Stephanie F. who asked Luck not to reveal her last name for privacy reasons, she was 39 years old when she was jailed in 2018 Coffee Creek Correctional Facility, a medium-security women’s prison in Oregon that houses everything from drug charges to those serving life without parole. At the time, she said, “I never really took care of myself,” and she needed to learn to “control my temper and keep my mouth shut.”
Five years after her imprisonment, she desperately wanted a fresh start. With ten years until her release in 2032, prison could be demoralizing. That’s when she met another woman in custody who was enrolled in the cosmetology program at Coffee Creek, which grants graduates a state license in hair, esthetics and nails to work as cosmetologists and estheticians upon release. This changed everything for her.
“I saw the transformation this man made and who he became,” she said. Luck in a telephone interview, “And I just thought: I want this my whole life. I want to become better.”
Now 45, Stephanie is 11 months into the two-year program and is about to join a group of 36 graduates, nine of whom have been released. The correctional facility is partnering with a skin therapy company. Dermologics has been participating in the program since 2019 with the goal of helping women run their own businesses or secure a livable income upon release. When she is released, she will join the estimated 650,000 people released from state and federal prisons each year, some of whom gain freedom with “little more than a few dollars and a bus ticket,” according to statement President Joe Biden issued a statement declaring April “Second Chance Month.”
Historically, Americans with criminal records have faced an inhospitable job market. According to report According to the Bureau of Justice Statistics, which tracked 50,000 people after leaving prison in 2010, more than a third were unemployed four years after release, and no more than 40% of them were employed at any one time. But the situation is changing: in survey of 1,000 job seekers surveyed by Indeed, 92% said they would be comfortable with a co-worker with a nonviolent conviction. Companies like Dermalogica are also focusing more on equity. In 2022, the Union Pacific railroad started hiring former prisoners, citing evidence that employment helps them avoid further arrests and reduces the likelihood of their children being incarcerated.
For formerly incarcerated people, re-entering society is one of the “greatest challenges facing the criminal justice system,” according to the National Institute of Justice. report. 78,000 women are released from prison every year, and the number of women entering jails and prisons is growingthis is an issue that deserves attention.
In addition to employment, the report says, challenges include housing and mental health treatment, family reunification, child care and parenting. In fact, the majority of female prisoners are parents of children under the age of 18.
The goal of Dermalogica’s partnership with Coffee Creek is to help women get out of prison with some of those requirements, namely the ability to earn a living wage and support their families. The partnership includes a 1,835-hour hair, skin and nails certification program for groups of 20 women at a time.
The program is structured around two instructors on Dermalogica’s staff, contracted by the prison to teach monthly classes via Zoom while female inmates practice techniques on each other and on mannequins. They also study theory through textbooks and workbooks provided by the company. Dermalogica does not disclose the amount of funding for the program, but provides more than 50 products such as facial cleansers, exfoliators, moisturizers, brushes and LED devices for advanced skin care twice a year, as well as study materials for licensing certification exams in end of the program.
During the classes, women learn how to treat various skin conditions and also perform practical procedures. Once one student has completed 1,835 hours, another can begin training as they enroll. The goal is to give incarcerated women a set of skills they can rely on upon release and which they can apply to a growing industry.
The professional skin care industry is growing at an accelerated pace, said Dermalogica CEO Aurelian Lies. Luckadding that the program “works comprehensively to prepare students for roles that will be more in demand than ever.”
Of course, the industry is growing: The professional skin care market was valued at approximately $12.4 billion in 2022 and is projected to grow to $15.3 billion by 2029. World Market Reviews report on LinkedIn. Bureau of Labor Statistics also expects skin care employment growth to grow 9% from 2022 to 2032, much faster than the average for other occupations. But courses that also cover entrepreneurship and social skills offer much more than just good job prospects.
Lees said the program is unique in the correctional facility because “it’s the only place where adult inmates can touch each other.” Because of the no-touch rule, “you lose your humanity,” she added, and that’s something many women struggle with. Stephanie agreed, noting that she believes it’s normal human behavior to want to hug your friends and that physical touch can improve mental health.
Sarah E., a graduate of the program who spent five years at the facility before her release in February 2020, said Luck that without the support and friendships she developed in the class, she “might not be alive today,” adding that the program “gave me a chance to feel human again.”
“Sometimes our families just can’t support us in this place,” she said. “They live outside and we are stuck in this box. We are concerned about what is happening to our families and their lives, and the support and concern from people in the same situation has been overwhelming.”
Unsurprisingly, the no-touching rule would need to be changed as part of a program in which incarcerated women learn skills such as facials, chemical peels, hair coloring and styling, and manicures, while practicing these services on other adult inmates and even prison staff. According to Stephanie, the practice of providing services to staff has improved interactions that are often dehumanizing for both parties: she has a tendency to label guards as “cops,” although she says they can often be “condescending.”
“It’s hard for them to see us as ordinary people,” she said.
But when she provides services that require communication and mutual agreement with employees, “it allows them to see that I’ve made choices in my life, but that doesn’t mean I won’t be their neighbor someday.”
Tammy Kennedy trainer to the cosmetology program at the facility, said Luck that employees can get haircuts, facials and skin treatments at beauty school prices, which are often a fraction of what salons charge. Other adults in custody may receive treatment for free or for a small fee. Treating prison staff as clients has been a positive experience for the women, she said, because they “need to step up to another level and learn how to have appropriate conversations with people that aren’t about what’s going on in the facility.” He places special emphasis on conversational skills, which are vital for salon workers.
In addition, these services provide women with the opportunity to earn a living wage immediately upon release.
That’s one reason the work resonated with Sarah, who felt other courses offered at the facility—such as DMV call center training and sewing courses—wouldn’t help her provide enough for her three children in aged 22, 16 and 16 years. 12.
Before prison, she worked in the food industry, where she earned about $10 an hour. She now earns twice that, plus tips, but her career got off to a rough start due to the pandemic. Sarah was released in February 2020, just as the pandemic began to devastate industries that rely on close contact, like her own.
She found a job in esthetics that September, and when the salon closed two years later in November 2022, she took a new job at a plastic surgery office in Eugene, Oregon, where she now works as an esthetician. esthetician and medical assistant for services such as Botox, fillers, facials and one of her favorite treatments, chemical peels.
In addition to her beauty license, Sarah left prison with friends she believes will last “forever.” She said one of the women she graduated with hangs out with her at home and spends time with her kids, and helps her save more than $300 by doing her hair for free.
The community the women gained through the classes also inspired them to help other women who may be struggling. For Stephanie, who has a 15-year-old daughter waiting for her outside the prison, being in prison is difficult when she thinks about the events she misses in her daughter’s life, such as first days of school and prom. When “you’re an incarcerated mom,” she said, “everything is limited. But you know that appearance can be very important to them.” She hopes to contribute to the program by offering to help other children with incarcerated parents prepare for prom.
For her part, Sarah believes the program’s skills can help women survive “life outside these walls,” especially since many women are released with low credit scores, poor rental histories or work experience. “It’s such a great program,” she said. “I don’t know if I would have survived prison without her.”