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VOCATIONAL TRAINING FOR INCARCERATED WOMEN
Building Homes/Building Lives:
Modular Home Construction
 Year-round training in finish and frame carpentry, electrical wiring, plumbing, weatherization and roofing for women participating in the facility’s work crew through building ENERGY STAR modular homes that will be installed as affordable housing units in Vermont communities. We completed our first modular home in August 2006 and it was sold to a family in Springfield, VT.
Photo by Mary Claire Carroll
The dedication of our second home (pictured above) took place Nov. 13th, 2007 in Springfield. View the press release. Our third home will be completed this year.
Neighborworks Alliance of Vermont helped the first family buy our first modular home in 2006. Read the profile of the family and the impact it had on their lives here.
Technical assistance and plans provided by: Preferred Building Systems in Claremont, NH.
 Thank you to Efficiency Vermont for their technical assistance on each home to help us achieve ENERGY STAR rating.
Benefits:
- Opportunity for incarcerated women to learn marketable skills in fields that pay a living wage
- Training involves developing both frame and finish construction skills, providing access to a range of trades positions
- Project allows residents to develop and practice “soft skills” in problem-solving, communication, and teamwork
- Training is year-round, allowing us to involve women on an ongoing basis as they enter the prison
- Project offers a solid introduction to the realities of working in the field
- Project offers participants an opportunity to develop a portfolio of work to show to prospective employers
- Project results in affordable housing (1,000 square foot home will cost approximately $87,000) without competing with private industry (as only two units can be produced per year)
“Being in this program has helped me with my self-esteem. Coming back to jail after 5 years was rough. The Modular Home Program has given me the chance to work on myself and learn a trade for my future. I feel real confident about going back out into the community and finally live a healthy life. This program helped me realize there is still hope and I have a lot to offer the community.”
HISTORY OF VWW PROGRAMMING FOR INCARCERATED WOMEN
Step Up for Women
Offered at Dale, Chittenden and Windsor facilities since July, 2001
Step Up for Women is a nine-week program consisting of three main components: trades instruction, physical conditioning, and Women’s Resources, the job-readiness element crucial to the success of the program. Trades instruction generally consists of three weeks of carpentry, three weeks of electrical wiring, and two weeks of plumbing and pipefitting (288 hours).
Step IT Up
Offered at Dale in 2002 and 2003
Step IT Up is a joint project of Vermont Works for Women and CyberSkills/VT. NWW brings to the work a successful track record in recruiting, training, and supporting women interested in pursuing nontraditional careers. CyberSkills brings significant experience in developing and delivering information technology training that will lead directly to jobs and that is accessible to those with limited exposure to computer technology (288 hours).
Auto CAD
Offered at the Windsor facility in spring and fall of 2004 and Spring 2006
A five-week, ten-session introduction to AutoCAD skills. Includes creating architectural floor plans and elevations using coordinate grid entry, ASME dimensioning standards as well as editing drawings and plotting scale. (160 hours)
Painting
Offered at the Windsor facility in winter 2004
Instruction related to facility projects requiring resident labor. Training included worksite safety and paint chemistry; choosing paint; mixing and choosing colors; surface cleaning and preparation; preventing paint problems (chipping, peeling, moisture, adhesion); using spray equipment; texturizing; using or installing alternative wall coverings (paper, wood, plastics, or fabric). (100 hours)
Women's Resources (soft skills instruction) and job placement support: Offered as part of all VWW programs:
A. Classroom activities
VWW works with participants to develop work habit and communication skills, upgrading math skills; time and stress management; interviewing and resume writing; and preventing sexual harassment. Sessions help participants identify concerns and barriers to successful completion of the program or employment. Instructors will work closely with participants and business representatives to facilitate employment upon release from prison.
B. Job-related counseling
Participants meet with VWW staff to explore job opportunities and identify potential employers. These sessions identify participant concerns and barriers to finding employment, and identify and explore potential job opportunities.
C. Employer outreach and post-release support
VWW provides participants with opportunities to meet employers, representatives of the Agency of Transportation, and the state apprenticeship program at the facility. Upon a participant’s release, VWW continues to provide employment support through regular phone calls, one-on-one meetings, and site visits to a participant’s work site.
Funding for this program comes from: The John Merck Fund, The Stettenheim Foundation, Chittenden Bank Community Fund, the Agnes Lindsay Trust, Lydia B. Stokes Foundation, Home Depot of West Lebanon and Claremont, NH, Key Bank Foundation, Verizon Foundation, and Dominos Pizza and Pizza Hut of West Lebanon, NH.
Vermont Women's Mentoring Program is a partnership between Mercy Connections and Vermont Works for Women and is sponsored by the Department of Corrections. The program matches volunteer mentors with women in the custody of the Department of Corrections in order to support their successful transition from a correctional facility to the community. Most of the women served reside in Chittenden County although a few mentees are from Franklin and Addison counties. The program is in the early stages of replication in Central Vermont and the Northeast Kingdom. For more information click here. 
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Working Women in Transition (WWIT) a Bridge to New Found Success
Working Women in Transition is multi-regional demonstration project, sponsored by the Women's Bureau, U.S. Department of Labor, designed to assist women who have arrived at a significant transition in their work lives.
The goals of the grant are to prepare participants to enter on-the-job training or employment upon release, experience an increase in wages, or enter a degree program or job-training program.
To this end, VWW is providing individual and group pre-release employment planning to women incarcerated at the Dale and Southeast State correctional facilities. All participants must have a high school diploma or general equivalency diploma and be involved in the work and workforce development activities of their facility.
The services provided by VWW include:
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