Second Chance Hiring

Mitch Pearlstein, PhD, is founder emeritus of the Center of the American Experiment, a think tank for which he served as president for nearly twenty-five years. His previous books include From Family Collapse to America’s Decline: The Educational, Economic, and Social Costs of Family Fragmentation and Broken Bonds: What Family Fragmentation Means for America’s Future. He lives in Eden Prairie, Minnesota with his wife, The Rev. Diane Darby McGowan.

Mitch Pearlstein's book is an important addition to the body of work focusing on 'second chance hiring', the intentional hiring of people with criminal records including those exiting incarceration. Pearlstein writes personally and with passion, but doesn't neglect that such hiring must rest on economics that work for employers. His book is wide-ranging, but eminently readable, covering the 'nuts and bolts' success of a remarkable nonprofit, The Redemption Project, as well as policy, economics, and ethics.

• Acknowledgments Introduction Chapter 1: The Economic Case for Second Chance Hiring Chapter 2: The Ethical Case for Second Chance Hiring Chapter 3: Avoiding Cultural Trapdoors Chapter 4: Fear of Crime and Second Chance Hiring Chapter 5: Why Reentry Succeeds and Fails Chapter 6: The Redemption Project Chapter 7: What We Can Learn from International Reentry Chapter 8: What Employers Need to Know and Do Chapter 9: Strengthening Criminal Justice Chapter 10: A Place at the TableNotesBibliography Index About the Author