Preparation through prison in-reach is a key component of the Georgia Prisoner Reentry Initiative. The vision of the Governor's Office of Transition, Support, and Reentry is to link inmates with needed resources in the community and prepare them for the expectations and experiences they will encounter as they leave prison and re-enter the community. To bolster this vision, the Field Operations Division of the Georgia State Board of Pardons & Paroles has produced "Coming Home: An Introduction to Community Supervision for Returning Citizens, Their Families, and All Citizens of Georgia."
Designed to illustrate the expectations, goals, and requirements of parole supervision in a comprehensive view, "Coming Home" includes video footage of actual field visits and informational segments by Parole Board Field Operations management and staff.
More importantly, however, are the vignettes of two parole officers and four former parolees describing their backgrounds and experiences in their own words. These four successfully returned citizens and Parole Officer Nicholas Lewis and Assistant Chief Parole Officer Heather Williams tell their stories of the challenges, struggles, setbacks, achievements, and rewards they have encountered in the criminal justice system and community supervision. They send a powerful message about experiences that are a common thread to all returning citizens, family members, officers, and community stakeholders.
This video is distributed to prison inmates, their family members, and the general public via YouTube, Facebook, Google+, the State Board of Pardons & Paroles' website, and DVDs.
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