PHOTO VIA WIKIPEDIA The Iowa Correctional Institute for Women in Mitchellville, pictured, may soon send inmates to work in foodservice at the Iowa Veterans Home if a proposed partnership between the two entities moves forward.

Iowa Veterans Home (IVH) Commandant Matthew Peterson has tried all of the traditional methods of advertising — mass media, job fairs, word of mouth and referral programs — to combat the workforce shortage in the foodservice department at the Marshalltown facility, but as the situation persisted, he and his leadership team decided to get creative.

In an effort to put a dent in the problem (according to a recent count, IVH is short nine full-time and five part-time foodservice workers) and avoid mandating more shifts for current employees, one of his team members suggested a partnership with the Women’s Correctional facility in Mitchellville, located about 45 miles south of Marshalltown, where she had previously worked.

“It just becomes an ugly spiral that we’ve got to get ahead of, and all of the efforts that we have implemented have helped to some degree, but they haven’t been enough,” Peterson said.

For the time being, the proposal would be open to women only and involve transporting four inmates who have been vetted and deemed the lowest security risk from the Mitchellville facility to IVH at 6:30 a.m., where they would work until 7:15 p.m. According to the plan, two groups of four would alternate days and work every day of the week except for Tuesday.

Nick Crawford, a spokesperson for the Iowa Department of Corrections (DOC), said the idea could be mutually beneficial for both entities.

“While pre-decisional, this proposal could be a fiscally-responsible option with significant rehabilitative benefits for all involved. It is common practice for the DOC to partner with employers in the community on opportunities like this, and IVH is exploring ways to fill critical needs such as foodservice staffing,” he wrote in an email. “A big part of the DOC mission is to find safe, innovative ways to reintegrate inmates back into the community after their time has been served and to help address workforce challenges communities are facing. The IVH environment provides a dignified, positive, service-oriented atmosphere for reintegration.”

Peterson acknowledged the potential skepticism about such an arrangement but hoped he could address any issues well ahead of the program’s launch date, which has not yet been determined.

“It’s not lost on us that the object could be very concerning for the community, our employees and our residents, and all of those are — probably in reverse order — my most important priorities. I would never do anything, and neither would anyone from the Department of Corrections, that knowingly jeopardizes the safety of anybody,” Peterson said. “Safety will be an enduring and primary concern throughout this entire program. (Inmates) are never going to be unsupervised.”

He also addressed the incident at the prison in Anamosa last year — when two inmates killed a correctional officer and a registered nurse as they attempted to escape — and said the situation is part of the reason IVH is only working with the women’s facility.

Beyond those concerns, however, Peterson is a firm believer in second chances and giving inmates valuable work experience that could even prepare them for a career once their period of incarceration has ended.

“They’re super excited for just a change of scenery and the opportunity that waits for them after they’re released from custody because that’s an enduring challenge for inmates to reintegrate and become a contributing member of society,” Peterson said. “My view is that people are never going to behave as contributing members of society if you don’t give them an avenue that allows them to do that.”

If the inmates perform well on the job without any problems and their sentences have ended, Peterson added, he would be more than willing to consider them for full-time employment.

“I’m excited about doing that because I think it’ll prove a point that people make mistakes sometimes, and sometimes all we need is a second chance to prove something they did is not necessarily who they are,” he said.

While the proposal is moving forward as a joint venture between IVH and the DOC, Peterson said it is still conceptual and will need to receive final approval from the governor’s office, but he is confident something will be worked out in the near future. Crawford is also optimistic about the prospect of an agreement being reached.

“When these types of programs are proposed, the DOC has an internal process where we evaluate the plausibility of this type of arrangement. The number one component of that evaluation is to implement measures that ensure the safety and security of IVH residents, employees, and the general public,” Crawford wrote. “To be clear, this proposal is preliminary but is a fiscally responsible option that could provide rehabilitation benefits for all involved. We look forward to exploring this option, but no decisions will be made until an extensive evaluation and appropriate supervision can be ensured.”

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Contact Robert Maharry

at 641-753-6611 ext. 255 or

rmaharry@timesrepublican.com.