George Hairston

Program Assistant

Joined CSS: 2013

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Departments & Programs

Reentry Initiatives

Next Door Project

Reentry Initiatives

Bio

George Hairston is Program Assistant with CSS's Next Door Project, which trains older adult volunteers to help people with conviction histories request, read, and repair their NYS Division of Criminal Justice Services rap sheets (and FBI rap sheets, if they have arrests from outside New York State).  Next Door Project counselors also help individuals apply for Certificates of Good Conduct or Certificates of Relief from Disabilities, which provide presumptive evidence of rehabilitation and overcome numerous statutory barriers to employment and licensure.

“I appreciate and am immensely grateful that I was afforded the opportunity to work with the Community Service Society’s Next Door Project. As a Program Assistant, I have the opportunity to help those in need. I believe the issues we are dealing with, which span both past and present, need to change in a systemic way. Incarceration and its dehumanizing effects are tearing families apart and leaving our clients with little to no opportunity. It gives me hope through the service we provide that we are getting close to “shutting down inequality.” With the enactment of the Fair Chance Act, along with certificates of rehabilitation and lots of support, we are giving our clients empowerment, information, and hope.”