CDL program offers Arizona inmates second chance through career in trucking

An Arizona program designed to offer inmates a chance at a better life after prison has reached a milestone. The program, which helps to train inmates for a career in trucking, has now seen more than 400 complete the program.

A partnership between the Arizona Department of Transportation and the Arizona Department of Corrections, Rehabilitation and Reentry, the CDL program is a part of Arizona’s Second Chance Center, which allows inmates an opportunity to earn their commercial learner’s permit before their release. Offenders are able to enroll at a CDL school to complete their training immediately following their release, giving them a chance to rejoin the workforce quickly with a good career.

The Second Chance Center is available to minimum custody inmates with less than five years remaining on their sentence. The state defines minimum custody inmates as those who represent a low risk to the public and staff. In a news release from the ADOT, David Shinn, director of the Department of Corrections, emphasized the need for these types of programs.

“We are extremely grateful for the collaborative efforts by everyone involved in this program, including state and local agencies, as well as community partners,” Shinn said. “Programs such as this are crucial opportunities that help people change their lives as they return to the community.”

The CDL program – which was launched in 2019 at the Eagle Point Unit of Arizona State Prison Complex-Lewis– is one of a number of career-focused programs for inmates working towards their release.

The success of the program led to its recent expansion to the Second Chance Center at the women’s Perryville Prison in November 2021. To date, 76 women have completed the program, helping to recruit females to a highly male-dominated industry. Based upon data from the federal Bureau of Labor, it is widely reported that women make up just 6-7% of the trucking workforce.

According to Ryan Harding, ADOT public information officer, the CDL program helps to address two issues at once.

“We’re trying to reduce recidivism and then also address the shortage of commercial drivers, because that’s an industry that has a lot of need right now,” Harding told Land Line Now. “Having a commercial driver’s license really enhances your chances of getting a job because of that need in the industry. This is a way that we can help address that and help these individuals reintegrate back into society and move on.”

Arizona’s first Second Chance Center opened in March 2017 as a means of providing training to inmates as they prepared for the uphill task of reentry into the workforce. Recognizing the success of the center, Gov. Doug Ducey announced the states’ expansion of the program in January 2020.

The state now operates three Second Chance Centers, offering career training during incarceration as well as reentry employment services to inmates post-release.

Christi Kirkendoll, corporate director of admissions at the Phoenix Truck Driving Institute, has worked with a number of former inmates who have passed through the program. In her experience, those students are grateful for a second chance.

“Extremely grateful,” Kirkendoll told ABC15. “A lot of my graduates will come back and give that ‘thank you’ for believing in me and helping me through this process to become a part of society again.” LL

More Arizona news is available.