Prison-Based Services

Osborne works inside prisons not only to prepare individuals for life after they return to our communities, but also because the time people spend in prison has value, like any period of their lives, and people have the capacity and the right to use that time well. In the same way, we serve the families visiting prisons because we know — many of us from experience — that family relationships have as much meaning and value at this time as they do at any other, even if the incarcerated loved one is unlikely to ever come home.

At 40 New York State prisons, Osborne is there. We operate Visitor Hospitality Centers that welcome families and programs for incarcerated people inside New York prisons. Depending on the facility, our in-prison services include:

• Parenting education and support for the parent-child relationship
• Seminars on healthy relationships with family members and intimate partners
• Family Centers designed to support visits between fathers and children
• A restorative justice course that guides people serving long terms for violent offenses as they take responsibility for their actions
• HIV/AIDS and Hepatitis-C prevention education and peer support

We provide specialized transitional planning that links to reentry services designed for people aged 50 and older and for people living with HIV/AIDS. For parents, transitional services could lead to a program that focuses on workforce training and preparation to meet family responsibilities.