Cory Booker “Ban the Box” bill heads to president’s desk

Fair Chance Act, included in NDAA, would give formerly incarcerated individuals a fairer chance at finding a job.

WASHINGTON, D.C. – A bipartisan bill authored by U.S. Senators Cory Booker (D-NJ) and Ron Johnson (R-WI) to give individuals with past convictions a better chance to find employment passed the U.S. Senate today as part of the National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA). Last week, the U.S. House of Representatives approved NDAA and the bill now awaits President Trump’s signature.

“After many fits and starts, we are finally about to give formerly incarcerated individuals a second chance by eliminating a major hurdle they face when job-searching,” Sen. Booker said. “This legislation will immediately change lives by allowing thousands of qualified people with criminal records to more meaningfully integrate into life outside prison walls. Getting this over the finish line was truly a collaborative effort, and I’m grateful to our bipartisan, bicameral coalition and the many stakeholder groups for their tireless advocacy. I know my late colleague, Chairman Elijah Cummings, is smiling down on us today because together, we have made a small, but important step in ensuring our criminal justice system better lives up to our ideals as a place for redemption and rehabilitation.”

“Getting people back to work improves the safety of our communities, strengthens families, and reduces government dependence – goals that all Americans share,” Sen. Johnson said. “If someone getting out of prison wants to work and be a productive member of society, we should do everything possible to facilitate that. Today’s passage of the Fair Chance Act is an important step in that direction.”

The Fair Chance Act would give formerly incarcerated individuals a better chance to find employment by prohibiting the federal government and federal contractors from asking about the criminal history of a job applicant prior to the extension of a conditional offer of employment. Criminal records reduce the chance of a callback or job offer by nearly 50 percent for men in general, making it difficult for individuals to move on from past convictions and contribute to society. Black men with criminal records are 60 percent less likely to receive a callback or job offer than those without records. For individuals trying to turn the page on a difficult chapter in their lives, a criminal conviction poses a substantial barrier to employment.

Earlier this year, Booker and Johnson testified on this bipartisan and bicameral legislation before two subcommittees of the House Committee on Oversight and Reform.

The Fair Chance Act builds upon the First Step Act, the most sweeping overhaul of the criminal justice system in a generation, which was signed into law last December. Booker was a key architect of the landmark bill and successfully fought to include provisions that effectively eliminated the solitary confinement of juveniles in federal supervision and the shackling of pregnant inmates. He also fought to include provisions that require healthcare products be provided to incarcerated women.

The Fair Chance Act would:

Prevent the federal government—including the executive, legislative, and judicial branches—from requesting criminal history information from applicants until they reach the conditional offer stage. Prohibit federal contractors from requesting criminal history information from candidates for positions within the scope of federal contracts until the conditional offer stage. Include important exceptions for positions related to law enforcement and national security duties, positions requiring access to classified information, and positions for which access to criminal history information before the conditional offer stage is required by law. Require the Bureau of Justice Statistics, in coordination with the U.S. Census Bureau, to issue a report on the employment statistics of formerly incarcerated individuals.

This legislation has been endorsed by ACLU; American Conservative Union; FreedomWorks; Justice Action Network; JustLeadershipUSA; Leadership Conference on Civil and Human Rights; National Employment Law Project; R Street Institute; Safer Foundation; and Brett L. Tolman, Former U.S. Attorney, District of Utah.

Help black students continue their education

Union County College Foundation trustee George L. Cook III and some of the young men helped by the Close The Gap Fund.

Hi, my name is George L. Cook III. I am a trustee on the Union County College Foundation, and we help students finish college.

Many African American students at our college struggle to finish school not because of academics but because of finances.

Many of these students struggle with their stay in school but not due to grades. They need help with paying for classes, books, transportation, and even paying for lunch.

The Union County College Foundation and we have a fund called the Close The gap Fund to help these students finish college.

I am raising money for that fund, and your contribution will make an impact, whether you donate $5 or $500. Every little bit helps.

Many of these students struggle to stay in school but not due to grades. They need help with paying for classes, books, transportation, and even paying for lunch.

Last year we raised over $2,500 through Facebook fundraisers. That may not sound like much, but that money helped students pay for that last class needed to graduate or a book they needed for a class. Anything you can give can change a young person’s life.

Many of these students that were helped continued to further their college education to help better themselves and our communities. Please give today.

You can donate to the Close The gap Fund here: https://www.facebook.com/donate/438911413440654/

More About the Close the Gap – Seeing the growing achievement gap among our African-American students, four volunteers knew that something had to be done. Working with local governmental officials and community leadership they developed the Close The Gap Campaign to provide financial assistance to students approaching graduation as well as resources for other academic needs. This program has already had an impact on student success which has translated into nearly doubling the African American male graduation rate in one year. For more information on this program please click here

More about the Union County College Foundation The Union County College Foundation was established in 1977 with the mission of supporting the educational needs of Union County College students by providing resources not available through public funding. Foundation dollars provide support for scholarships, equipment, facilities, academic programs and special projects. The mission of the Union County College Foundation is to develop private financial resources to support Union County College programs and students.

Crystal Shauntal Walker Is Missing

MICHIGAN-Kalamazoo Department of Public Safety officers are asking for the public's help with finding a missing woman.

22-year-old Crystal Shauntal Walker was last seen by family members at Reed Street in Kalamazoo on Saturday November 16th, 2019. It's unclear if she was with someone else when she later went missing.

Walker is described as a black female who is about 5 foot and three inches tall, weighing about 140 pounds. Walker also has star tattoos found on her upper chest area.

Anyone with information regarding Walker is urged to contact Kalamazoo Public Safety at (269) 337-8369 or Silent Observer at (269) 343-2100.

Reginald DesRoches named Rice university's first African american Provost

Reginald DesRoches, the dean of Rice University’s George R. Brown School of Engineering, has been named the Rice University’s new provost.

With this appointment becomes the first African American provost in Rice's history.

DesRoches will assume one of the university’s most important leadership posts. Together with the deans and vice provosts, the provost’s office supports excellence in all of the university’s academic, research, scholarly and creative activities.

“I could not be more grateful and excited that Reggie has agreed to serve as our next provost,” Rice President David Leebron said. “He is an accomplished scholar and a proven academic leader. During his years as dean of engineering at Rice, he has demonstrated in numerous ways that he shares the high aspirations and values of the university. His commitment to excellence extends to every part of our endeavors.”

DesRoches has served as the William and Stephanie Sick Dean of Engineering since 2017, leading a school with nine departments, 140 faculty and 2,500 students. Effective July 1, he will assume the duties now fulfilled by interim Provost Seiichi Matsuda, Rice’s dean of graduate and postdoctoral studies, who succeeded Provost Marie Lynn Miranda.

“I am deeply honored and excited,” DesRoches said. “Serving as dean of engineering for the past 2 1/2 years has been among the most rewarding times in my career. It is an absolute privilege to serve as the next provost and I look forward to working with President Leebron, the faculty and staff to enhance the university’s stellar reputation.”

As dean, DesRoches led a comprehensive strategic planning process for the School of Engineering, expanded the engineering faculty by nearly 20% and strengthened collaborations with the Texas Medical Center. Under his leadership, the school launched a new minor in data science as well as the Center for Transforming Data to Knowledge, which provides students immersive learning opportunities working with companies and community organizations. DesRoches also established a Master of Computer Science online program and led several international initiatives in China and India to bolster research and recruiting efforts.

Born in Port-au-Prince, Haiti, and raised in the New York City borough Queens, DesRoches credits his love of science and math and his interest in “tinkering with things” with leading him to pursue a degree in mechanical engineering. As a student earning his doctorate at the University of California, Berkeley, he witnessed firsthand the structural damage wrought by the historic 1989 Loma Prieta earthquake in San Francisco.

“I became fascinated with studying structural engineering and how we could design structures to perform better in earthquakes, and I ended up studying that for my master’s and Ph.D.,” he said.

DesRoches is a nationally recognized expert on earthquake resilience who has testified before U.S. House and Senate subcommittees. He has also participated in Washington, D.C., roundtables for media and congressional staffers on topics ranging from disaster preparedness to challenges for African American men in the STEM fields — science, technology, engineering and mathematics.

DesRoches came to Rice from Georgia Tech in Atlanta, where he became an assistant professor in 1998. In 2002, he received the Presidential Early Career Award for Scientists and Engineers, the highest honor given to scientists and engineers in the early stages of their careers. DesRoches became a professor in 2008, and in 2012 he was named the Karen and John Huff School Chair and Professor of Civil and Environmental Engineering. At Georgia Tech, he oversaw a $13.5 million renovation of the engineering school’s main facilities and doubled the number of named chairs and professors.

DesRoches is a recipient of the Distinguished Arnold Kerr Lecturer Award in 2019, the John A. Blume Distinguished Lecturer award in 2018 and the 2018 Earthquake Engineering Research Institute Distinguished Lecturer Award, one the highest honors in the earthquake engineering field. He is also a recipient of the 2015 American Society of Civil Engineers (ASCE) Charles Martin Duke Lifeline Earthquake Engineering Award, the 2010 Georgia Tech Outstanding Doctoral Thesis Advisor Award, the 2007 ASCE Walter L. Huber Civil Engineering Research Prize and the 2008 Georgia Tech ANAK Award, the highest honor the undergraduate student body can bestow on a Georgia Tech faculty member.

DesRoches serves on the National Construction Safety Team Advisory Committee and chairs the advisory board for the Natural Hazards Engineering Research Infrastructure Simulation Center. He has chaired the ASCE Seismic Effects Committee as well as the executive committee of the Technical Council on Lifeline Earthquake Engineering.

DesRoches’ wife, Paula, is the director of occupational health at Houston Methodist. They have three children: Andrew, Jacob and Shelby (Sid Rich ’23).

Sylvester Turner wins re-election as Houston Mayor

Houston’s incumbent mayor won a second term on Saturday night, holding off a millionaire trial lawyer whose previous support of President Donald Trump had become one of the main campaign issues.

Mayor Sylvester Turner defeated Tony Buzbee during Saturday’s runoff election. Unofficial results released by the Harris County Clerk’s Office on Sunday morning show Turner capturing just over 56% of the vote. More than 200,000 votes were cast.

Mayor Turner said he accomplished a lot in his first four years, but says there's a lot more to be done in Houston.

"And that’s why we asked you for a second term," he said.

While talking to supporters, Mayor Turner said everyone needs to work together to make the city safer, saying it's "not just the responsibility of 5,300 police officers. Making our city safe is all of our responsibility."

"We have to make sure that we are patrolling our own streets, what goes on in our own homes, what’s happening in our own neighborhoods," he said. "So I want to say to our 5,300 police officers and those that will be added – we stand with you, we uplift you, we pray for you and we 100 percent support you every single day."

Mayor Turner will be sworn in with other elected officials on January 2.