Georgetown University’s Prisons and Justice Initiative was founded in 2016 to bring together leading scholars, practitioners, and students to examine the problem of mass incarceration—one of the most crucial moral and political issues of our time. Through public events, research seminars, and programming, PJI works to better understand the causes and consequences of the mass incarceration crisis and to contribute to bipartisan solutions for effective reform. PJI’s programs offer transformative education and training to open doors for incarcerated and formerly incarcerated individuals in Washington, D.C. and Maryland. One such program is the MORCA-Georgetown University Paralegal Program. The Paralegal Program is an educational certificate program for returning citizens in Washington, DC operated in partnership with the DC government Department of Employment Services  and Mayor’s Office on Returning Citizen Affairs. Participants in the program receive stipends for their time in the program and receive a certificate in paralegal studies from the Georgetown School of Continuing Studies. At the end of the program, they are placed in one year paid positions with area law firms and organizations.

The Program Manager provides daily support for the Paralegal Program, and coordinates closely with DOES, MORCA, and SCS to deliver the program. They and help to create calendars/schedules for the program, generate and process MOUs with our partners, recruit law firms and other organizations to provide paid placements for the program participants, work with PJI and SCS staff to deliver the 20-week program in person, ensure participants are paid, and process emergency assistance funding requests.

The Program Manager plans and executes events related to the program, including securing and paying fees for speakers and other guests; coordinates with alumni of the program to deliver mentoring and tutoring services to the new cohort of students; and engages in evaluation of the program during and following each cohort, and contributes to future planning discussions internally and with program partners.