Participant Stories

Meet twenty-five year old Saed Dixon. Saed entered CEO’s Albany New York program in August of this year unsure of what to expect. While completing CEO’s one-week orientation, for the very first time in his life, he began exploring his career interests and goals.

Meet Crystal Malone. Upon release from incarceration, Crystal worked hard to find a job. Despite applying for many on her own, and being honest about her conviction history, she rarely even got an interview.

Meet Ronald Fairiror. Ronald enrolled in CEO’s Philadelphia program in September 2018, after being incarcerated for more than 20 years. Thanks to CEO, and the unwavering support of his mother, Ronald has made strides towards rebuilding his life.

At a young age, Robert lost the only positive role model in his life, his grandfather, and struggled to adjust. He was incarcerated in his late teens and spent much of the last decade cycling in at out of prison. When Robert returned home in April 2019, he was determined to carve out a different path for himself.

Charles Brown began his prison sentence when he was 17. By the time he returned home to Philadelphia he was a 53 year old whose entire adult life had been shaped by the criminal justice system. All of Charles’ accomplishments — from earning his GED to enrolling in college classes to becoming a mentor — were inseparable from his incarceration.

“I did two years in prison, and when I came out I didn’t have the basics … a job, or clothes, or anywhere to stay. My parole officer sent me to CEO and they helped me right away. CEO got me earning money to support myself, and provided me with opportunities to get trained in different skills and get experience in the field. It’s really boosting my resume ... I’ve been working with CEO for three months now, and all these experiences are teaching me how to carry myself and grow and adapt. CEO has really helped me reenter society.”

"[Those] were the first paychecks I'd received in seven years..."