Over 180 years of advocacy
Founded in 1845, the Women’s Prison Association (WPA) is the nation’s first organization dedicated to serving women and gender-diverse individuals impacted by incarceration and injustice.
We prioritize prevention, provide support, and treat justice as an opportunity for restoration rather than punishment.
Our Mission
Our mission is to make incarceration of women obsolete by ensuring justice-impacted women have the essential, personalized supports, opportunities, and agency to remain in the community, stabilize their lives, and thrive.
Our Model
Our programs are made by women, for women. WPA utilizes a gender-responsive, trauma-informed model of support. By prioritizing safe and stable housing, critical mental health care, alternatives to incarceration, and community-based supports, we provide holistic services that address the unique needs of each woman.
We challenge systemic inequities that criminalize and marginalize women, particularly Black and Brown women, at disproportionate rates. Working with justice systems, we address immediate needs while laying the foundation for systemic, sustainable change, influencing policy at every level.
Through our evidence-based, high-impact programs and advocacy efforts, WPA is redefining justice for women.
Our Vision
We envision a society where women are respected, supported, safe, and living free from oppressive systems.
Our Values
Addressing the root causes of incarceration is a pillar of the criminal justice reform movement. Our work confronts the disenfranchisement of marginalized people, racial disparity, ableist structures, and the criminalization of poverty.
Gender-responsive approaches are formidable and evidential solutions, supporting the unique needs of incarcerated and formerly incarcerated women and gender-diverse individuals.
Trauma-informed care is essential for clients to build self-compassion and self-reliance, creating pathways to stability and success.
Alternatives to incarceration and transitional services are critical investments, helping justice-impacted individuals return home, keeping families together, and building safe and supportive communities.
Incarceration is not inevitable, and there are better solutions. We work to improve outcomes, enhance public safety, and transform futures for all.
Our Legacy
Learn more about our organization’s rich history of supportive services and criminal legal system reform.
Our Solutions
Our comprehensive programs address the needs of justice-impacted individuals.