Creating opportunities
The Women’s Prison Association (WPA) centers on support, recovery, and possibility.
Our gender-responsive wraparound case management is designed for women and LGBTQIA+ individuals before, during, and after incarceration. We take an individualized approach, listening to our clients and working with them to identify their immediate needs and long-term goals. After establishing the best path forward, we enroll our clients in programs and provide resources to help them stabilize, heal, and prosper.
Our Programs
At WPA, we invest in people, families, and communities.
We connect New Yorkers to opportunities such as alternatives to incarceration, reentry support, employment training, legal support, emergency assistance, clinical counseling, and supportive housing. Our programs provide ongoing support and are rooted in compassion, understanding, and healing.
Reach out if you or someone you represent would benefit from our programs.
WPA founded the nation’s first home-based alternatives to incarceration program, JusticeHome, which has helped thousands of participants remain at home with their loved ones. We work with court systems to reduce sentences and help our clients avoid incarceration whenever possible.
The Survivor’s Advocacy Project, a Rikers Island-based program, provides specialized care for trauma survivors and resources for stability and healing.
Community-Based Programs
We provide an off-ramp for people after systems involvement, connecting them to community-based solutions. We measure outcomes based on stability, healing, and success.
Workforce Development
Our Workforce Development program helps formerly incarcerated people enter the workforce with the critical skills they need to find gainful employment. Participants receive job-readiness training and certification courses, empowerment workshops, application support, and job placement.
Supportive Housing
We provide justice-involved supportive housing (JISH) that’s affordable and accessible for New Yorkers who need a safe place to stabilize. Residents receive on-site wraparound case management from WPA staff.
Clinical Services
Participants enrolled in WPA programs are offered trauma-informed mental health counseling through our Clinical Services. Clinicians work with clients to address their short-term needs and find pathways to reach long-term goals.
Law Project
The Law Project supports clients as they navigate criminal, immigration, and civil legal matters.
Prison-Based Services
Our prison-based services focus on preventative health care. We provide counseling and peer support groups to reduce transmission risk and educate participants on the resources that are available to them during and after incarceration.
Inclusive Services
LGBTQIA+ and Transgender Services
WPA provides services for systems-impacted LGBTQIA+ individuals in New York City and the greater New York area. We work with transgender women, transgender men, gender-nonconforming, and non-binary people to provide compassionate care that supports each client’s individual needs.
Family-Focused Support
Many of our clients are mothers and primary caregivers at home. Our gender-responsive approach allows us to address the needs of systems-impacted mothers through services such as housing support, family law, youth support, and our home-based alternatives to incarceration program.
Mental Health and Disability Services
We support people with mental illnesses, including severe mental illnesses (SMI) and substance misuse disorder, through wraparound case management and service referrals. All of our clients are offered trauma-informed, gender-responsive mental health counseling in their communities.
Servicios en Español
Si usted está buscando servicios para mujeres detenidas en la carcel o anteriormente detenidas y personas LGBTQIA en español, podemos ayudarle. Por favor, póngase en contacto con nosotros, y lo conectaremos con un miembro del personal bilingüe.