Salem, OR — The Oregon Higher Education Coordinating Commission (HECC), in partnership with the Oregon Department of Corrections (DOC) and the Oregon Employment Department (OED), today announced that Oregon has officially joined the inaugural cohort of Jobs for the Future’s (JFF) Fair Chance to Advance (FC2A) State Action Networks, a new initiative to help states expand high-quality postsecondary education and workforce pathways for individuals with histories of incarceration. As part of this partnership, the HECC will receive up to $2.1 million in funding to increase access to education and training in correctional facilities.

As one of four states selected for the initial cohort, Oregon’s cross-agency team, led jointly by HECC, DOC, and OED, will bring together leaders in Oregon who will work with JFF’s Center for Justice & Economic Advancement to address persistent barriers that limit economic opportunities for Oregonians with records and their families. Nationally, more than 70 million people—roughly one in three adults—have some type of criminal record, and emerging analyses suggest a similar share of Oregon residents are justice‑impacted, underscoring both the scale of the challenge and the opportunity for fair‑chance education and employment strategies. Oregon plans to unify inter‑agency data systems to guide decisions, strengthen reporting, and expand education‑to‑employment pathways, including sustaining and growing in‑prison WorkSource Oregon reentry centers as a core bridge from custody to community.

Governor Tina Kotek says, “This means more pathways for adults in custody to reenter Oregon's workforce, gain economic mobility, and contribute meaningfully to employer and community needs. Launching the Fair Chance to Advance State Action Networks will help us to coordinate support, accelerating our work toward this vision.”

Ben Cannon, executive director of the HECC, says, “This project will help us build on Oregon’s strong history of legislative and gubernatorial support for expanding educational and workforce opportunities for incarcerated adults. Learning from other states, and with support from JFF, we look forward to strengthening our inter-agency efforts to create smooth pathways from incarceration to education, training, and employment.”

The grant builds on several years of work to create an integrated education-to-employment system for adults in custody, aligning correctional education and workforce services with statewide priorities for equitable opportunity, education, and economic mobility. Guided by Senate Bill 234 (2021) and Senate Bill 269 (2023), state agencies and local partners are building a continuum of services so adults in custody can move smoothly from adult basic skills to college and career training, and into reentry-focused career and employment services.

This collaboration has already expanded Pell Grant and state-funded education and training programs, created clearer pathways to college credit, and invested in digital learning and dedicated navigators. State agencies and local partners have also strengthened reentry supports, including expansion of WorkSource Oregon reentry centers in the state’s correctional facilities, to connect people to community-based jobs and career pathways after release.

The launch of the State Action Networks represents the latest phase of the national FC2A initiative, initially launched in 2024 with support from Ascendium Education Group. JFF selected Oregon from among more than 30 applicants based on the state’s existing eff orts to expand economic mobility for individuals with records, Oregon’s commitment to bringing together a range of leaders across state agencies, and a clear articulation for how participating in the cohort would promote long-term change in the state.

Over the next four years, Oregon—along with Kansas, Maine, and North Carolina—will receive up to $2.1 million in funding and technical assistance valued up to $1.8 million from JFF and the Coleridge Initiative, a nonprofit organization working with governments to ensure that data are more effectively used for public decision-making. States will gain access to a secure data-sharing platform to improve coordination between partner agencies and participate in a national learning network designed to accelerate reforms across corrections, postsecondary education, workforce development, and fair chance employment.

“We are excited to collaborate with the bipartisan, inter-agency leaders from across Oregon who are committed to strengthening the state's workforce, supporting businesses, and creating pathways to quality jobs for learners with histories of incarceration,” said Rebecca Villarreal, senior director, Center for Justice & Economic Advancement at JFF. “Oregon brings a strong legislative starting point and a track record of agencies working across traditional boundaries—from corrections to higher education to workforce. FC2A will partner with state leaders to sharpen that coordination, surface where systems still disconnect and strengthen pathways that work better for people navigating them.”

“States play a critical role in creating education and workforce systems that open doors to opportunity,” said Molly Lasagna, Senior Strategy Officer at Ascendium Education Group. “When leaders align policy, funding, and data around a shared commitment to economic mobility, they can build pathways that work for learners and employers alike—especially for individuals with histories of incarceration that have been traditionally excluded from those opportunities.”

Throughout the initiative, the FC2A State Action Networks will closely engage people with histories of incarceration as advisors and co-designers. Mathematica will serve as the third-party evaluator to document lessons learned and share insights with the field. An application to join Oregon’s five-person directly impacted advisory board is now open.