In honor of Second Chance Month, RBIJ spotlighted Operations Associate David Williams, who shares his story of finding employment post-incarceration.

David Williams is no stranger to hard work. While in prison, he developed a routine – waking up early, working out, and spending hours reading. But no matter what he did while incarcerated, he had little power to remediate the 40,000 barriers that face individuals with criminal records returning from incarceration.

“When you’re in there, for the most part, you control your own destiny. And then you get out, and you face all these obstacles, and it makes you look at the world differently,” said Williams. “It gives you perspective. You understand the reasons people do the things they do.”

Williams is a graduate of the Georgetown Pivot Program, a professional development program for career-oriented individuals who have previously been incarcerated. He heard about the program from a friend and applied while incarcerated, starting two months after release. 

“When you get down to those last couple months, you see people who have a goal or objective. For most people, when they get out and have something to shoot for, they succeed. Momentum is everything – once you lose that, it’s easy to fall back into old habits.”

Pivot played a critical role in helping Williams keep that momentum. The first part of the program is strictly educational; afterwards, participants are placed in a three-to-four month internship with a partnering company. Williams remembers standing with his fellow participants, each holding an envelope with their placement inside. He was matched with a large consulting firm in the Washington, D.C. area. 

“The internship was amazing. And it was a wakeup call – I had never done anything like that before. I had imposter syndrome. But they say if you have imposter syndrome, you’re probably in the right place,” recalls Williams. He credits his supervisor, Kwame, for helping support his growth and development. 

When his internship ended, he was referred to apply for a full-time position. After three or four rounds of interviews, he found out he hadn’t gotten the job. “I felt really positive coming out of prison. I had momentum with the Georgetown program. And then, I was scrambling. I was worried about paying rent. I was worried about what I was going to do month-to-month.”

When Williams saw the job posting for an Operations Associate at RBIJ, he had applied to more than 300 positions. Previously, Williams had always waited for a background check to reveal his felony conviction to an employer. This time, he decided to explain it up front.

“My interview with RBIJ was the first time I controlled my narrative. I told them what happened – I told them I had a felony. I knew that even if I didn’t get the job, I was breaking someone’s ground.” Williams remembers crying after the interview ended, overcome with the power of telling his own story. A few weeks later, he was offered the position at RBIJ.

“I’m so grateful to be here. It’s inspiring to work day in and day out with people who want to make a difference. I feel like I start my day and then suddenly it’s 4 o’clock and we only have an hour left. It doesn’t feel like work. And it makes you want to step up to the plate and do your part.”

Williams’ time at RBIJ has reaffirmed his belief in the power of second chances – and the benefits employers can reap from hiring individuals with criminal records. “A lot of times, people who are justice-impacted are the most motivated people you’re going to find. When they’re released, they have that momentum going. And if you throw them an opportunity, nine times out of ten, they’re not going to mess it up.” He also credits RBIJ for helping him grow. “[RBIJ CEO] Maha [Jweied] continues to challenge me with certain things. I’ll ask her whether I need to check with her before doing something and she’ll be like ‘you don't have to check, you got this!’ That is wonderful.”

Williams hopes to continue supporting justice-impacted individuals and advocating for continued opportunities. “Whether it was intentional or unintentional, everybody has made a mistake in their life. And everyone deserves a fair and equal opportunity…in life. Everybody deserves a second chance.”

Download RBIJ’s free Second Chance Hiring Roadmap to join the growing movement of organizations harnessing the power of justice-impacted talent: https://rbij.org/sch-roadmap .