By Charles Dunlap
Columbia Daily Tribune
COLUMBIA, Mo. — Those recently released from prison who now live in the Columbia and Boone County area have a resource to help aid their recovery post-release. It is known as The Reentry Opportunity Center, or The ROC.
The center celebrated its grand opening Tuesday at its new location at 2108 Paris Road. It originally opened in 2019 on Burlington Street. Local social service and health agencies were on hand for the event from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m.
Also joining in the celebration Tuesday morning was Missouri Gov. Mike Parson.
Prisoner re-entry into society is not a political issue, and everyone should extend their hand to help those people, he said.
"(It is) giving people a hand up, more than a handout,” Parson said. “We all as Missourians reap the benefits.”
The ROC is part of Columbia’s In2Action, which also aims to help those recently released from prison. The purpose of The ROC and In2Action is to reduce recidivism rates. In2Action was formed in 2012 and its program has 109 successful graduates, according to a provided fact sheet.
Of those released from prison on a yearly basis, around 450 return to Boone County. Of those, around 120 are back behind bars within a year and nearly half are back behind bars after two years, according to the fact sheet.
“We are here for those who do not know where else to turn,” ROC program director Markus Thomas-Brown said. “We are here for those who have been on their last chance and those who have been pushed to the margins.
“We are here to bring hope to those who have none.”
Those who participate in the In2Action program have had half the one-year recidivism rate of those in Boone County who have not, the fact sheet stated.
The ROC is seen as a one-stop-shop for those re-entering society, along with those wanting to start or progress in a recovery journey, according to the fact sheet.
“Most who work in law enforcement — like I have — realize the vast majority of people that go through the system are not bad people. They made poor choices, but they can be helped,” Parson said.
When Parson started as governor, the state’s prison population was approximately 35,000 offenders, with one of the highest rates of women in prison, he said.
Since taking office, that prison population has reduced to roughly 24.000, Parson said.
"(That is) not because we let people out just to let them out — we had to make sure when they got out, they had opportunity,” he said.
This means the infrastructure has to be in place to help people, Parson added.
“When you look at what this affiliate does — In2Action — it is not rocket science as to what they do here,” he said. “All they are trying to take is someone that needs a little help, to give them the skills they need to go out here on the streets again in a whole different environment they were in, once upon a time.”
Wanting a better way for former prisoners to re-enter society
Many of those who exit prison want better ways in which to reintegrate into society, Missouri Public Safety Director Anne Precythe said.
“Because of this (ROC) program, people will feel welcome,” she said, directing her comment to In2Action director Dan Hanneken. “They want support. They want guidance and we need you.”
Programs like the ROC will help Columbia become an even stronger community, Precythe added.
Poor decisions that lead Michael Eanes to his nearly 40-year connection to the criminal justice system were shaped by trauma, he said. He is a peer-support specialist with Burrell Behavioral Health and a community activist. Thursday marks the last day of his parole responsibilities with the state.
Eanes made a push for mental health services for those exiting prison.
“I earned my way back and it took work. It took work that I think a lot of us need to start focusing in on,” he said. “We are getting a different scientific understanding of what recovery looks like, what re-entry looks like and what drives our behavior.”
Unprocessed trauma is what drove his adverse behavior, he added.
“I want to focus on the mental health component. There are dimensions to recovery, and we need everything, but if the mental health component is not right, nothing else makes a difference.”
He also pushed for employers to hire convicted offenders that have exhibited consistent proof of rehabilitation.
“The collaborative efforts of other groups can break cycles and transform behaviors,” Eanes said. “We are trying to change communities around here.”
©2021 www.columbiatribune.com.