The David Rothenberg Center for Public Policy (DRCPP)
Founded in 1967, The Fortune Society has been a powerful advocate and re-entry service provider for four decades. Fortune’s leadership role as an advocate for the rights and fair treatment of people with criminal records and for fair criminal justice policies was recognized shortly after its founding when Fortune’s founder, David Rothenberg, and two of its formerly incarcerated leaders, Kenny Jackson and Mel Rivers, were asked by people incarcerated at Attica Correctional to join the observers present in the yard during the Attica Rebellion.
While Fortune has always engaged in advocacy and community education, we have recently launched the David Rothenberg Center for Public Policy (DRCPP), which focuses primarily on public policy advocacy.
DRCPP coordinates The Fortune Society's policy development, advocacy, technical assistance, training, and community education efforts. DRCPP integrates Fortune's internal expertise – the life experience of our formerly incarcerated staff and clients and our first-hand experience as a direct service provider – with research and evaluation to advocate for a fairer criminal justice system; promote effective program models and needed supports for people with criminal justice histories; and change the counter-productive laws and policies that create unfair barriers to the successful re-entry of people with criminal justice histories into our communities.
The Fortune Society has a long and active history of collaborating with advocates, policy experts and government entities to develop sound re-entry and alternatives to incarceration policy. In addition, DRCPP provides technical assistance to community-based organizations around the country in the form of research reports, best practices and case studies.
How to Get Involved
Learn about our advocacy work. Click to here download the DRCPP's current policy agenda for 2008-2010.
Get connected. Join DRCPP's mailing list to stay informed about our work to remove counterproductive barriers to re-entry facing men and women who have been through the criminal justice system. To sign up, click here.
___________________
Representatives from The Fortune Society frequently appear before community boards and other legislative bodies to speak about important criminal justice issues. You can read our most recent testimony below:
Joint Public Hearing: Public Protection Budget (FY 2009-10): January 27, 2009 Download PDF
City Council Hearing on GED Testing: January 14, 2009
Download PDFJoint Public Hearing: The Rockefeller Drug Laws – 35 Years Later: May 8, 2008
Download PDF
State
Executive Budget FY 2008-2009: February 7, 2008
Download PDF
City Jails: April 25, 2006
Download PDF
Non-Health Related Discharge Planning: December 19, 2006
Download PDF
HIV Test, Counseling and Informed Consent: December 20, 2006
Download PDF
