[{"data":1,"prerenderedAt":-1},["ShallowReactive",2],{"doc-seo-264054-105":3,"detail-sidebar-cat-0-en-105":81,"doc-detail-264054-en":130},{"code":4,"msg":5,"data":6},0,"ok",{"site_id":7,"language":8,"slug":9,"title":10,"keywords":11,"description":12,"schema_data":13,"social_meta":74,"head_meta":76,"extra_data":78,"updated_unix":80},105,"en","voices-of-reentry-kalei-cheeks-profile","Voices of Reentry - Kalei Cheeks Profile","","Voices of Reentry profiles people rebuilding their lives after incarceration, spotlighting how programs funded by federal Improved Reentry Education grants make second chances real. This profile follows Kalei Cheeks as he prepares to pass the GED to enroll at Essex County College, relying on the BROWNS program at ECC to coordinate travel under court supervision. It also explains the regimented halfway-house model, the scheduling demands on students, and the staff mediation that helps learners handle both supervision and college processes.",{"@graph":14,"@context":73},[15,34,56],{"@type":16,"itemListElement":17},"BreadcrumbList",[18,23,27,31],{"item":19,"name":20,"@type":21,"position":22},"https://docshare.wps.com","Home","ListItem",1,{"item":24,"name":25,"@type":21,"position":26},"https://docshare.wps.com/document/","Document",2,{"item":28,"name":29,"@type":21,"position":30},"https://docshare.wps.com/document/healthcare/","Healthcare",3,{"item":32,"name":10,"@type":21,"position":33},"https://docshare.wps.com/document/voices-of-reentry-kalei-cheeks-profile/264054/",4,{"url":32,"name":10,"@type":35,"image":36,"author":41,"headline":10,"publisher":44,"fileFormat":47,"inLanguage":8,"description":12,"dateModified":48,"datePublished":49,"encodingFormat":47,"isAccessibleForFree":50,"interactionStatistic":51},"DigitalDocument",{"url":37,"@type":38,"width":39,"height":40},"https://docshare.wps.com/thumbnails/voices-of-reentry-kalei-cheeks-profile/264054.png","ImageObject",300,407,{"name":42,"@type":43},"Levi","Person",{"url":19,"name":45,"@type":46},"DocShare","Organization","application/pdf","2026-10-22","2026-09-14",true,{"@type":52,"interactionType":53,"userInteractionCount":55},"InteractionCounter",{"@type":54},"ViewAction",9,{"@type":57,"mainEntity":58},"FAQPage",[59,65,69],{"name":60,"@type":61,"acceptedAnswer":62},"What is the BROWNS program described in the profile?","Question",{"text":63,"@type":64},"BROWNS is a program at Essex County College funded under the Improved Reentry Education grant. 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Articles in the series tell individual stories to highlight the impact of programs funded under federal Improved Reentry Education grants.  \n“I almost cried when I heard that I passed the GED. It was a big relief. I accomplished something,”  \nKalei Cheeks recounts. He remembers the exact day—August 4, 2016, two days before his 23rd birthday.“It was an early birthday present.” When Kalei came into the Bridging Reentry Opportunities for Workforce Navigation to Success (BROWNS) program in March 2016, he had taken portions of the GED exam but still needed to pass the test in two subjects. Adult Basic Education instructor Alicia Calleros told him he would probably be ready in a few months. But that wasn’t soon enough for Kalei—he had his sights set on enrolling at Essex County College (ECC) in September, and he needed a GED to do that. Alicia started calling around  \nKalei Cheeks  \nto find where the test was being administered and then to arrange the logistics of getting Kalei to the test site in East Orange, New Jersey. Because Kalei is under court supervision and lives in a halfway house—an alternative to serving a prison sentence—he can’t simply hop on a bus and go take the test. He needs to be accompanied, and the house must give permission for him to travel. Kalei was determined, and Alicia made it happen.  \nAlicia is a remarkable woman, but the effort she put into making it possible for Kalei to take his GED exam in time is typical of the flexibility, creativity, and determination required of the staff who run the BROWNS program at ECC. The College’s Next Step program has a long history of supporting students with a criminal history who are eligible to enroll in college, but BROWNS, funded under the Improved Reentry Education grant, allows ECC to serve a much wider group: students who are still under court supervision and who may not be college ready. Providing postsecondary education within the court supervision system—in the shape of the halfway houses where all BROWNS students live for the first months after their release—presents a host of challenges and one distinct advantage: the structured environment helps students focus on school and avoid distractions that can derail their successful reentry. That’s why residence in the halfway house for the entire first semester is a requirement for participation in BROWNS.  \nWORKING UNDER SUPERVISION  \nLife in a halfway house is highly regimented and closely supervised. Residents progress through three phasesand earn increasing freedom of movement. In the third and final phase, residents can leave the house to attend  \n“The structured environment [of the halfway house] helps  \nstudents focus on school and avoid distractions that can derail their successful reentry.”  \nschool or work, as long as they meet stringent reporting requirements. They must report where they’re going, for how long, who they will be with, and how they’re getting to their destination. Travel routes must be mapped and documented, and any deviation from pre-arranged transportation plans is considered a violation and can result in a resident’s return to prison. This means that residents can’t hop in a car with a friend who happens to be passing the bus stop and offers them a ride. Once at school or work, residents are required to check ina number of times each day by phone, and a missed check-in—whether because a resident forgot or because the house staffer who answered the phone didn’t record the call—can land a resident back in prison.  \nBecause of these restrictions, BROWNS students’schedules need to be carefully crafted to ensure that academic classes, mentoring meetings, tutoring, and study time in the computer lab can all be squeezed into two days on campus. Building study time into the schedule is important, since most homework needs to","cbCaivv9h5g0wN9g","https://ap.wps.com/l/cbCaivv9h5g0wN9g","pdf",1734541,"English","# Working Under Supervision\n## GED Progress and Program Support\n## Challenges of Court Supervision\n## Scheduling and Study Constraints\n## Coordination Across Halfway Houses\n## Staff Mediation and Ongoing Guidance","[{\"question\":\"What is the BROWNS program described in the profile?\",\"answer\":\"BROWNS is a program at Essex County College funded under the Improved Reentry Education grant. It helps students reenter through postsecondary education, including people who are still under court supervision.\"},{\"question\":\"Why does Kalei Cheeks need support to take the GED test?\",\"answer\":\"Because Kalei lives in a halfway house and is under court supervision, he cannot travel to testing on his own. He must be accompanied, and the house must grant permission for him to go to the test site.\"},{\"question\":\"What are some key restrictions residents face in a halfway house?\",\"answer\":\"Residents must follow strict reporting rules, map and document travel routes, and complete frequent phone check-ins. Missing check-ins or deviating from approved plans can lead to return to prison.\"}]","Voices of Reentry - Kalei Cheeks Profile | PDF",1789377022,18]