About Us
We believe education can help break the cycles of poverty, incarceration, and systemic oppression.
Decades of research show that education programs in prison are the key to successful reentry. Education in prisons shifts correctional cultures, changes lives and communities, increases public safety, and reduces prisons' immediate and collateral costs in the long run.
However, obtaining a GED isn't enough. The jobs of the future require post-secondary education or professional certification, and far too often, those who are incarcerated face numerous barriers to gaining that level of education.
We're changing that.
The Rhode Island-based Reentry Campus Program (RCP) makes post-secondary education accessible, affordable, and efficient with our pre-assessment and advising.
How? We evaluate individuals' prior learning and subsequent standardized test results so they can avoid taking unnecessary, costly college courses.
Nothing About Us Without Us
RCP centers the voices of formerly incarcerated people by ensuring they are able to influence policies that impact returning citizens. From leadership positions to working one-on-one with students, the Reentry Campus Program embodies the belief that “nothing about us without us.”
We also advocate locally and nationally for policies that reverse the damage done to black and brown people through decades of disinvestment in communities and failed policies that have put millions in prison.
Our team and board members are a diverse mix of those with direct experience with the criminal justice system. However, the Reentry Campus Program also has experts in post-secondary and higher education, law and law enforcement, corrections, communications, case management and program implementation working towards our mission.
Our History
James Monteiro founded RCP after years of being incarcerated. While inside, he learned how the work that he was doing inside prison (prison jobs, courses, and other related experiences) translated to certain types of employment outside of prison.
Through his own journey of education and successful reentry, he realized that to prevent returning citizens from being locked out of society, they need access to education.
Our History + Supporters
In 2017 Reentry Campus program received seed funding from FREEAMERICA and its accelerator initiative, Unlocked Futures.
Unlocked Futures launched in 2017 as a partnership between New Profit and award-winning singer, producer, director, and activist John Legend’s FREEAMERICA with founding support from Bank of America, as part of the latter’s broader focus on removing barriers to success for vulnerable populations.
Since then, founder James Monteiro has singularly grown the Reentry Campus Program to a team of nine and partnered with everyone from the locally based Social Enterprise Greenhouse and RI Foundation to national partners like JLUSA and Ascendium.
