ACT Newsroom & Blog: Federal Bureau of Prisons Selects ACT Workforce Solutions to be Part of Its Career Readiness Program

Written by ACT | Jan 29, 2020 6:00:00 AM

ACT programs will potentially help more than 14,000 inmates annually with reentry and transition into the workforce

IOWA CITY, Iowa—ACT, the nonprofit learning, measurement and navigation company behind the ACT® test and ACT® WorkKeys®, has been awarded a multi-year contract by the Department of Justice’s Federal Bureau of Prisons (FBOP) to provide its workforce skills measurement, assessment, curriculum and social emotional learning tools to inmates in 122 federal prisons across the US.

The ACT solutions—including ACT WorkKeys, the ACT® National Career Readiness Certificate® (ACT® NCRC®), ACT® Tessera® Workforce and the ACT® WorkKeys® Curriculum—will fulfill the education component of the FBOP’s career readiness programs in an effort to help prepare inmates for reentry and transition into the workforce after their release.

The program allows inmates to understand their current skills and knowledge levels and then provides curriculum tools to help them improve, so they are better prepared for success in securing meaningful employment. Inmates will be able to earn an ACT NCRC, providing them with a credential that verifies their skills to prospective employers.

The program aligns with the First Step Act (FSA), which became federal law in 2018 with broad bipartisan support in Congress. More than 14,000 inmates each year are expected to benefit.

“We are truly thrilled to become a part of this important program dedicated to providing inmates with a pathway to the workforce and meaningful employment,” said ACT CEO Marten Roorda. “Our work here will directly serve ACT’s mission: helping people achieve education and workplace success.”

This collaboration between FBOP and ACT includes a Ready to Work Initiative designed to help inmates quickly secure employment after they are released. As part of the program, the FBOP is building new partnerships with businesses across the country to provide employment opportunities to people getting out of prison.

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ACT is a mission-driven, nonprofit organization dedicated to helping people achieve education and workplace success. Grounded in 60 years of research, ACT is a trusted leader in college and career readiness solutions. Each year, ACT serves millions of students, job seekers, schools, government agencies and employers in the US and around the world with learning resources, assessments, research and credentials designed to help them succeed from elementary school through career.

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