Transcript
Nicole Brooks Public Policy Case Study 70x7 Life Recovery
Organization Information 70x7 Life Recovery is an organization that was formed inside of the Ridgepoint Community Church in Holland, MI to walk along side of people dealing with addiction and prisoner reentry. They became a separate 501(c)3 in March 2007 and were part of the first L(3)C in the state of Michigan (personal interview). The mission of 70x7 Life Recovery is to restore dignity, purpose and hope to a recovering community, one relationship at a time. They do this through three main focuses; mentoring, employment, and addiction services. The vision of this organization is to be an organization of second chances, where paths to a new life lead to a better life (www.70x7liferecovery.com) 70x7 Life Recovery is still a very small organization with only four full-time staff; this includes their Executive Director Brian Vork, Mentoring Services Doug Cupery, Finance and Business Development Gary Barton and their Administrative Assistant. The 2010 budget for 70x7 Life Recovery is $187,000 (2009 Annual Report). Despite their small size 70x7 Life Recovery has a great capacity. Programs 70x7 Life Recovery has three different program areas that they work in, each of which works in conjunction with the others to create a holistic approach to re-integration. These programs are mentoring, addiction services, and employment services (personal interview). The main programmatic focus is mentoring. These mentoring relationships create meaningful, mature, and responsible
friendships that allow the mentor to guide the participant towards healthy relationships and choices (www.70x7liferecovery.com). 70x7 Life Recovery utilizes two types of mentoring relationships, Serving Together Mentoring and New Day Staffing Mentoring (Mentoring with a Purpose pamphlet). Serving Together Mentoring is a more informal style of mentoring that combines mentoring with volunteer projects. This informal atmosphere allows each party the chance to get to know the other and begin to develop a relationship in a low-stress environment. On the other hand, New Day Staffing Mentoring is a more formal and intentional mentoring relationship. Participants meet at least twice a week and work towards a very intentional relationship that should lead to spiritual, emotional, and physical changes. The addiction recovery services include providing space for Alcoholics Anonymous and Narcotics Anonymous, Healing Path events, as well as partnering with other organizations to support the yearly Recoveryfest event. Each week approximately 150-200 people are served by the addiction recovery services (2009 Annual Report). And last year over 2500 people attended Recoveryfest (Summer 2009 Newsletter). A transition living program is also support by 70x7 Life Recovery. This program is for people who are completing alcohol/drug addiction treatment, or for people who have recently been release from jail/prison. While staying in the Transitional Living program residents can participate in case management, mentoring, Life Skills classes, financial/budget
coaching, and group addiction recovery support (70x7 Life Recovery pamphlet). The last program area served by 70x7 Life Recovery is the employment programs. 70x7 Life Recovery was part of the first L(3)C hybrid in the state of Michigan (personal interview). This hybrid involved the two LLC¶s New Day Construction and New Day Staffing. New Day Construction was established to provide construction skill to previously incarcerated individuals (2009 annual report). A staff of licensed builders train and mentor those individuals who become apprentices (New Day Construction pamphlet). New Day Staffing provides temporary staffing services for individuals who were previously incarcerated or suffering from addiction. This helps to remove the risk to employers who would never typically consider hiring these same people. Current statistics show that the unemployment rate for individuals who were previously incarcerated is around 80%. That same group of people typically have a recidivism rate of 50-60%. At the same time those individuals who have been employed by New Day Staffing and New Day Construction have a recidivism rate of only 6% (2009 Annual Report). Policy Interactions There are many public policy issues that affect 70x7 Life Recovery. This includes policy regarding prisons, ex-convicts, and mental health or substance abuse issues. Also, all levels of policy affect this organization. At the local or county level 70x7 Life Recovery works with prisoners from Ottawa County
Prison, so any policy that affects the prison could potentially affect 70x7 Life Recovery. This is the same with the state level; the Michigan Department of Corrections, as well as the State Legislature create policies that affect 70x7 Life Recovery. Lastly at the federal level the National Sex Offender Registry, the Federal Legislature and Supreme Court all create policy that affects the clients and mission of 70x7 Life Recovery (personal interview). Desired Changes Some of the specific issues that 70x7 Life Recovery has a direct interest in at the local level are both governed by the state. There are two bills currently in various committees; one is SB 0827 which would change the way parole hearings work. Currently parole can be denied for any variety of reasons, none of which need to be justified, it is even possible for a parole hearing to never be called. 70x7 Life Recovery, Doug Cupery in particular, would like to see SB 0827 passed (personal interview). This bill would require a parole hearing to be held once a prisoner reaches no more than 120% of the minimum required sentence for their crime. For prisoners this would mean someone who was sentenced to five-ten years for their crime would be guaranteed a parole hearing by the time they reach six years in prison (www.michiganlegislature.org). 70x7 Life Recovery has seen that there is no correlation between time served and the recidivism rate. In their opinion any time a prisoner has spent above their minimum is nothing but a waste of money for the
state, as long as the prisoner has not had any discipline problems while in prison (personal interview). Another procedural policy that directly affects 70x7 Life Recovery is a rule regarding mentoring. The rule states that prisoners cannot have the same mentor both in and out of prison. 70x7 Life Recovery was actually denied a Second Chance Act grant because of this policy (personal interview). 70x7 Life Recovery is of the mindset that mentors work more effectively when they can begin to build their relationships as early as possible. If a prisoner has to change mentors when they leave prison all of the work that went into building a rapport is lost. This set back can have a tremendous impact on the individual, to the point that they may choose to not continuing with the mentoring program. At the national level an object of public policy that 70x7 Life Recovery would like to see changed, is the sex offender registry. The organization again points to data to show that there are more negative aspects to the registry than positives (personal interview). The way the registry currently works is when someone is convicted of Criminal Sexual Conduct they are required to be registered. This lumps together the teenager who urinates in public with the most heinous of pedophiles. In the opinion of 70x7 Life Recovery this does nothing but water down the most dangerous group, and places those who do not pose any danger to the public in a more difficult situation. People on the sex offender registry have restrictions on where they can live and work. The registry also lists where they live and work which
can create more problems for them as they try to re-integrate. 70x7 Life Recovery is not suggesting getting rid of the registry, instead they would like to see it changed so that it is more effective at protecting the public from those who pose the biggest threat. Some states have begun to categorize their registry based on the seriousness of the offense. Michigan is not one of those states, and moving towards a categorized registry is at least the first step 70x7 Life Recovery would like to see (personal interview). In addition to these specific changes 70x7 Life Recovery would like to see overall prison reform. Prison policy is another area that greatly impacts the work of this organization. Currently, the State of Michigan will pay anywhere from $3040,000 per prisoner per year to µwarehouse¶ prisoners (personal interview). Prisoners have a lot of free time, poor skill sets, low education, and substance abuse problems. Current prisons do not have the ability to promote educational, vocational, or social skills. Prisoners, who have already had problems making good choices, spend all day with nothing to do but either relearn or re-enforce these poor choices. 70x7 Life Recovery would like to see prisoners have the opportunity to utilize their time in prison for something productive, so that when they are released they have some opportunity to keep them from reoffending. They believe people who are able to gain employment, re-integrate with the family and community, and are able to build
productive lives in their community are less likely to violate that same community (personal interview). Another major public policy issue 70x7 Life Recovery would like to see changed is the Driver Responsibility Fees. These fees were established in 2003 ostentatiously as a measure to deter potentially dangerous driving (Michigan.gov/driverresponsibility). If a driver is either convicted of specific qualifying offenses, or have accumulated seven or more qualifying points on their driving records they will be changed an additional fee. This fee is on top of their tickets, court fees, and other punitive fines. Driver Responsibility Fees range from $150-1,000 and failure to pay this fee will result in a driver¶s license being suspended (Michigan.gov/driverresponsibiity). There will also be an addition $125 fee if a driver fails to pay their Driver Responsibility Fee. These are fees that unfairly hurt the poor,
it is nearly impossible to work without driving. Public transit is not reliable enough, nor does it have enough coverage to adequately replace driving. This means people who already cannot afford to pay their driver responsibility fee (on top of their other punitive fees that 70x7 Life Recovery does feel are adequate punishment) will be put in a cycle of debt. Because the driver cannot pay the fee they cannot drive, because they cannot drive they cannot work, because they cannot work they cannot pay their fee. This cycle makes no sense to 70x7 Life Recovery, or to a majority of the Legislature according to them (personal
interview). There was a change in the law in April 2009 that made some changes to these fees. This included making payment plans available on all amounts (previously only fees over $500 qualified for payment plans) and it included the possibility of license re-instatement while on the payment plans. 70x7 Life Recovery still sees these fees as an emotionally based legislation that was created, not as a consequence but, for revenue. When burdened with all of these fees individuals will either choose to give up (and then the state does not get any of the money), drive without a license (and possibly get in more trouble), or burden other family member with the debt. Current Lobbying/Barriers to Success 70x7 Life Recovery says they do not lobby or get formally involved in public policy, and on paper they do not. They have not taken the 501(h) election, there is no formal lobbying structure built in to either the staff structure or budget, and the staff is quite adamantly opposed to media advocacy. But in reality there are a number of ways in which 70x7 Life Recovery advocates and informally lobbies on behalf of their clients. 70x7 Life Recovery is connected to Ridgepoint Community Church in Holland, MI (www.70x7liferecovery.com). Ridgepoint is a rather large and popular church in the area with a lot of influence. Having this rather powerful organization behind them has opened a lot of doors for 70x7 Life Recovery. They are in regular communication with their State Representatives, and have been requested to provide information on a number of issues. 70x7
Life Recovery has been a partner with the State of Michigan and was recently awarded a contract as part of the mentoring program that helps with prisoner re-entry (personal interview). Executive Director Brian Vork prefers to call their interactions with elected officials µconversations¶ they insist on keeping things casual, and keeping their connections informal. Besides being sought out for information by elected officials 70x7 Life Recovery has considerable contact of a more persuasive type through the µconversations¶ the members of their board has with the Michigan Department of Corrections, and State Senators/Representatives. By not calling these activities what they really are, lobbying, 70x7 Life Recovery is missing out on a huge opportunity to better educate the public about their mission and make a substantial difference for their community. Besides the internal cultural aversion to lobbying within 70x7 Life Recovery, there is also an external cultural aversion to their population. Formerly incarcerated individuals have to deal with a lot of stigma, they have a significantly higher unemployment rate, deal with a high level of substance abuse, and when one person in this group fails it paints the whole population. People generally feel a lot of anxiety in regards to ex-offenders, when given the choice very few people, if any, would choose to live next to, work with, employ, or associate with ex-offenders. This makes re-integration extremely difficult, and it also makes lobbying on their behalf easier said than done. For a politician to support anything that could be construed as
µsoft on crime¶ would be tantamount to political suicide. 70x7 Life Recovery would never ask a politician to do this, and that may be a major reason they feel so opposed to lobbying. Suggestions for Future The number one thing that 70x7 Life Recovery can do to make a huge impact on their clients would be to recognize the benefits of lobbying and advocacy. While their stand that, because they are still closely associated with the Church, they should morally refrain from lobbying is admirable this is a huge missed opportunity to make an even greater impact. Because none of their staff has a background in non-profits they are understandably unaware of what their options are in regards to lobbying and advocacy. A huge opportunity for 70x7 Life Recovery would be to engage the Michigan Non-profit Association as a training resource. Because they are already members of MNA, 70x7 Life Recovery could easily gain access to their public policy department and request training. This would help to foster an attitude change within the organization and help them recognize lobbying and advocacy as something that is not only legal but also beneficial and desirable. 70x7 Life Recovery¶s proximity to other training resources such as the Johnson Center are also great assets for providing 70x7 Life Recovery with training in regards to lobbying and advocacy. Once 70x7 Life Recovery recognizes that lobbying is not inherently bad thing the next step would be to create a formal public policy plan. A huge part of their public policy plan
should be to not only lobby public officials but also to educate the public. The staff of 70x7 Life Recovery is uniquely able to educate people on their issues, both Doug Cupery and Brian Vork have personal experience either with addiction or prison and both have an enormous amount of passion for their work. They are both highly effective at communicating this passion and their policy plan should take advantage of their strengths. Another recommendation for 70x7 Life Recovery would be to make sure volunteers and stakeholders are continually updated on both the organization and the different policy issues surrounding 70x7 Life Recovery. The 70x7 Life Recovery website is already excellent; it is up to date and contains a great amount of information in an appealing format. They also have a Facebook page, but neither of these resources are effectively being utilized in terms of public policy. Utilizing part of their page to be dedicated to updating their stakeholders on bills currently being debated, or policy issues 70x7 Life Recovery would like to see changed would be an easy and effective way to advocate. Social media is an easy, cheap, and effective way to keep stakeholders informed as well as to broaden their audience and educate the public. Social media is also a great way to mobilize a grassroots lobbying campaign. Having a Facebook status encouraging volunteers and other stakeholders to take a stand for or against a certain bill, or just encouraging them to contact their representatives is a great and easy way to advocate with little or no backlash.
On top of their dislike for lobbying in general 70x7 Life Recovery currently has an aversion, with merit, to media advocacy. Because prisoner re-entry and addiction are such unpopular topics the staff at 70x7 Life Recovery believes that sometimes it is better to fly under the radar. While 70x7 Life Recovery has had some good press, in general media response to any work in their field has not be positive. The Guide to Getting Good Media Coverage from the Michigan Nonprofit Association would be an appropriate lobbying and advocacy tool for 70x7 Life Recovery to get their message out to a larger audience. Maintaining an up to date press file, and encouraging volunteers and staff to write opinion pieces for the local news are two pieces of this plan. Crafting a sincere central message would help 70x7 Life Recovery shape their media coverage into something more positive. Lastly, 70x7 Life Recovery should compile a good portfolio of statistics, based on their organizational evaluations and also the sector in general. By being able to not only speak passionately about their work, but also being armed with statistics will help give credence to their subjective stories. By having concrete proof that something is either working, or not working, 70x7 Life Recovery will be able to combat just about any argument against their work. They are already on a good track in this regard. The staff is well informed on what is going on in this sector, and have kept good records of their own successes. Conclusion
The overall recommendation for 70x7 Life Recovery would be to embrace the ability to create larger, policy based, change. Utilize the tools available to them through their connections to the Michigan Nonprofit Association and the proximity to other training resources such as the Johnson Center, and create a new culture that is accepting of lobbying and advocacy within 70x7 Life Recovery. This is an organization that has great potential; they are already doing amazing work within their field, they have staff members and volunteers who have a great passion of their work, and are part of a larger accepting culture in the Ridgepoint Community Church system. 70x7 Life Recovery is already doing work that could be categorized as lobbying and advocacy, by embracing these activities and improving them 70x7 Life Recovery will increase the difference they can produce.
Sources
70x7 Life Recovery. (2010). Retrieved from http://www.70x7liferecovery.com
70x7 Life Recovery Annual Report 70x7 Life Recovery Newsletter Summer 2009
B. Vork, Personal interview 5/21/10 D. Cupery, Personal interview 5/21/10 Michigan Legislature. (2010). Retrieved from http://www.michiganlegislature.org State of Michigan. (2010). Retrieved from http://www.michigan.gov Avner, M. (2002) The Lobbying and Advocacy Handbook for Nonprofit Organization: Shaping Public Policy at the State and Local Level. Saint Paul, MN: Amherst Wilder Foundation Publisher Berry, J. (2003) A Voice for Nonprofits. Washington, DC: Brookings Institution Press