WPA serves approximately 2500 women and their families each year. Most of our clients are New York City residents who have been involved in the city jail and state prison systems, although we also serve some women in the federal system.

WPA clients are largely representative of the more than 5,000 women in New York prisons and the city jail. Our clients are typically poor women of color who were arrested for drug-related crimes. Most have not completed high school. Many have experienced extended periods of unemployment — or have never worked at a legal job. Most have substance abuse histories, and are survivors of family violence and sexual abuse as well. Over three quarters are mothers and more than half have minor children at home. [For more information about criminal justice involved women, see our Focus Brief, “A Portrait of Women in Prison.”]

But WPA clients are more than the sum of their problems. They are also women of strength and resilience. They have struggled — and many continue to struggle — with the challenges of daily existence and difficult past experiences. With help, they work hard to realize fuller possibilities of life, and they succeed in countless ways every day. Sometimes — to their surprise — that learn that success is stressful too!

Learn more about the women we serve:
Luz’s Story
Claudia’s Story
Cheryl’s Story