67 days for support is like asking them to wait for 67 years.

I piloted Community Connect in 12 counties in Indiana in 2021 and am now working to raise funds to bring it permanently to those and other jails. The system was utilized in jails, prisons, and probation. We have seen this system’s positive impact on those re-entering the community. At Community Connect, we believe neighborhoods thrive when communities connect. This is not just about getting a referral for services. It is about having a community in place upon your return that is rooting for your success. We want the returning citizen to feel welcomed home.

Improving communication is a core objective of your organization. Based on your professional experience, who are the critical partners to effective communication for reentry, and how are you working to improve their communication?

Before I founded Community Connect, I made a job transition from reentry services inside a correctional setting to working at an external community partner. That brought to light how poorly these two groups communicate. Both are incredibly overburdened with their day-to-day work and sometimes it may feel that they have conflicting aims—the jail is most interested in safety, while a community agency is focused on getting people services. So, I thought about improving communication between these critical partners and reducing the burden on both while helping people who are incarcerated get the services they need.

One of the first things I did was to assure jail leaders that we all have similar goals: safety, security, and keeping people from returning to jail. I explained how the Community Connect app is a closed-circuit system, meaning it does not provide access to the internet or anything outside of the hard drive. (Data is uploaded and exported to community agencies daily and is not accessible to front-end users of the application.) I also showed them how Community Connect provided a critical connection between community agencies and people who are incarcerated with almost no effort from jail staff. Our community partners were happy to abide by safety precautions, and corrections staff were glad to have community partners willing to offer support.

How can technology help support the successful transition of individuals out of incarceration and into the community?

If COVID taught us anything, it taught us that people are essential to each other, and that human connection is vital to well-being and survival. Using technology to facilitate services that meet these needs makes sense. Typically, communication in correctional settings is a for-profit luxury—people who are incarcerated or their families have to pay to use any communication tools (i.e., phone). Access to Community Connect is completely free. In the jails where we piloted the app, anybody approaching release could use the app to be connected to services. Here, technology helps fill that 60-day gap in services. Individuals can connect with community providers by answering a few key questions. Community providers can contact people currently incarcerated and begin building relationships and planning for their release ahead of time.

You’ve mentioned you are an avid personality test taker and find confirmation that you are in the right profession. How does self-reflection and knowing your strengths and passions apply to your work in the justice system?

Every time I take one of these tests, I imagine I will come out the “caretaker” type, but I always end up with the powerful “commander” type (i.e., Enneagram 8), which I am! But here’s where my caretaker instinct comes from: I grew up in Southeastern Kentucky in a very poor area with limited access to many things. When people say to me, “You pulled yourself up by your bootstraps,” I think that’s not true—I got very lucky with my life trajectory, and I have learned that people need each other to succeed. So, part of the reason I am such a persistent and outspoken “commander” type is that I am positioned to have my voice heard. I like to think of my “commander” personality as more of a collection of voices, so I proudly speak up for those who don’t always have a voice. Knowing this about myself is empowering, and one of my goals is to create opportunities for others to be empowered by their strengths.

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