NYCJC participants progressed through three phases of services: Phase 1 (about 3 weeks) provided job-readiness and life skills training, Phase 2 (minimum of 3 months) expected participants to partake in community service, and Phase 3 (minimum of 6 weeks) provided paid internships in public or private organizations or placement in a job or educational program. Participants could continue to receive work-readiness services during Phases 2 and 3, and, in all phases, participants could receive job coaching, counseling, and education services. NYCJC participants received a stipend of up to $280 per week while in the program. After graduating from the six-month program, participants could receive job retention services for up to an additional six months.
Young adults ages 18 to 24 years old were eligible to participate if they were on parole or probation, were in an alternative to incarceration program, had been released from prison or jail in the last year, and lived in the communities served by NYCJC. NYCJC was implemented in two communities with high rates of poverty and incarceration: one community in Bronx, NY, and one community in Brooklyn, NY.
NYCJC provided community service, internship, and employment and educational opportunities to young adults who were involved in the criminal justice system to help them improve their employment and education outcomes and reduce recidivism.