Advocating for workforce education in prisons to curb repeat offenses

Yahoo

02-03-2025

Mar. 2—SANTA FE — Piercing blue eyes set apart by dark-inked tattoos covering much of his head and arms, Isaac Sork took in the small Goodwill office space he sat in, complete with a computer and a few rolling chairs.
It was a stark contrast to the prison cell he was confined to just days before, and representative of his transformation back into society and the workforce.
"Five days ago, I was locked up," Sork said. "I was told when I could use the restroom ... told when to get up, when to go to sleep. For me to be out now, I feel liberated. I'm independent.
"And then I have these two standing behind me. I thank God for these two guys."
The two with him, Fernando Ruiz and Ralph Martinez, played crucial roles in ensuring Sork had a job lined up upon his release. Both also know what it's like to leave prison systems feeling unsupported and lost, often leading to a cycle of repeat offenses.
Last year, nearly 40% of all inmates released from prison ended up back in the system.
It's in part why Ruiz and Martinez started the Entrepreneurial Institute of Northern New Mexico, or EINNM, a nonprofit that aims to smoothen out the transition from behind bars to release. Ruiz, Martinez and Sork are all also spending time at the Roundhouse during this year's 60-day session to advocate for such re-entry programs.
Launched in April, EINNM in collaboration with other advocacy groups held its first program with dozens of at-risk youth and individuals at the Kitchen Table Santa Fe, a community kitchen that supports entrepreneurs. As the program was wrapping up, the New Mexico Corrections Department called asking EINNM to host programs for inmates.
After securing some state dollars to teach the hands-on work, EINNM had its first prison class in August, which Sork participated in. Another cohort that started in January is wrapping up now, and the next iteration will start in March. EINNM committed to three cohorts a year in the prisons.
The eight-week program, accepting a little more than a dozen inmates with 10 months or less to the door, teaches professional and culinary skills. Martinez said there's a waiting list of more than 100 inmates wanting to take the program.
"We come from the same place," Martinez said. "We know the realities, which makes the connection a lot stronger."
Multiple bills are trying to pass the Legislature that would support correctional workforce reentry development programs. Senate Bills 350 and 351, with mirror bills House Bills 419 and 420, respectively, together seek nearly $20 million to support workforce reentry programs and transitional housing needs.
From the pot, $13.5 million would be set aside for the North Central New Mexico Economic Development District to administer and expand a correctional workforce reentry program. The other $6 million would go to the state's Health Care Authority for former inmates' transitional housing needs.
The money hasn't made it into the annual budget yet, though bill sponsor Sen. Leo Jaramillo, D-Española, told the Journal he's hopeful it will. A Senate committee is still reviewing the appropriations bill.
The workforce reentry bill, HB419, passed one of its two House committee assignments last week, and the two Senate bills — including the mirrored workforce reentry measure — will likely be heard this week.
There are just under three weeks for the measures to make it through before the Legislature wraps up on March 22. However, by introducing mirror bills in both chambers, legislators could be quicker to pass the measures since both sides will have already heard about them.
"This is just the beginning, we hope," said Nina Chavez, director of government relations for Goodwill Industries of New Mexico, which has a workforce reentry program of its own.
From behind bars to behind the grill
Ruiz grew up in Arizona and Mexico, with close family cartel connections from a young age. He picked up drug and stolen gun charges at 15 years old, bouncing in and out of the system years after.
During one prison stint, Ruiz got his GED and upon release, graduated from culinary school. He settled down in New Mexico 24 years ago and started fielding offers to compete on national culinary shows — "Guy's Grocery Games," "Chopped," "The Great Food Truck Race." Most recently, he won "Beat Bobby Flay."
Ruiz didn't want to participate in most of the shows, not wanting the national television fame, but his wife convinced him to.
"After that, my life turned upside down," Ruiz said, swiping on his phone from his mugshot to his thousands of unread text messages.
He opened a restaurant of his own in August, Escondido, in Santa Fe.
Amid all the culinary world fame, Ruiz and Martinez met in 2019. The duo quickly started hosting community events largely focused on helping formerly incarcerated people succeed in life.
"We've raised probably over $3 million for different resources over the course of the past four or five years, me and Chef," Martinez said. "And it's just because we share in that same background and we know what it's like."
Hope isn't as apparent for Chris, a maximum security inmate at the Penitentiary of New Mexico whose full name officials declined to release due to crime and victim protection concerns.
He's serving a life sentence and entered the justice system when he was a teenager. He's been behind bars for 26 years now.
Then came Cody — a shepherd-mix dog in need of training and adoption. Española Humane in 2022 launched a different kind of workforce reentry program, pairing inmates with dogs that could use some training for eight weeks to help with their adoption chances out in the public. Chris has been participating in the program for about a decade now.
Watching over his most recent pup, Leeloo, Chris naturally guided her leash around when she tried to jump up to give some of the people surrounding her a kiss, also showing off her skills to sit on command and even wave with her paw.
"Before I found this, I just kind of existed. I wasn't sure how to get by. I was young," he said. "Then I found this, and I found something to change my situation — something to look forward to, something I'm good at, something I'm proud of."
The dogs aren't the only ones learning. The program also teaches inmates responsibility and communication skills, leaving the dogs in their care 24/7 and requiring daily training of the pups.
While in the corrections system, Chris is taking a class to become a certified behavioral dog trainer. He said now that he has a life skill that he can get paid good money for, he hopes to pursue a career in the industry if ever granted parole.
"If you don't give us skills, what are we going to do? We want us to stay out of prison. Give us some way to do that," he said.
'Another chance'
Sork grew up in what he described as a broken home, out on the streets by age 16. He dropped out of high school, losing out on a football scholarship he had, and ended up getting involved with a gang.
He picked up gun charges in Texas with a seven-year sentence, which was discharged. Six months after he was released, Sork had another gun charge in New Mexico and five-and-a-half years to serve.
"I had lost my wife. I had lost my kids," he said, recounting anger over the sentence. "Family members had died."
Upon getting out, he knew he'd battle with stigmas — people looking at his tattoos and assuming he's off or different, when really "I'm a goodhearted individual." Sork wanted to battle the stereotypes, coming out of prison with resources to prepare him for life.
When he saw the flyer for a culinary class hosted by EINNM, Sork was excited to signed up. He said he always liked cooking.
It's not only culinary skills taught in the class; it's also life skills. On his first day, Sork had to write down five important things to him to remember when he would get out.
"I told myself this time, this five and a half years, I reevaluated the way I am," he recalled. "And I'm getting older, so now that I'm getting closer to 40, I have to figure out how to use resources and be independent because, at the end of the day, I want to be a productive part of society."
It was a similar sentiment for Daniel Jojola, a current inmate at the Penitentiary of New Mexico who's served multiple stints. He said he's been away from his young kids for the year-and-a-half he's served, and he doesn't want to miss them growing up.
It's part of the reason Jojola signed up for an HVAC class offered at the prison, and he hopes to pick up residential work when he's released. He said he has no other choice but to get a good-paying job when he gets out, which is less than a year away.
"The sky is the limit. All we need is another chance," Jojola said.
On Feb. 14, authorities released Sork, and he began working at Ruiz's Escondido Santa Fe a week later.
Among the five important things Sork wrote down on his first day of EINNM's culinary class? Having a place to stay, employment, food and clothes, and a networking system.
He's achieved every item on that list since getting out.