“Healing first” center coming to South Carolina aims to lower reincarcerations – ABC Columbia

COLUMBIA, SC (WOLO) — At the State House, officials with Wells Fargo announced they’ll provide up to $60 million to support the national expansion of a nonprofit group called Concordance — a group which aims to reduce repeat criminal offenses by providing inmates an opportunity to heal before fully re-entering society.

Danny Ludeman, Founder of Concordance, says the company’s first center in Missouri lowered the re-incarceration rate by 56%.

Their research found that a common occurrence among inmates includes a severe traumatic experience at a young age.

“We asked have you ever been shot, stabbed, raped, physically beaten, or seen a loved one die in front of you as a result of an overdose or maybe an act of violence, and pretty much everyone has at least one of these occur by the age of nine,” says Ludeman.

According to Ludeman the center’s 12-step, 18-month program provides inmates a much needed “healing first” approach — by providing them with job readiness training, financial education, and therapy.

“Eighty-percent have a severe mental health issue. 83% have a severe substance use issue — all related to early childhood traumatic events,” says Ludeman.

The company reports that 71% of people released from prison across the nation are rearrested for a crime within a three to five year timeframe.

Director of the South Carolina Department of Corrections Bryan Stirling says South Carolina currently has the lowest rate of re-incarceration in the country. This program is expected to lower it even more.

“It means returning home safely. It means the skills that you’ve learned, they’ll be a runway when you go home, to make you transition safely. Make you succeed. And hopefully lowering the recidivism rate. Which is a public safety thing, coming back to prison within three years, also it will save on tax dollars up to $32,000 a year to incarcerate someone in South Carolina,” Stirling says.

Through its partnership with Wells Fargo, Concordance will open its 2nd center in the Greenville-Spartanburg area in 2024 with plans to open an additional 39 centers nationwide over the next eight years.