Lawmakers, other partners unveil plan to reduce recidivism
Rep. Jennifer Decker, R-Waddy, was joined by Kentucky Community and Technical College System President Ryan Quarles and others during Thursday’s Interim Joint Committee on Judiciary meeting to propose a new program to reduce recidivism. A high-res version is available here.
FRANKFORT — A proposed job training and education center in Boyle County for Kentucky inmates could help further reduce the state’s recidivism rate, according to supporters.
Rep. Jennifer Decker, R-Waddy, and Sen. Brandon J. Storm, R-London, introduced the idea to the Interim Joint Committee on Judiciary on Thursday. Kentucky Community and Technical College System (KCTCS) President Ryan Quarles and Director of Reentry Services with the Kentucky Department of Corrections Kirstin Porter joined them.
Decker credits KCTCS’s current partnership with the Department of Corrections for the recent drop in Kentucky’s recidivism rate.
The college system already has nine colleges working with 14 state-run correctional facilities, one federal prison and numerous local jails on GED, associate and bachelor’s degrees, and vocational job training, Quarles said.
Decker told the committee they would like to keep working together on recidivism and workforce participation by opening a model campus at a state prison for 400 vetted inmates to enroll in intensive education and vocational programs near their scheduled release dates.
“Every Kentuckian has a stake in this fight against recidivism, regardless of any personal ties to incarceration,” Decker said. “Because when inmates return home with proven skills, they are far more likely to stay out of prison in the future, to contribute to their communities and to ensure safer neighborhoods for all Kentuckians.”
Decker said Kentucky defines recidivism as reincarceration within 24 months of release. Kentucky’s recidivism rate dropped earlier this year by 1.6 points to 30.81%, but if measured by the national standard of three years, Kentucky’s recidivism rate is much higher, she said.
“(It’s) a standard that measures Kentucky’s rate of recidivism as being 40.2% higher than any border state, but declining faster than the U.S. average,” Decker added.
The program proposed by Decker, Storm, Quarles and Porter on Thursday is modeled after a successful program in Michigan called Vocational Village, where the state has seen a 50% drop in recidivism, Quarles said.
Quarles said they are proposing a KCTCS reentry campus at the North Point Training Center in Boyle County due to its already existing partnerships and prison education programs.
“We’re building upon a model that’s working in Michigan, and we think we can do it right here in Kentucky as well,” he added.
Storm told the committee the program would enhance public safety and would be a fiscally responsible program for the commonwealth to pursue.
Rep. T.J. Roberts, R-Burlington, said he appreciates the mission of the proposed program. He asked which criminal offenses would make an inmate ineligible.
Quarles said a list has not been finalized, but he knows Michigan does not allow sex offenders to enroll in a Vocational Village due to it being difficult for sex offenders to find employment.
Sen. Michael J. Nemes, R-Shepherdsville, said he believes the proposed program is needed, along with some other reentry-related legislation. He said some inmates are having trouble completing the required apprenticeship programs in order to earn a vocational certification.
Quarles said the enabling legislation the group is working on can address those needs.
“One of the things that we want to be clear about is that this is not a criminal justice reform bill,” Quarles said. “This is about workforce and for those inmates that we know will be released having the best chance possible.”
The Kentucky General Assembly cannot take action on new legislation until the 2026 legislative session begins on Jan. 6.
