Chicago: Mayor's Office Of Reentry Releases Inaugural 2025 End Of Year Report

CHICAGO – Today, the Mayor's Office of Reentry released its First Year Report, highlighting the foundational work that has been done to shape reentry policy and programming while offering a comprehensive review of the City's approach to improving outcomes and providing support for system impacted individuals. Mayor Johnson re-established and rebuilt the Office of Reentry in 2024, making it permanent with a dedicated staff, marking the City's first fully-resourced commitment to reentry.

"One year ago, I made a commitment to establish a fully-staffed Office of Reentry with a clear purpose: to create and invest in meaningful initiatives that support Chicagoans returning to our communities after incarceration," said Mayor Brandon Johnson. "Today, I am proud to share the progress we've made and reaffirm our dedication to this important work of ensuring all returning residents have access to the resources and opportunities they need to rebuild their lives and thrive."

"The first year was about transformation through unity, aligning city systems, community partnerships, and lived experience to make reentry in Chicago not just possible, but purposeful," said Director of the Mayor's Office of Reentry Joseph Mapp. "Every milestone we've reached reflects the power of collaboration and the belief that returning residents are not defined by our past, but by the opportunities we create together for their future."

The initiatives outlined in the end of year report reflect the City's commitment to building safer, more supported communities. The office is charged with providing and increasing opportunities for justice impacted individuals by reducing and removing barriers and building pathways that moves beyond reintegration to restoration.

The Office of Reentry's First Year Report highlights work completed between September 2024 and September 2025. During its first year, key accomplishments included:

• Advancing and completing the RFP process to establish Chicago's first women-focused Community Reentry Support Center to address the unique needs for women and those that identify as women returning home from incarceration;
• Partnering with Department of Family Support Services (DFSS) to raise the standard of care and accountability across City-funded reentry support centers, helping establish consistent practices, strong oversight, and better outcomes for returning residents.

Building on this foundation, the office continued its work beyond the one year mark. Highlights from October 2025 to December 2025 include:

• Created the Returning with Hope Microgrant program, providing $600,000 in flexible funding to 32 individual organizations and collaborative partnerships to expand mental health services and reentry support for returning residents;
• Hosted a Reentry Toy Drive in partnership with the Mayor's Office of Community Engagement which distributed toys and other gifts to more than 300 returning residents and their families;
• Launched a policy survey which incorporates feedback from system impacted individuals with the goal to influence policy change;
• Developed the Youth Reentry Guidebook to support young people impacted by the justice system.

"I am extremely pleased with the accomplishments that the Office of Reentry has achieved within the past year. Together, we're aligning systems, uplifting community-based organizations, and investing in people," said Deputy Mayor of the Mayor's Office of Community Safety Garien Gatewood. "Every Chicagoan, no matter their past, deserves stability, success and a fair chance. In the first year, the office reached significant milestones that are helping drive Mayor Johnson's vision of stability as the foundation of community safety."

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The Mayor's Office of Reentry remains committed to working in partnership with stakeholders across the city to build a Chicago where safety, dignity, and opportunity are possible for every resident, regardless of past system involvement.

"The services I have received has provided me the opportunity to change my life and grow into a new career path," said a client at The Howard & Evanston Community Center. "I was able to get accepted to the CTA Second Chance program, where I then earned employment with CTA permanently as a Customer Service Agent. Beyond just finding a job, this journey has provided me with a sense of stability and professional pride that I didn't know was possible. It has shown me that with the right support and personal determination, it is never too late to start a new chapter."

In the year to come, the Office will build on its reentry efforts to create opportunities and solutions for justice impacted Chicagoans some of which will encompass

• Connecting individuals who are currently incarcerated to mental health support in their return home to Chicago;
• Strategically focusing on housing for returning residents, prioritizing stable, affordable, and dignified housing as a cornerstone of successful reentry and community safety;
• Elevating lived experience leadership by ensuring formerly incarcerated individuals are not only participants but co-designers and implementers of reentry solutions.

Entering the second year of its re-establishment, the Office of Reentry aims to continue strengthening partnerships and advancing initiatives to build off the momentum to further improve the quality of lives of system impacted individuals throughout the city.

The full report is available at chicago.gov/reentry.

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About the Mayor's Office of Reentry

The Office of Reentry convenes, communicates, and coordinates to create an equitable and holistic reentry process that values dignity and needs of returning residents, their families, and the broader community.

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Mayor's Office of Community Safety

The Mayor's Office of Community Safety (MOCS) is committed to investing intentionally in people and communities through the full force of government and a community-driven approach that aims to systemically promote community safety by addressing root causes. For more information visit our website at https://www.chicago.gov/city/en/sites/community-safety/home.html.

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