Select Martinsville inmates will be able to take their shot at job certification thanks to a joint effort by the Martinsville Sheriff’s Office and Patrick and Henry Community College to reduce recidivism. 

Sheriff Steve Draper and college President Greg Hodges commemorated the partnership at a recent ceremony at which the pair detailed how the program lays the foundation for a shift toward a more rehabilitative system. 

“We wanted to address the needs of what we called the justice-impacted population,” Hodges said. “We recognize that in order for these folks to become productive employees, oftentimes they need a leg up and that’s what we are here to provide.” 

Officials hope to provide that “leg up” with an education mobile unit designed to travel between multiple locations to provide workforce-related training to eligible inmates. 

The mobile unit packs everything needed for hands-on training in a trailer that will visit Martinsville’s jail twice a week. While the curriculum is currently limited to electrical engineering, officials hope to offer additional topics in the coming years.

Community college officials purchased the mobile unit through a $100,000 investment grant administered by the Virginia Tobacco Region Revitalization Commission. The initial investment allows the program to continue running at minimal cost.

The Henry County Sheriff’s Office implemented its own partnership with the community college last year. 

“We actually did a graduation ceremony for the first cohort,” Hodges said. 

Four individuals made up the inaugural classes in Henry County. Two completed the 16-week program, while two others couldn’t due to transfers, according to Monica Hatchett, the college’s public relations director. 

To participate, Draper said they have to be non-violent offenders. After candidates submit an application to the program, a few will be chosen. Hatchett added that participants tend to be near the end of their respective sentences 

The lessons are geared toward what companies are looking for in new employees, Draper said. The two graduates were taught subjects including hand bending, bending basics, wire pathways, and conductor fishing and pulling and received certification showing they are qualified for a number of tasks relating to electrical engineering.

The mobile unit will visit Martinsville’s jail annex on Clearview Drive twice a week when classes begin in January. Tim Forbes, who provided similar lessons to PHCC students in the past, will be the instructor for the mobile unit.

“We are not just gathered to recognize a class completed or certifications earned — we are here to witness a victory,” Forbes said in a press release about the first set of graduates in September. “A victory over limitation. A victory over doubt. A victory over the voice that says ‘You can’t.’”

The Martinsville Sheriff’s Office’s partnership with PHCC echoes a similar relationship between Danville Community College and Green Rock Correctional Center. Draper said he believes such programs have a positive community impact.

“We’re looking forward to it,” Draper said, later adding, “We don’t offer these people enough.” 

Each class can accommodate up to 15 students for 16 weeks. Upon completion, participating students will be eligible for electrical engineering certifications.

“We’ve talked about expanding to plumbing, carpentering and HVAC,” Ferguson said. “Those are some options in the future.”

Officials behind the program hope that getting certified will increase the likelihood of the formerly incarcerated to find gainful employment after they are released. This, according to Draper, is the goal. 

“I ran into one the other day,” Draper said. “He came up and shook my hand. He said, ‘Sheriff, I wanted you to know that I’m not coming back,’” I said, ‘Good for you.’”