The Phoenix program offers inmates an opportunity to gain tangible culinary skills, foundational life skills, industry-recognized certifications, and, connections to employers to ensure a career pathway upon completion of their sentence.

For at-risk adults currently under the supervision of the criminal justice system, lack of employment is a major contributing factor to recidivism. Recent studies show that more than half of all people released from municipal jails recidivate within 3-6 months, and 67.8% of those released from state prisons are arrested for a new crime within 3 years (US DOJ, 2014). Additionally, the cost of incarceration has skyrocketed in the United States. According to the Albemarle-Charlottesville Regional Jail (ACRJ), the average cost per day for each inmate is $84. This cost equates to about $31,000 per inmate, per year. Concurrently, across the restaurant industry, trained employees are hard to find and harder to keep. According to the 2019 Restaurant Success Report, 59% of respondents cite hiring, training, and retaining staff as their number one operational challenge. This challenge has only been amplified during the COVID pandemic and its aftermath.

The first Phoenix Program was piloted in 2019 with 5 students. Culinary Concepts AB helped place all of these students with local employers upon graduation from the program and release from incarceration. To date, each student has remained employed. While COVID impacted the program in 2020 and 2021, Culinary Concepts AB and the Albemarle County Jail System recently expanded the program, with multiple cohorts planned for 2022. We are actively engaged in working with correctional systems outside of the Charlottesville/Albemarle area to roll out the program in additional communities.

This 6-week training program focuses on developing effective strategies that enable small businesses to enhance their profitability. It provides entrepreneurs with a platform to analyze challenges, recognize potential areas of growth, and devise sustainable plans for business expansion. During the program, participants will have the opportunity to conceptualize cohesive solutions, identify valuable resources, and ultimately foster the long-term success of their businesses.”

Our 4Fs Workshop Series is designed to provide supportive educational services that focus on the 4Fs: Farm, Food, Family, and Finance. This workshop is designed for those working to overcome challenges to family success, including families who have been involved in the foster care system. The course helps these families build cohesive relationships through food in an environment that promotes social and emotional growth while improving nutrition literacy.

This workshop series is intended to allow mission-focused sponsors to help build their local community by sponsoring families. Each session will be taught by a professional chef, focusing on seasonal produce and farm-to-table cuisine with an eye towards making each family’s food budget work for their unique needs. Each family will produce a nutritious
meal, in a classroom context that encourage open discussion about culture and cuisine.

The Phoenix program offered inmates an opportunity to gain tangible culinary skills, foundational life skills, industry-recognized certifications, and, importantly, connections to local employers to ensure a career pathway upon completion of their sentence.

For at-risk adults currently under the supervision of the criminal justice system, lack of employment is a major contributing factor to recidivism. Recent studies show that more than half of all people released from municipal jails recidivate within 3-6 months, and 67.8% of those released from state prisons are arrested for a new crime within 3 years (US DOJ, 2014). Additionally, the cost of incarceration has skyrocketed in the United States. According to the Albemarle-Charlottesville Regional Jail (ACRJ), the average cost per day for each inmate is $84. This cost equates to about $31,000 per inmate, per year. Concurrently, across the restaurant industry, trained employees are hard to find and harder to keep. According to the 2019 Restaurant Success Report, 59% of respondents cite hiring, training, and retaining staff as their number one operational challenge. This challenge has only been amplified during the COVID pandemic and its aftermath.

The first Phoenix Program was piloted in 2019 with 5 students. Culinary Concepts AB helped place all of these students with local employers upon graduation from the program and release from incarceration. To date, each student has remained employed. While COVID impacted the program in 2020 and 2021, Culinary Concepts AB and the Albemarle County Jail System recently expanded the program, with multiple cohorts planned for 2022. We are actively engaged in working with correctional systems outside of the Charlottesville/Albemarle area to roll out the program in additional communities.

Our 4Fs Workshop Series is designed to provide supportive educational services that focus on the 4Fs: Farm, Food, Family, and Finance. This workshop is designed for those working to overcome challenges to family success, including families who have been involved in the foster care system. The course helps these families build cohesive relationships through food in an environment that promotes social and emotional growth while improving nutrition literacy.

This workshop series is intended to allow mission-focused sponsors to help build their local community by sponsoring families. Each session will be taught by a professional chef, focusing on seasonal produce and farm-to-table cuisine with an eye towards making each family’s food budget work for their unique needs. Each family will produce a nutritious
meal, in a classroom context that encourage open discussion about culture and cuisine.