Having a job is critical to having independence, dignity and making a positive impact on a community. A job is security, an identity and for many, a passion. Earning a living is paramount to creating a good life.
But earning a living is more challenging when someone has been on the wrong side of the law. Job applications ask the question, and if one has been convicted of a felony, good luck finding a potential employer willing to take a chance. Yet, the court probation system mandates that folks on probation have a job.
A catch 22 that one Lorain County visionary aimed to correct. JoEllen Mitchell, director of Lorain County Adult Probation under the Lorain County Common Pleas Court, and her team created what is believed to be the first of its kind in Ohio job fair for probationers. Self effacingly giving credit to her team and the participants for the success of the job fair, Mitchell shared that if a job is going to be a requirement of a successful probation, “we darn well better help them find a job.
” Mitchell explained that the probation system in Lorain County does not use a cookie-cutter approach to its probationers, as each case has unique circumstances depending upon the type of crime committed, for example, and the conditions that must be followed. There may be a significant amount of supervision required, or very little, and probation officers work to make sure probationers are in compliance with their requirements, she said. Related Articles Local News | New pla.
