214(ME): Designing to Empower the Formerly Incarcerated
Every year an estimated 640,000 individuals reenter society after being released from federal and state prisons.
However, statistics reveal within three years of release more than half of these individuals will be arrested again and 60% will return to jail or prison with a new conviction.
OVERVIEW
PRODUCT A cross-platform tool featuring interactive components to simulate interviewing for jobs, calendar and media sharing, and video-conferencing capabilities which facilitates mentorship programs for formerly incarcerated individuals.
TIMELINE May 2022-October 2022
ROLE UX/UI Lead, Research, Personas, Prototyping, Wireframes, Mock-ups
PROBLEM The United States has the highest recidivism rates of any country in the world, and the Dallas metro area’s rates tracking rates of returning former offender to jails and prisons mirrors a close resemblance to the national trends.
GOAL Create a tool which facilitates various mentorship programs equipping formerly incarcerated individuals with resources and tools for establishing a self-sufficient livelihood. The product will provide direct access to community resources, video-conferencing components, and interactive career development tools.
research:
THE MARKET
Staffing agency connecting formerly incarcerated persons with background friendly employers.
Texas Offenders Reentry Initiative guideS and empower ex-offenders for successful reintegration into society.
Transitioning program beginning pre-release and continuing beyond.
One stop shop for formerly incarcerated persons, a bit overwhelmingly filtering through information.
research
PERSONAS
USERS NEED INTERACTIVE EXPERIENCES WHICH SIMULATE AND PREPARE INDIVIDUALS FOR REAL-WORLD SITUATIONS.
USERS NEED TO COMMUNICATE(VIDEO-CONFERENCING, EMAILS, MESSAGES) AND SHARE (CALENDAR EVENTS, LOCATION, FILES OR DOCUMENTS) WITH PROGRAM LEADERS AND FELLOW PARTICIPANTS TO ESTABLISH A PROFESSIONAL NETWORK.
USERS NEED ACCESS TO RELEVANT PROGRAM OR COMMUNITY RESOURCE MATERIAL.
sketches, wireframes, usability
From pencil and paper sketches informing the digital wireframes which gave way to the prototype below, I used this process to ideate, prototype, and reiterate the onboarding and networking components of the product.
A brief video presenting the onboarding flow of an early, medium-fidelity prototype for the product.
WHAT I LEARNED
Completing this project had a 3 month deadline to conduct research, conceptualize, wireframe, test, prototype, design, and present. This project provided me the opportunity to prioritize tasks to complete certain objectives within a specified time. My process became more streamlined throughout, and I believe the core mission of the product in this project really allowed me to put more heart into this and truly make the user a priority.