What is Dismas House?
Dismas House is a supportive community that provides transitional housing and services to former prisoners and real-life educational opportunities to students from area colleges, and from througout the US and the world! The men and women of Dismas House live and work as a family, helping each other grow towards the goal of reintegration into society. Dismas provides a consesnsus-based, sober alternative to a return to the streets, and a return to incarceration. Our cooks, donors, board members and other volunteers help make reconciliation a reality.
"Dismas House Works!"
-Sister Helen Prejean, author of Dead Man Walking and Nobel Peace Prize nominee
Dismas House does work. Both a city-sponsored study and a three-year tracking project of recidivism rates found that Dismas House residents stabilize and succeed at rates between 69-75%. This stands in stark contrast to the general prison population, who return to jail at a rate of 75%!
How it Works
The key to Dismas House is the phrase "Dismas is family". The success of the house is a collaborative effort. People living in the house pay part of the operating expenses. Students are given opportunities for internships in non-profit management and/or live-in positions in the Dismas community. There are simple rules, such as no violence, drugs or alcohol; and there are expectations, such as attendance at dinners, curfews, chores and participating in house meetings and activities
