In the movies, it happens this way: A man sheds prison scrubs for the street clothes he hasn’t seen in years; he collects his things and, to the hefty clank of keys, steps out—a free man—into sunlight. But in real life, ‘freedom’ isn’t so simple. In real life, says Danny Ludeman, president and CEO of the new Concordance Academy of Leadership, most people released from prison will find themselves reincarcerated within five years. Most will never find a full-time job, and 83 percent will have issues with substance abuse. Taking into account the children and families of those involved in the criminal justice system, it is estimated that the nationwide incarceration rate impacts 100 million individuals. (Currently, one in 28 children has a parent in prison, and 70 percent of those children are likely to be imprisoned themselves during their lifetime). “It’s a massive problem,” says Ludeman, who ranks it third on the list of societal ills after poverty and disease.
Ludeman’s nonprofit, formed in spring 2015 and based in St. Louis, aims to reduce recidivism by a third over the next decade by providing education and job training, behavioral health and substance use disorder services, and housing and family support to ex-prisoners, all under one roof. It also acts as an employment agency, placing participants in jobs that pay a living wage. The 18-month program begins six months prior to release and assembles an individualized team to smooth an inmate’s transition to the outside world. “When you are suffering from the effects of trauma, you need a supportive community,” Ludeman explains. “You need people who love you.”
To ensure the program’s efficacy, the organization works closely with Concordance Institute for Advancing Social Justice at Washington University’s Brown School of Social Work. The institute, led by founding director Dr. Carrie-Pettus Davis, conducts rigorous, evidence-based research, and has analyzed more than 100,000 different programs worldwide. Ludeman says the academy would not be possible without this vital research center, or its partnership with the Missouri Department of Corrections. “To see the academy now implementing its model and serving the needs of these individuals is positive progress for both prisoners and communities alike,” says the department’s director, George Lombardi. Currently, 28 men and women from three Missouri prisons are enrolled in Concordance Academy’s first class, with 320 participants and graduates expected by 2017. (Twenty-thousand people are released from Missouri prisons annually.)
Ludeman, formerly the CEO of Wells Fargo Advisors, retired in 2013 to earn a master’s degree in divinity from Covenant Theological Seminary. He says his exposure to the problem of reincarceration came by way of Project COPE, an organization with a similar mission. “I was guilty, I did not know,” he says. “But when you get up close to someone who is suffering, it is hard to do nothing. So many of us are blessed with so much.” Since then, the erstwhile businessman has given $1 million of his own money to the academy and helped raise another $11 million in pledges from private and public donors. “This comprehensive array of services is expensive, but we believe it is necessary based upon the research,” he says. And he points out incarceration also is expensive, costing the state $22,000 a year to house a single prisoner.
On Oct. 22, Concordance hosts its second annual gala, A Western Fling, at The Ritz-Carlton. “We need to tell the story,” Ludeman says. “This is not a population that lends itself well to being helped, but we have to change perceptions and reduce prejudice. We must remember that—just like all of us—they have been created in God’s image and have paid their debt to society. It’s time to open our hearts.”
Pictured: From mentorship to friendship, Danny Ludeman and Clarence Dinkins
Concordance Academy of Leadership hosts its second annual gala, A Western Fling, Oct. 22 at the Ritz-Carlton St. Louis. The event features a performance by Grammy-nominated country music star Trace Adkins, a VIP whiskey and wine reception, auction, raffles and dinner. The gala is underwritten by Marilyn and Sam Fox, Thelma and David Steward and Centene Charitable Foundation. Pictured on the cover, clockwise from left: Clarence Dinkins, Bill Rone, Dr. Roderick Nunn, Dr. Jeff Smith, Danny Ludeman, Mary Beth Bulte. For tickets and information, call 314.444.1126 or visit concordanceacademy.com/gala.
Cover design by Jon Fogel | Photo by Colin Miller of Strauss Peyton Photography
