For many Houstonians, the path to incarceration begins long before a conviction. Decades of research point to how childhood experiences—such as poverty, trauma, unstable housing, and limited access to quality educational or economic opportunity—significantly increase the likelihood of incarceration later in life. And once a person enters the criminal justice system, the barriers to rebuilding their life only grow steeper.
Every year, thousands of individuals return home to Houston after serving time in prison—ready for a second chance, but too often they are met with closed doors. With limited access to jobs, housing, and support, these returning citizens1 face odds that are stacked against them.
In a region like ours—where opportunity and resilience define the Houston spirit—these barriers not only harm individuals but also hold back families, communities, and our broader economy. Harris County’s incarceration rate is more than twice the national average, and without better reentry pathways, the cycle continues.
But what if reentry looked different?
For more than 20 years, the Prison Entrepreneurship Program (PEP) has worked to make that vision a reality—providing returning citizens with housing, support, mentorship, and the skills to succeed through employment and entrepreneurship. Their work is helping to transform lives, rebuild families, and strengthen the Houston region.
The scope of mass incarceration
Mass incarceration describes a period of rapid growth in the number of people incarcerated across the U.S. since the 1970s, driven by policies like mandatory minimum sentencing, the war on drugs, and tough-on-crime laws.
Since then, the number of people incarcerated in the U.S. has grown sixfold from just under 200,000 in 1970 to nearly 1.2 million in 2022. Although the U.S. represents only 4% of the global population, it accounts for 16% of the world’s incarcerated people, ranking fifth in incarceration rates globally only behind El Salvador, Cuba, Rwanda, and Turkmenistan. In fact, every U.S. state incarcerates more people per capita than most countries.
Texas leads the nation with the largest incarcerated population at 137,035 individuals in 2022 (most recent data available). To put it into perspective, Texas, as the second most populous state in the country, makes up just 9% of the U.S. population, yet it accounts for 12% of the country’s incarcerated individuals. By contrast, California, the most populous state in the country, makes up 12% of the population but just 8% of those incarcerated (97,483 individuals).
In Texas, the incarceration rate is more than double the national average at 1,031 incarcerated individuals for every 100,000 people ages 15 to 64. Harris County’s rate is close to Texas’ at 947. In fact, Harris County operates the largest jail in Texas, housing roughly 10,000 people on any given day and processing over 70,000 individuals each year.
Approximately 40,000 people are released from Texas state prisons annually, with an estimated 20% returning to Harris County. For many of these returning citizens, the challenges don’t end with their release. The consequences of incarceration—such as difficulty finding housing, employment, and stability—often continue long after someone has served their time.
The impacts of mass incarceration
Returning citizens face significant barriers to rebuilding their lives after release, especially when it comes to employment and economic opportunity. Many start with zero income and limited education, and also face challenges like lack of transportation, unstable housing, restricted job options, mental health concerns, social exclusion, and the persistent stigma of a criminal record.
A U.S. Department of Justice study found that one-third of formerly incarcerated individuals never found employment within four years after release. The Prison Policy Initiative estimates that the unemployment rate for this population is around 27%, which is higher than the peak unemployment rates for the civilian population during the Great Recession (10%) and COVID-19 pandemic (8%). According to the U.S. Chamber of Commerce, excluding formerly incarcerated job seekers costs the economy $78 to $87 billion in lost GDP annually. Additionally, these employment challenges contribute to a vast array of other issues including housing insecurity. In fact, formerly incarcerated individuals are 10 times more likely to experience homelessness than the general public.
It’s important to remember that justice involvement affects more than just the returning individual—it impacts entire families and communities. Today, more than 1 million children have a parent currently in prison, and over 5 million have experienced the incarceration of a parent at some point in their lives. Research shows these children are at greater risk of economic hardship, academic struggles, and even future involvement with the justice system—continuing cycles of poverty and incarceration across generations.
Given the scale of the incarcerated population in Texas, and Houston, and the substantial challenges this population faces upon reentry, it is critical to have the right support in place to ease their transition and reduce the challenges they, and their families, face. Research shows that providing access to services both before and after release is cost-effective and improves outcomes. A meta-analysis of 14 studies analyzing the benefit-to-cost ratio of correctional treatment programs (typically offered pre-release) found that for every dollar invested, society could see up to $270 in returns through reduced crime, lower incarceration costs, and fewer victims.2 Similarly, reentry programs (typically offered post-release) have been shown to increase employment and housing stability while lowering rates of recidivism.
Helping people reintegrate after prison
Reentry programs—designed to support individuals returning to their communities after serving time in prison—began in the mid-1900s and have changed over time. Early efforts focused on parole boards, which monitored and approved prisoner releases. Over time, these efforts evolved into more formal programs, with dedicated funding directed to government agencies and nonprofit organizations, to help returning citizens successfully reintegrate into communities.
Reentry programs can give people the support they need to successfully return to their communities after incarceration and can greatly improve public safety and outcomes for returning citizens. These programs can be provided in a correctional institution or in the community upon release, but effective reentry planning should start long before release. While the primary function of reentry programs is to help individuals transition back into their community, reentry is also linked with the goal of preventing recidivism. Recidivism, or a return to criminal or delinquent activity and subsequent imprisonment, is calculated based on the number of individuals who return to incarceration within three full years of release or start of supervision.
Research has shown that programs that support successful reentry must provide holistic services that address not just immediate needs, but also the broader challenges individuals face after incarceration. These include health, employment, housing, skill development, mentorship, and social networks. According to Harvard University’s Institute of Politics, reentry efforts are most effective when they begin prior to release, are tailored to the unique needs of the individual, and continue with strong community-based support. The report emphasizes that mentorship can be especially impactful when returning citizens are carefully paired with peer or professional mentors who are carefully matched. It also highlights that access to mental health care, job training and matching, and safe, stable housing are foundational for long-term stability.
A local solution to creating pathways to successful reentry
While incarceration rates remain high in Texas, our state has been successful in supporting returning citizens as can be seen in our low recidivism rate. According to the Texas Department of Criminal Justice’s (TDCJ) 2024 Biennial Reentry and Reintegration Services Report, recidivism rates for the TDCJ inmate population are among the lowest in the country at 14.7%, compared to a national average of 50%. This low recidivism rate is in part because of partnerships with nonprofit and faith-based organizations, expanded access to vocational training and education inside correctional facilities, and more coordinated release planning.
Prison Entrepreneurship Program (PEP), a grant partner in Greater Houston Community Foundation’s High-Impact Grantmaking initiative and a long-time partner with TDCJ, has taken a revolutionary approach to prison reentry and aims to provide a pathway from poverty to prosperity for returning citizens. Their mission is to unite executive business volunteers and inmates through entrepreneurial passion and servant leadership to transform lives, restore families, and rebuild communities.
PEP provides both pre- and post-release services. Their pre-release services provide education focusing on character development, entrepreneurship training, servant leadership, and family reunification. Their post-release services include transitional housing, wraparound services (e.g., transportation, medical services, support networks, etc.), employment support, entrepreneur mentorship, and access to capital. The goal is to provide participants with a comprehensive solution to re-entry into a structured environment of accountability.
Bringing together in-prison and post-release education, mentorship, and comprehensive services, PEP successfully supports formerly incarcerated individuals in gaining employment and launching businesses that support increases in household income and wealth. Extensive evaluations of PEP programs by Initiative for a Competitive Inner City, American Enterprise Institute, Baylor University’s Institute for Studies of Religion have found that PEP’s program outcomes include:
- 100% employment within 90 days of release.
- An average starting wage of $17/hour, and $28/hour within three years.
- A recidivism rate of less than 10% (compared to the national average of 50%) that results in $4.3M in annual savings to Texas taxpayers.
- 46% home ownership, contributing to family wealth-building.
- 700 new businesses formed by graduates, creating $122.5M in economic impact.
- A return of nearly $8 in social and economic impact for every $1 invested.
PEP’s program, Barbed Wire to Business (the Collider), focuses on both intrapreneurship (those seeking employment) and entrepreneurship (those starting businesses). While initially created for graduates of PEP’s in-prison programs, the Collider is now being expanded to serve all returning citizens in Harris County. The Collider provides participants with reentry support, education, employment, entrepreneurship training, mentors, business incubation, and capital access.
Through the Collider program, PEP will serve 550 formerly incarcerated people in Harris County in 2025, impacting families with more than 2,100 individuals. This will lay the foundation to exponentially grow their impact with a goal of serving more than 100,000 individuals annually by 2029, breaking the cycle of poverty and incarceration for families served. PEP aims to support 189 citizen businesses launched, $568 million in cumulative wages earned, and more than 28,000 low-income individuals across Texas and beyond by 2029.
“If I had not been in PEP, I’d be back in prison with a life sentence still running the game or killed. But I stand strong, and I hope I’m a light to everyone in my community, my family, how to live right. PEP changed my life.”
– Jeremy Jones, Life Caddy at Prison Entrepreneurship Program (PEP)
Breaking the cycle through community investment
Mass incarceration has left a lasting impact on families, communities, and economies across the country—especially here in Houston. As more individuals return home each year, these ripple effects only grow. By combining holistic, wraparound services with character development, entrepreneurship training, housing, mentorship, and access to capital, PEP is transforming lives and proving that with the right support, people can break free from cycles of poverty and incarceration.
Through our High-Impact Grantmaking initiative, Greater Houston Community Foundation is proud to support innovative, data-driven solutions like PEP that expand opportunity, restore dignity, and strengthen economic mobility for Houston families. By investing in reentry and reintegration efforts, we’re not only improving individual outcomes—we’re helping build a more inclusive and prosperous Houston.
Empower second chances and join the movement to break the cycle by getting involved in PEP’s work through a donation, supporting a returning citizen through employment, and/or volunteering as a mentor.
1A returning citizen refers to an individual who is reentering society after being incarcerated in jail or prison and does not only reference those who are U.S. citizens. This term is increasingly used as a more respectful and humanizing alternative to labels like “ex-offenders” or “former inmate” recognizing that a person’s identity is not solely defined by their criminal record and emphasizes their role as a member of a community who is returning home.
2The return on investment from these programs varies by the type of program being provided with returns ranging from $1.13 to $269.86. Of the 14 studies analyzed, 13 found a favorable benefit-cost ratio while one study did not.