In 2018, Slack, The Last Mile, W.K. Kellogg, and FREEAMERICA, co-created Next Chapter, a pilot program designed to shift perceptions about the potential of formerly incarcerated individuals and to generate new opportunities in skilled, long-term employment in the technology sector.

After eight months of rigorous training, one-on-one coaching/mentoring and successfully completing the Next Chapter program, the three apprentices in the first cohort are now full-time Slack engineers. They are valuable members of the Slack team and their unique experiences have contributed to helping build a robust product and an even more inclusive culture.

Since the success of the original pilot program, Next Chapter has become an independent social venture hosted at Slack, with Tides Center as the fiscal sponsor. We are continuing to scale and build more opportunities in the tech sector for those returning from incarceration.

Our mission is two fold; we aim to build a pathway for formerly incarcerated individuals to thrive in tech and transform the sector into a more inclusive, equitable workplace by shifting perceptions of those returning from incarceration. We believe that talent is equally distributed. With the right training, we hope to provide opportunities for those who would not only thrive at these large tech companies, but also fill the massive shortage of engineering talent that the tech community needs from an often-overlooked population.