The RISE Academy: Restoring Lives. Rebuilding Communities.
Restoring Lives. Rebuilding Communities.
RISE Academy is a restorative justice initiative that reduces reincarceration and rebuilds community trust by equipping incarcerated individuals with essential life skills—conflict resolution, accountability, emotional intelligence, impulse control, and critical thinking.
This work goes beyond rehabilitation. RISE Academy is about transformation—restoring trust and creating pathways for healing, growth, and successful reintegration.
🔍 Our Core Principles
- R – Restore Trust: Rebuilding relationships through accountability and follow-through
- I – Include Stakeholders: Giving voice to individuals, families, victims, and communities
- S – Support Accountability: Encouraging ownership, goal-setting, and personal growth
- E – Empower Communities: Strengthening collective support for healing and reintegration
Current Impact (May 2025 – May 2026)
Key Highlights
- 70 individuals served across both programs
- 31 participants completed restorative justice programming
- 100% of completers demonstrated measurable personal growth
- All graduates developed reintegration or post-release support plans
- 93% of RISE Beyond completers committed to ongoing change
- 100% expressed openness to mentoring and continued support
- 7 participants have already reconnected post-release, including securing housing, employment, and requesting mental health support
RISE Academy — Sarasota County Jail
- 36 participants enrolled in the 9-week voluntary restorative justice program
- 17 graduates (47.2% completion rate)
- 100% of graduates showed measurable gains in self-awareness and accountability
RISE Beyond — Manatee County Jail
- 34 participants engaged in the inaugural 8-week trauma-informed cohort
- 14 participants completed the full program and assessment cycle
- Assessment scores increased significantly across all four measured domains
🌍 Community Impact
- 🔒 Enhances community safety by breaking cycles of incarceration
- 🤝 Engages families, victims, and stakeholders in the healing process
- 🌱 Creates opportunity for returning citizens to give back—fostering long-term resilience, restoration, and collective growth
The RISE Academy is more than a program—it’s a second chance.
A chance to repair what’s been broken. To build what’s been missing. And to rise together, stronger than before.
Together, we’re creating real, restorative pathways forward.