About
The Allegheny County Anchored Reentry (ACAR) Coalition was launched to spark dialogue on how to collaborate in supporting reentry by aligning resources addressing unmet needs in our community by adequately serving previously incarcerated citizens. ACAR is designed to build upon efforts and best practices of service opportunities for individuals who are returning from local, state, and federal correctional facilities. Through ACAR, there is a focus on coordinating services related to, but not limited to, housing, employment, education/training, self-empowerment, family support, health and wellness, drug and alcohol rehabilitation, and finance management. The overall goal of ACAR is to improve the lives of individuals and communities through outlined objectives.
History
ACAR was founded in 2014 and officially launched in June of 2015
The group was relaunched January 2020, in response to reform efforts and increasing numbers of
re-entrants needing assistance, resulting in committees and key objectives:
Develop a regional strategy around re-entry services.
Assemble regional resources and expertise together under one umbrella through a comprehensive consortium that includes re-entry stakeholders from various organizations, leaders, government and re-entrants throughout the county.
Through formal subcommittee work, explore new ideas and initiatives for services in several key domains including: basic life needs; family and parenting; education, training and employment; housing; legal, etc.
Bring in experts from across the Country to share best practices in diversion, crime prevention, re-entry programming, data management and tracking of outcomes.
Since that time, Goodwill and CCAC expanded the membership of ACAR Executive leadership to include Earl Buford, CEO of Partner4Work, the region’s workforce development board and Tamara Collier, representing the US Attorney’s Office. The inclusion of these new members will ensure ACAR’s work includes the perspective of vital services in the region, will bring additional resources to the table and will allow us to develop a more comprehensive regional strategy for re-entry services. The group also agrees that there are two critical pieces that must happen to have a successful re-entry agenda:
A strategic plan to guide the work
The establishment of ACAR as the state recognized Allegheny County re-entry coalition which will position the region for additional resources
The work, will of course and most importantly, continue to be supported by the Executive and Functional Leadership groups