The Department of Family and Support Services (DFSS) announced an innovative reentry initiative designed to support the critical housing needs for individuals exiting incarceration. The SPRING Forward (Selected Pre-Release for Intensive Navigation support Going Forward) program aims at providing comprehensive support for individuals reentering society after periods of incarceration, including extensive housing and employment navigation. This pioneering initiative underscores the city’s commitment to rehabilitation, community reintegration, and reducing recidivism rates. SPRING Forward focuses on a two-part approach to reentry success: employment and housing. Through this collaborative approach, lead Program Administrators Cara Collective and Lawndale Christian Legal Center, alongside DFSS, will work to provide employment and housing navigation services to residents released from Cook County Department of Corrections and the Illinois Department of Corrections. Individuals recently released within 18 months are eligible to apply. Eligible applicants must also be 18 years or older, reside in Chicago, or returning to Chicago, and face housing insecurity, such as the possibility of homelessness or uncertain housing options. Applicants begin by contacting Cara Collective’s SPRING Forward hotline at (312) 798-3310. Cara Collective will start by helping secure employment and provide a base of support for participants of SPRING Forward. Once enrolled in employment services with Cara Collective, Lawndale Christian Legal Center (LCLC) will lead the housing navigation by facilitating access to reasonably priced housing and housing-supportive services to stabilize residents and mitigate the risk of recidivism. For more information, contact the SPRING Forward hotline (312) 798-3310.
Recently, I had visited the campus of a technical college my wife is an alumnus of. Students went in and out for classes, school staff worked in various parts of the campus running the administration, and security was around in case there were any problems. About the only real problem was a baby skunk that had wondered on campus. Security got it back into the woods. There are about 2,000 full-time and part-time students enrolled, and at any one time there might be a few hundred students on campus in class or in the school library. When the weather is fair (usually late spring or early summer and fall) students can be seen walking on the outside campus grounds. Until about a year and a half ago, there were restrictions for both students and visitors due to the Covid pandemic, but those restrictions have since been lifted. Everything was pretty quiet when I visited.
Con los meses de invierno aproximándose a gran velocidad, la necesidad de proveer a las familias con abrigos de invierno, zapatos y ropa abrigada, junto con otros artículos esenciales, es eminente. Desde el 31 de agosto del 2022, la Ciudad de Chicago ha recibido a más de 19,000 personas que buscan asilo. De acuerdo a un estudio del 2023 hecho por Chicago Coalition for the Homeless, más de 68,000 residentes de Chicago experimentan actualmente el desamparo. Para proteger a los recién llegados y a los residentes de Chicago sin vivienda de la caída de las temperaturas, la Ciudad está colaborando con socios externos para proporcionar mantas, abrigos y otros artículos. Para los residentes y organizaciones interesadas en hacer un impacto directo, la Ciudad trabaja con un número de organizaciones y grupos de ayuda mutua para ayudar a los recién llegados. Las siguientes son la organizaciones que puede encontrar en línea en 
