Replacing Recidivism with Recovery: Employment Pathways for Justice-Involved Rural Kentuckians

Session Description: Across rural Eastern Kentucky, many people in recovery from substance use disorder face the same challenge: finding stable employment. For those returning from incarceration, that challenge is often compounded by barriers that can increase the risk of relapse and recidivism. This session examines how workforce development can serve as a meaningful part of the recovery process through EKCEP's Recovery & Reentry model, which supports both justice-involved individuals and people in recovery who have never been involved with the criminal justice system. Presenters will walk attendees through the model's four core components: 1. Workforce services that connect participants to employment and training; 2. Partnerships with treatment providers, recovery organizations, and peer support programs; 3. Supportive services that address barriers such as transportation, work clothing, and identification; 4. Employer engagement strategies that expand recovery-friendly and second-chance hiring opportunities. The presentation draws on more than seven years of implementation and outcome data from programs that have served more than 5,000 Kentuckians. Presenters will share workforce outcomes, findings from an independent Lightcast return-on-investment study, and practical lessons learned from implementing the model in a rural Appalachian region. Discussion will include both successful strategies and approaches that proved less effective, providing an honest assessment of what it takes to build sustainable recovery-to-work systems.Attendees will leave with practical tools they can apply in their own communities, including strategies for building cross-sector partnerships, aligning workforce and recovery services, leveraging multiple funding sources, engaging employers, and measuring program outcomes.