Prison and reentry ministry is one of the longer-standing traditions of faith-based community service, but it's rarely on a congregation's radar as a grant-fundable program — most churches assume this kind of work runs entirely on volunteers and donations. Federal reentry funding exists specifically because Congress recognized community and faith-based organizations as effective partners in reducing recidivism, and wrote that recognition directly into the law.
The Second Chance Act Community-based Reentry Program supports community-based organizations — including faith-based organizations — and tribal governments providing mentoring and transitional services to adults returning to their communities after incarceration who are assessed as moderate to high risk for recidivism. In a recent fiscal year, BJA made roughly a dozen awards of up to $1 million each under this specific solicitation, though total funding and award size vary by year and depend on congressional appropriations.
Second Chance Act legislation explicitly includes faith-based organizations among eligible applicant types — this isn't an informal accommodation, it's written into the program. Established faith-based reentry organizations, including national ministries with decades of prison and reentry experience, have received awards under this and related Second Chance Act solicitations. Every April, faith communities across the country observe "Second Chance Month," a nationally recognized effort bringing together over a thousand churches and partner organizations around reentry and restoration — a sign of how mainstream this work has become within faith-based outreach.
Our free eligibility review helps identify which federal, state, and private funding sources fit your congregation's outreach programs.
Check Your Grant Eligibility →| Activity | Typically Fundable |
|---|---|
| One-on-one and group mentoring | Yes |
| Transitional job placement / employment strategies | Yes |
| Behavioral health and substance use treatment referrals | Yes |
| Vocational training | Yes |
| Educational services (GED, literacy, continuing education) | Yes |
| Family reunification programming | Yes |
| Housing referrals and transitional housing support | Yes |
| Religious instruction or evangelism as a funded activity | No |
As with other federal grants to faith-based organizations, funds support the secular service component of the program — mentoring, job training, housing navigation — not religious instruction itself, even when the organization delivering the service is faith-based.
Second Chance Act funding is competitive, and BJA evaluates applicants on demonstrated program capacity and prior outcomes — advantages that established reentry organizations tend to have over a congregation just beginning this work. If your prison ministry is newer or smaller, a direct application may be premature. Partnering as a subrecipient or referral partner with an established reentry nonprofit is a common and realistic starting point, building the track record needed for a stronger direct application in a future cycle.
Reentry and prison ministry programs often overlap with other funding categories worth exploring alongside Second Chance Act grants. See our mental health grants for churches guide for behavioral health funding that can support the treatment-referral component of a reentry program, and our community development grants for churches guide for how CDBG can support facility space used for reentry services and job training. Our government grants for churches overview covers the broader federal funding landscape faith-based organizations can draw from. Reentry programs with a job-training component specifically should see our job training and workforce development grants guide, which covers how WIOA's Reentry Employment Opportunities program and local workforce boards fit alongside Second Chance Act funding. Reentry programs that include a peer recovery component specifically should also see our addiction recovery ministry grants guide, since SAMHSA's recovery support funding is a distinct stream from the Second Chance Act dollars described here.
Learn how FaithGrants helps identify the right funding combination for your ministry at How It Works, or contact us with questions about a specific program.