OIC Wilson Inc launches Re-entry initiative (SOAR) to provide returning citizens vocational training, work readiness and education to help reduce recidivism.
In collaboration with OIC of America, through the U.S. Department of Labor, OIC Wilson Inc. offers services catered to adults over 25 years old who have had contact with the justice system.
The goal of the SOAR re-entry program is to assist justice involved individuals to make a successful transition back to the community by helping them become productive, responsible, and law-abiding citizens. Under the SOAR 4 Program OIC Wilson Inc. will serve Wilson, Greene, Pitt, Lenoir, and Wayne Counties.
Program participants are provided with the support they need to be able to overcome the many challenges faced upon releases from incarceration. Supportive services include the following:
Educational training such as High School Diploma, HiSET, or GED.
Vocational training certifications in fields such as Culinary Arts, Construction, Housekeeping, Front Office and more.
Career readiness and job placement assistance in the selected career pathway.
Facilitation of referrals to heath and human services needed to successfully address substance abuse issues and/or mental health needs.
Leveraging $12.8 million in US Department of Labor grants through the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act , OICA launched programs in 7 cities to prepare workers for high-demand “green” careers.
OIC has trained more than 3 million people, and placed more than 2.5 million in jobs, with its alumni collectively earning $80 billion a year (L.H. Sullivan, Moving Mountains, Judson Press, 1998).
OICA develops the Quantum Opportunity Program (QOP), a multi-year, intensive case management and mentoring program for high school youth. The program is rigorously evaluated and eventually adapted by the Eisenhower Foundation for widespread dissemination.
OIC received $32,600,000 from the Department of Labor to serve as “a prime national contractor” for manpower services throughout the U.S. for more than a decade.
OIC of America, Inc. is established to serve as the national headquarters to OIC Affiliates and provide technical assistance to communities replicating the OIC model.
Working out of an abandoned jailhouse in north Philadelphia, Dr. Sullivan founded the first OIC training center to provide employment training and retraining in impoverished communities.
Recognizing that job opportunities for African-Americans were extremely limited, Dr. Leon H. Sullivan appeals to Philadelphia’s largest businesses to interview young blacks for jobs.
