PIONEER HUMAN SERVICES (WA)

Program Description
Pioneer Human Services is an entrepreneurial nonprofit organization that seeks to improve the lives of its clients through employment and training, social services, and housing. Pioneer provides services to atrisk populations, which primarily include individuals who were formerly incarcerated and former substance abusers. The program is a combination of correctional services, substance abuse services, behavioral health services, drug and alcohol-free housing, and employment in one of Pioneer’s businesses. Washington State Department of Corrections staff provide the training and counseling elements of the residential program, and Pioneer staff run the custodial and job training elements. Pioneer Human Services has nearly 1,000 staff and a budget of over $55 million to provide services to about 6,500 clients every year.

Pioneer Human Services manages 14 work-release correctional facilities that serve juveniles and adult men and women who are probation violators or individuals who are serving the last three to six months of their sentences. The program has an integrated approach to helping its clients. Services such as housing, on the job training, life skills training, risk assessment, communication skills, and inpatient substance abuse are provided. In addition, clients also have access to Pioneer-operated businesses. The organization manages several businesses and many of its clients are employed and trained in manufacturing skills, construction, printing, packing distribution, or food services. When clients leave the work-release program, they have the opportunity to continue working with Pioneer. Earnings from Pioneer’s products and services provide the funding for most of its $55 million operating budget.

Program Goals
Pioneer seeks to improve the lives of its clients though jobs, housing, and social services.

Networking, Partnering & Collaboration
Almost 99 percent of Pioneer’s budget comes from income from goods and services that are sold, rather than funding from foundations or grants. Pioneer forms contractual relationships with businesses in the commercial sector such as Boeing, Microsoft, and Nintendo. Pioneer partners with agencies such as the Washington Department of Corrections. The job training programs that are offered to Pioneer clients are conducted with local community colleges and state certification programs.

Outcomes
A University of Washington study found that participants in the Pioneer program had a lower recidivism rate (about six percent after two years) than other work-release programs. The study also found that Pioneer participants have higher earnings and work more hours than a comparison group that was used in the study. Pioneer also established a monthly client outcomes program that looks at the performance of Pioneer clients based on over 100 indicators.

Additional Reading
A case study was conducted on Pioneer Human Services in January 2000 by Paul Sommers, Bronwyn Mauldin, and Sara Levin of the Northwest Policy Center, Institute for Public Policy and Management, Daniel J. Evans School of Public Affairs, University of Washington. Available at http://depts.washington.edu/npc/npcpdfs/phsrep.pdf.

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