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RISE Academy
3555 Farnam Street, Suite 222 Omaha, NE 68131
www.seeusrise.org
https://www.linkedin.com/company/33301258/admin/ https://www.instagram.com/seeusrise_/https://www.facebook.com/SeeUsRise/https://twitter.com/SeeUsRise_
Jeremy Bouman
CEO
jeremy@seeusrise.org
+1 (402) 981-4119
Yes
Jeremy Bouman, RISE CEO Brittany Burling, RISE Director of Operations Erica Raetz, RISE Director of Reentry Services Maria Moreno-Godemann, RISE Direct of Programs Erin Cooper, RISE Director of Research & Evaluation Jasmine Harris, RISE Director of Policy & Advocacy Heidi Avalon, Avalon Accounting Services Jay Palu, Partner, Alley Poyner Macchietto Architecture Jake Hoppe, Principal, Hoppe Development Dan Walker, RISE Board Chair, Senior Analyst, Bridges Trust Naomi Hattaway, RISE Board Member, Director of Communications and Community Initiatives, Front Porch Investments Jamie Berglund, RISE Board Member, Executive Director, SPARK
Org Chart included as an upload.
Since 2016, RISE has completed several significant projects directly related to the proposal of supporting the formerly incarcerated population, and their families, in North and South Omaha. In 2019, RISE finalized its own proprietary curriculum that is used throughout state correctional facilities to help transform the lives of incarcerated men and women in preparation for returning home to Nebraska communities. Curriculum was approved by the University of Nebraska–Omaha and results in a university recognized Certificate of Career Readiness. RISE provides a six-month pre-release program in 7 Nebraska prisons that has 590 program graduates to date. Also in 2019, RISE developed and launched RISE Reentry Services. This unique model of reentry service delivery provides incarcerated and formerly incarcerated individuals with wrap-around services focused on desistance and recidivism reduction. Part of these wrap-around services include the launch of the RISE Youth and Family Program in 2021. This program provides healing and restoration for children and families of incarcerated and formerly incarcerated men and women with the goal of breaking generational cycles of incarceration. 2021 also brought the launch of the RISE Business Academy for system-impacted residents interested in entrepreneurship. The RISE Business Academy offers a 12-week intensive, business development course and seed money to help launch small businesses owned and operated by system-impacted Nebraskans; to date, RISE has assisted 14 area businesses with development and launch. The successes of RISE over the past several years has demonstrated the organization’s ability to navigate a new world during and after a global pandemic and economic crisis. The organizational grit of RISE during the past challenging years resulted in job creation, new program creation, and an increase in funding along with improved diversification. RISE has successfully demonstrated the impact of our program on the incarcerated and formerly incarcerated population with promising success rates: less than 7% of released RISE participants have returned to prison for a new felony conviction; that is nearly half that of the general incarcerated population. 170 RISE graduates of the pre-release program have returned to the community, many to the census tracts in North and South Omaha identified in the legislation. 90% of released RISE graduates are currently employed. In 2022, RISE began providing reentry services to people returning to Omaha from incarceration at the Douglas County Jail. This population is experiencing severe mental health issues, addiction, chronic homelessess and unemployment. RISE is poised to bring its best-practice inside-out programs and solutions from the state prison system to the local jail as well. While RISE programs are effective, what is not effective for the formerly incarcerated population, is the lack of coordinated, centralized care. In order to break the cycle of incarceration, this population, their families, and their communities need access to coordinated care that focuses on addressing needs such as mental health care, substance use services, physical healthcare, career development, affordable housing, and various other support services. This proposal will outline a plan for RISE to operate a campus-like facility in North or South Omaha that will provide this population with coordinated care, programming, and services under one roof. The facility will also provide this population with access to a positive, prosocial, supportive network of community members and organizations all focused on crime prevention and reduction.
RISE Center for Restoration and Innovation
31915066.0
24764896.0
Combination of capital project and service/program
RISE is seeking funds to purchase land in North or South Omaha, in or adjacent to a qualified census tract to build the RISE Center for Restoration and Innovation. The center will provide a safe space for criminal justice system-impacted residents and their families to access evidence-based programs and services that break the generational cycles of incarceration. To break generational cycles of incarceration programs and services must be preventative and restorative; programs and services must repair the individual, the family, and the community; and programs and services must be rooted in evidence-based practices. Those who access the facility will feel the collective impact of partners ranging from reentry experts to healthcare professionals (physical and mental) to employment navigators. The center will also provide formerly incarcerated residents with safe and affordable housing options, both short term and long term. This center will provide system-impacted residents of North and South Omaha with a place to heal and repair from incarceration, and to acquire the skills to become a contributing community member. RISE is also seeking funds to assist with the cost of additional staff and resources necessary to operate a new facility and additional programs. Having a large, campus-like center with housing will require additional staff for new trauma programming, housing staff, and an increased need for administrative staff or services such as accounting, grant management, and technology services. Staffing funds from ARPA will be braided with existing funds from state agencies such as the Nebraska Department of Labor, the Department of Health and Human Services and the Nebraska Department of Correctional Services.
RISE will begin land development in the summer of 2023 with a soft opening of the facility in the summer of 2025, and the center being fully operational by the end of 2025. A full timeline is included.
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Fundamental Change (i.e., a proposal that will continue to elevate North or South Omaha's presence and perception within the region, significantly improving the lives of area residents through physical development) Long-Lasting Economic Growth (i.e., a proposal that will foster gainful employment opportunities and financial investment in the area, leading to the creation of generational wealth and widespread economic vitality in North and South Omaha)
Policy (i.e., develop or improve context-sensitive education, finance, health, training, zoning, etc.) Quality of Life (i.e., create or enhance natural spaces, mixed uses, parks, safety, etc.) Sustainable Community (i.e., create or enhance housing, services, education, civic uses, recreation, etc.)
As a reentry organization, it is our mission to break generational cycles of incarceration. To break those cycles, significant enhancements need to be made in communities and qualified census tracts that are disproportionately imp acted by incarceration as well as limited financial resources. Enhancement needs to focus on community sustainability, improvement of quality of life, and policy changes that will limit the negative impacts of incarceration on individuals and their communities. RISE is proposing to build a one-stop, restoration and innovation center in a qualified census tract to provide holistic, healing, and restorative care for all individuals impacted by the justice system or economic disadvantages. Communities disproportionately impacted by incarceration or limited financial resources, are often experiencing a lack of services and spaces that focus on self-sufficiency or self-sustainability, as well as community-focused sustainability. For a community to become sustainable, all needs of its residents must be met. A sustainable community provides economic and learning opportunities that lessen economic disparities.A sustainable community also provides inclusive, affordable housing options for all residents, including those with a criminal history. While transitional housing and supportive housing opportunities exist in Omaha, they are often not held to high standards and offer limited or poor programming options and services. Many are just plain unsafe. RISE will deploy its proven curriculum in the housing units along with its proven model of case management. The RISE Center will develop two housing options: (1) transitional housing from incarceration and (2) supportive affordable housing. Transitional housing will provide 40 community beds or small dorm-like apartments for residents returning home from incarceration. Transitional housing will be staffed around the clock, on-site case management and programming, and an opportunity for residents to save earned income to be able to move into permanent housing. Supportive housing will provide 40 family or individual apartment-style units. These housing units will provide long-term housing options for families or individuals who need on-site, intensive case management, and supportive services. The North and South Omaha communities disproportionately experience several issues directly related to quality of life: disproportionate incarceration, poor health, and limited economic opportunities leading to generational poverty. In 2010, a study showed that more than a dozen census tracts in North Omaha had incarceration rates higher than census tracts in South-Central Los Angeles. And in Nebraska, African Americans and Hispanics are incarcerated at a disproportionately high rate when compared to their population numbers in the state. While there have been programs and services implemented throughout those communities, many are not focused on the root causes of crime; rather they are responsive and reactive to the repercussions of incarceration. In addition, they often only focus on the individual who was incarcerated; the family unit is often excluded from healing and restorative opportunities. The RISE Center will provide programs, services, and space for system impacted community members to begin their transformative journey of breaking generational cycles of incarceration by addressing the root causes of crime, along with the consequences. When we equip individuals with the tools and skills necessary to become whole and healed, they then have the capacity to positively contribute to their community and create long-lasting and generational stability. The campus will also provide the system-impacted community with access to become engaged in state and local policy and advocacy efforts that impact their communities the most. The lack of policy and advocacy efforts was highlighted as lacking throughout the North and South Omaha SWOT analysis.
Limited economic opportunities were identified in the Visioning Workshop SWOT analysis as a need for the North and South Omaha communities. Rather than focus on creating or expanding access to survival jobs, RISE focuses on creating economic sufficiency and stability through entrepreneurship. RISE is poised to build the nation’s leading incubator and accelerator for returning citizens. RISE Business Academy participants are immersed in a proven entrepreneurship program consisting of 12-weeks of classes, one-on-one training and mentoring with executive volunteers, business plan mentoring with seasoned professionals and a highly competitive business plan competition. RISE partners with the Nebraska Enterprise Fund and the Nebraska Business Development Center on the business academy and they and others have expressed interest in co-locating with RISE in the future. Economic empowerment of community residents also directly aligns with the strategic goals of LB1024. In addition, a project of this scope does provide potential for co-investments, which also furthers the economic impact of this proposal. A sustainable community provides a space for residents to heal, both physically and mentally; both of which were listed as weaknesses in the SWOT analysis. The RISE Center will intentionally develop space for mental health care that can be easily and affordably accessed. RISE will also intentionally develop space for physical health care that can be easily and affordably accessed. Potential partners include CHI, UNMC, OneWorld and Charles Drew Health Center. RISE will also utilize a coordinated care network, Unite Us, for external referrals when needed. This system closes the referral loop and ensures referrals are complete and clients receive the requested services.
The RISE Center for Restoration and Innovation will create economic opportunities through workforce development training, skills training, employment placement and job creation through the RISE Business Academy program including the proposed incubator and accelerator that will create new businesses and new jobs. There will be job creation for additional staff to work at the center from RISE and other organizations including staffing for the housing units proposed. Construction jobs will be created for the project. The center will have space to holistically address the social impacts of COVID (mental health in particular) and space for family programming for families that were under great strain and continue to be due to the negative impacts of COVID and the carceral system.
On a macro level, the campus will provide entrepreneurship skill building and development that will benefit the local community by creating businesses, employment opportunities, and economic stability for individuals and families. The RISE Center will also house the RISE Business Academy which provides system-impacted residents with a 12-week intensive course on all facets of entrepreneurship with the goal of becoming successful business owners and operators in their local communities. RISE has already assisted 14 entrepreneurs with developing and launching their business in the past 18 months; RISE is hopeful to at least double that number to 28 small businesses owned and operational by system-impacted residents of North and South Omaha in the next two years. North and South Omaha will see the economic impact from this program through job creation and development of property into functional, revenue generating spaces. Economic impact will also be felt throughout the community during the construction of the center and the need to hire more staff to operate the center. RISE anticipates that the organization will need to create at least 10 more full-time, permanent positions to run a successful campus; this would bring the total number or RISE staff to approximately 40. Given that the campus will also house various service providers, job creation may occur through that avenue as well. According to the National Association of Homebuilders, an estimated number of construction jobs created is 72 ($5,922,720 in direct spending) and 64.8 indirect jobs ($3,979,360 indirect spending) for a total of 136.8 jobs and $9,902,080 in community spending. Ongoing operations and maintenance jobs equates to 39.2 jobs and an additional $2,362,560 in community spending.
80
136.8
$17 an hour will be the minimum proposed job wage. Many of the jobs are salaried.
There will be immediate jobs to build the commercial space for programming and both of the 40 unit housing projects. The RISE Business Academy will continue to hold 3-4 cohorts each year that have between 10-20 participants creating and building their small business. The incubator and accelerator will support and scale the businesses created in the RBA that will lead to more jobs for the participating businesses.
On a micro level, the SWOT analysis mentioned that these communities are facing a shortage of accessible and affordable physical and mental healthcare, economic opportunities for families, and services or programs focused on improved overall well-being (e.g., job skills, financial literacy, cultural awareness and education, etc.). The micro level response will be to house a variety of service providers to meet the needs of the community, rather than forcing the community to other parts of the city for care. The micro level response is individual care that focuses on restoration of the person. Potential partners include UNMC, CHI, Nebraska Mental Health Association, and Charles Drew Healthcare. On a macro level, the campus will provide entrepreneurship skill building and development that will benefit the local community by creating businesses, employment opportunities, and economic stability for individuals and families. The RISE Center will also house the RISE Business Academy which provides system-impacted residents with a 12-week intensive course on all facets of entrepreneurship with the goal of becoming successful business owners and operators in their local communities. RISE has already assisted 14 entrepreneurs with developing and launching their business in the past 18 months; RISE is hopeful to at least double that number to 28 small businesses owned and operational by system-impacted residents of North and South Omaha in the next two years. North and South Omaha will see the economic impact from this program through job creation and development of property into functional, revenue generating spaces.
The Visioning Workshop SWOT analysis also identified a need for affordable housing in the North and South Omaha communities. As previously discussed, housing options will include transitional housing and supportive housing that include proven curriculum and case management, 24/7 access to care, and will house those who are often excluded from housing. When individuals are safely housed, they are able to focus on other needs related to their habilitation such as healthcare and employment. What then results is an overall improvement in quality of life and the ability to positively contribute to the community. Most importantly, with housing, comes community safety and reduced risk of reincarceration. It is significantly more affordable to provide housing for a vulnerable population than to risk reincarceration which costs up to $44,000 per year for one individual.
This best practice housing model is based on St. Leonard’s reentry housing in Chicago, a successful campus that includes both transitional housing and supportive affordable housing nearby. The one-stop reentry center defined in this proposal is based on the successful Concordance Academy program in St. Louis. Bringing these two models together on the same campus will make the RISE Center in Omaha a national destination for reentry. In addition to adherence to a conceptual framework detailed in Appendix B, RISE adheres to empirically supported best practices as well when developing and delivering programs and services. Holistic programming exploring cognitive-behavioral challenges, character, trauma, coping, etc.; i.e., adherence to the well-being model (Pettus et al., 2021; Taxman et al., 2002; Waleed, C. 2017) Strengths based programming (Fortune et al., 2011; Pettus et al., 2021 Inside-out delivery model (Braga et al., 2020; Jeglic, Malie, & Calkins-Mercado, 2011; Jones, N., 2015; Osterman, M., 2009; Taxman et al., 2002; Urban Institute, 2014). Supportive community/social support inside and out (Jeglic, Malie, & Calkins-Mercado, 2011; & Calkins-Mercado, 2011; Denney et al., 2014) Continuum of care practice (Duwe, G., 2017; Hicks et al., 2021; Jeglic, Malie, & Calkins-Mercado, 2011; Johnson & Cullen, 2015) Post-release case management (Jones, N., 2015; Pettus et al., 2021; Taxman et al., 2002) Youth and Family Programming (Foley et al., 2020; Murphy, K., 2019; Pettus et al., 2021; Taxman et al., 2002) Peer support or mentorship (Barrenger et al., 2020; Harvard University Institute of Politics, Criminal Justice Policy Group, 2019) Risk-Need-Responsivity principle (Bonta & Andrews, 2007; Johnson & Cullen, 2015; Jones, N., 2015; Petersilia, J., 2011; Taxman et al., 2002) Needs assessments utilized for case planning (Jones, N., 2015; Latessa, E., 2015; Pettus et al., 2021). practices.
Creation of at least 25 new businesses in the North and South Omaha communities through the RISE Business Academy by the end of the funding cycle. Between new and existing RISE Business Academy created businesses, those businesses will create new jobs and hire 30-40 people by the end of the funding cycle through accessing the incubator and accelerator programs. Creation of at least 10 additional jobs in North and South Omaha communities for operating the RISE Center. 400 people returning to the community from prison and jail in the census tracts identified will receive employment training and placement for high skill, high wage, high need jobs by the end of the funding cycle. Improvement in self-sufficiency of 80% or more of program participants, annually through the end of the funding cycle. Improvement in overall well-being of 80% or more of program participants, annually through the end of the funding cycle. Increased use of healthcare by 50% or more of program participants, annually through the end of the funding cycle. Improved desistance for 50% or more of program participants, annually through the end of the funding cycle.
RISE has several years of experience with adhering to strict reporting guidelines from state agencies (e.g. NDOL - Wagner Peyser 10% federal funds, NDCS - Vocational and Life Skills funds, DHHS funding, etc.) and other funding agencies such as United Healthcare and the United Way. RISE employs a Director of Research and Evaluation who will spearhead outcome measurement and evaluation of program efficacy. RISE will conduct internal outcome measurements and evaluation practices. Measurements will be conducted utilizing a variety of validated assessment tools pertinent to the construct being measured. For example, measuring improvement in criminal thinking may involve the use of the Criminal Thinking Scales assessment developed by TCU (Texas Christian University). Reduction in criminogenic needs or risks may involve the use of the LSI-R (Level of Service Inventory-Revised). RISE will also partner with an education institution to conduct a third-party evaluation of program fidelity and impact.
RISE is independently building a micro-loan fund for the businesses participating in the RISE Business Academy and there will be opportunities for co-investment in this fund to grow and scale the businesses. State entities like the Nebraska Department of Labor, the Department of Health and Human Services and the Department of Economic Development will be approached for secondary investment in the Center based on the holistic approach to job creation through entrepreneurship, job training and placement, healthcare and safe housing.
Yes
RISE partners with the Nebraska Enterprise Fund and the Nebraska Business Development Center. the business academy and they and others have expressed interest in co-locating with RISE in the future.Potential Health Partners include . Potential partners include CHI, UNMC, OneWorld and Charles Drew Health Center. Workforce Dev partners include Project Reset, Nebraska Department of Labor and Metropolitan Community College.
RISE has not signed MOUs at this time
No
RISE is working with Hoppe Development to identify campus sites in the qualified census tracts. A site has not yet been determined.
Within one or more QCTs
No
No
Working with Hoppe Development and Alley Poyner Macchietto
No
RISE worked with Hoppe Development and the architecture firm Alley Poyner Macchietto to create a financial model for the proposed campus. The tabs on the pro-forma document shows the financial model used. RISE will provide operating resources towards the project, there will be a portion covered by philanthropy and a portion covered by tax credits.RISE is requesting a commitment of $24,764,896 to support land acquisition, hard construction costs, soft construction and development costs for the creation of 80 units of housing with 18,000 square feet of commercial space. The costs were created in consultation with Hoppe Development, a vertically integrated affordable housing development firm. They used their construction estimation capacity, based on their experience in the market with over 700 units currently under development, to assemble an accurate cost projection for the theoretical project. Further, they made some assumptions about the availability of Tax Increment Financing on certain portions of the project, as well as the accompanying philanthropic commitment available. While additional resources may be available to support the housing components of this project, such as Low Income Housing Tax Credits, the uncertain timeline related to the incorporation of these components led us to request the entire gap in financing. Certain tax credit programs are committed through 2025, putting in jeopardy their use in a project that needs to be completed in advance.
The funds will be used for site purchase, construction costs and possibly some for program operations.Grant funds will be used for site acquisition and preparation, construction costs of 18,000 square feet of commercial space, 40 units of transitional housing and 40 units of permanent housing, and the accompanying soft development costs (architecture, engineering, legal, etc.) that are associated with such a project. See a complete listing and estimation of the usage of funds in our “Sources and Uses” attachment in the proforma.
Yes
RISE will own and operate the campus including the programming space and the housing units. RISE will determine if there will be organizations sub-leasing space and proceed accordingly.
RISE will obtain at least $2M in funding support for this project based on verbal commitments from foundations if the project is funded to the full ARPA ask amount. RISE is working with Hoppe Development on tax credits and other tax incentives towards the project.This project will create income generating sources of revenue by providing commercial space for affiliated non-profits to rent at a reduced rate, as well as income streams from the 80 units of affordable housing, which while leased at a discount to market rates, will still provide an income stream. After accounting for the increased operational costs related to these activities, detailed in our included Proforma, this will create an additional cash flow stream of approximately $150,000 annually which can be used to support additional programming, above and beyond the operating costs.
Decisions will made based on funding approval for this application.
The proposal is scalable and the components can be done separately - the commercial program space could be developed first followed by each of the housing projects.
RISE is committed to continuing it's $3M operating budget in support of the outlined programs and services and commits to securing a minimum of $2M in philanthropic support towards the project based on conversations with funders.
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