04.02.24 —Northeastern Law’s Criminal Justice Task Force (CJTF) is pleased to announce that Michel-Ange Siaba will be joining CJTF’s Jail-to-Jobs initiative as an Experiential Summer Scholar. The Jail-to-Jobs initiative, led by Professor Deborah Ramirez, who also leads CJTF, seeks to address two national problems: recidivism and the labor shortage. It aims to match a large and diverse bank of hiring employers with individuals returning from jail seeking employment. By leveraging Massachusetts’ state-wide re-entry network, the goal is to create a permanent, systemic and self-perpetuating employment pipeline for returning citizens.
Siaba, a PhD student, will join the initiative for 20 hours a week, thanks to support from the Experiential PhD program in the College of Social Sciences and Humanities (CSSH). He will work with staff, faculty and those involved in CJTF’s Jail-to-Jobs Pipeline Project, including Vin Lorenti, director of Community Corrections, a division of the Massachusetts Probation Service.
“We welcome Michel-Ange Siaba to our team and look forward to working with him, the Community Justice Support Centers and the reentry lab” said Ramirez. “His work will be essential to our ongoing efforts to build a jail-to-jobs pipeline and to recruit and advise corporations interested in hiring justice-involved individuals.”
Between May and August, Siaba will focus on practices pertaining to recidivism, and assist the Office of Community Corrections with ongoing assessment of recidivism outcomes among justice-involved individuals, before and after the implementation of Community Justice Resource Centers. Siaba will also be tasked with developing the partnership between CSSH’s Corrections and Reentry Lab and the Jail-to-Jobs initiative, and supporting the articulation and development of the jail-to-jobs part of the initiative.
About Northeastern University School of Law
The nation’s leader in experiential legal education since 1968, Northeastern University School of Law offers the longest-running, most extensive experience-based legal education program in the country. Northeastern guarantees its students unparalleled practical legal work experiences through its signature Cooperative Legal Education Program. More than 1,000 employers worldwide in a wide range of legal, government, nonprofit and business organizations participate in the program. With a focus on social justice and innovation, Northeastern University School of Law blends theory and practice, providing students with a unique set of skills and experiences to successfully practice law.
For more information, contact d.feldman@northeastern.edu