About IPI

Building a brighter future for incarcerated individuals in Iowa.

Who We Are

IPI is a work-training program designed to provide incarcerated individuals with the skills and knowledge they need to succeed once they are released from prison.

We offer a variety of programs, including signage, braille transcription, sewing, and printing, among others. Our goal is to equip our participants with the skills and work ethic they need to secure gainful employment and make a positive contribution to their communities upon release.

IPI's products and services may be purchased only by governmental agencies, school districts, nonprofit organizations and government employees. IPI is 100% self-funding and relies on the sales of our products and services to fund our valuable work training programs. By supporting IPI through the purchase of our products and services, you are helping to make a positive difference in the lives of many individuals who are working hard to turn their lives around.

Reduced Recidivism

IPI’s work training programs are one of the most successful programs in reducing recidivism – the likelihood that a released individual will return to prison. Since more than 90% of Iowa’s prison population will eventually be released (almost 5,000 every year), the work programs of IPI are vital to the safety and security of Iowa.

Statistics show that 34.2% of released inmates return to prison within 3 years, but work

training reduces this number by 8%. By giving inmates the opportunity to learn valuable skills and gain work experience, IPI is also contributing to the economic growth of Iowa. In fact, many businesses have reported success in hiring IPI graduates, who are often highly motivated and skilled employees.

Mission Statement

A self-sufficient program that positively impacts participant lives, reduces recidivism, and provides valued products and services to our communities.

Vision

A meaningful work training opportunity to develop utilizable skills for every person.

Statement of Intent (Iowa Code 904.801)

It is the intent of this division that there be made available to inmates of the state correctional institutions opportunities for work in meaningful jobs with the following objectives:

1. To develop within those inmates willing to accept and persevere in such work:
   1. Positive attitudes which will enable them to eventually function as law-abiding, self-supporting members of the community;
   2. Good work habits that will assist them in eventually securing and holding gainful employment outside the correctional system;
   3. To the extent feasible, marketable skills that can lead directly to gainful employment upon release from a correctional institution.
2. To enable those inmates willing to accept and persevere in such work to:
   1. Provide or assist in providing for their dependents, thus tending to strengthen the inmates’ family ties while reducing the likelihood that inmates’ families will have to rely upon public assistance for subsistence
   2. Make restitution, as the opportunity to do so becomes available, to the victims of the offenses for which the inmates were incarcerated, so as to assist the inmates in accepting responsibility for the consequences of their acts;
   3. Make it feasible to require that such inmates pay some portion of the cost of board and maintenance in a correctional institution, in a manner similar to what would be necessary if they were employed in the community;
   4. Accumulate savings so that such inmates will have funds for necessities upon their eventual return to the community.