NEW CONNECTIONS
An app that connects people who have been released from prison and are looking to begin a career.
NEW CONNECTIONS
Application Design
Created independently as a part of a three person study into design for prisons in Spring and Summer 2020. Worked with Kaylee Kindsfather and Jack Ryan
OVERVIEW
An app that connects people who have been released from prison and are looking to begin a career. This app was designed in order to help released prisoners break the cycle of crime; a significant amount of released prisoners end up returning to prison. New Connections aims to help released prisoners begin a new life.
TOOLS
For my contribution to New Connections, I used...
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Pen & pencil for initial sketches
Adobe Photoshop for icon design
Adobe Illustrator for logo design
Adobe XD for application layout
WHAT I LEARNED
The main lessons I learned with this project were with my user experience, graphic design, and application design skills. This was my first deep dive into application user experience.
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I also learned a significant amount about social justice movements and government programs surrounding prisons. I grew very passionate about the cause, and I hope to one day develop this project beyond the studio.
DESIGN PROCESS
What led up to the final product
Background
I worked with two other people while researching this problem, and we all produced different solutions to the same issue. We worked as a team until the prototype phase, which is when we split off. The idea behind this app started after reading a few articles about prisons in America. What I read had a profound impact on me, and it became a personal passion project long after I submitted this project for class. In my early readings, I found that many prisons are structured around the idea of repentance, and not rehabilitation. As a result, it is very common for released prisoners to end up back in prison. This led me to consider ways that individuals could be rehabilitated in such a way to prepare them for a life after they are released, and I did more research into the topic.
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Research
The first issue that became apparent was that each state had very different laws, and that each type of crime had very different connotations for the individual. Because of this, we were initially struggling to find focus. We altered our user group to be more specific; we focused on New York State, and only non-violent offenders. We also found that there were many limitations regarding what programs can take in prisons, with some even adding a paywall to books. From here, the program we create would be more targeted to rehab facilities, or even state-funded career centers where prisoners could get the opportunity to spend the final few months of their sentence.
The part of this program that I focused on was the app. Many people who have been convicted have a very hard time finding a job due to background checks that lead to discrimination. This results in more people committing the same crimes that they did before, since they don't necessarily have the ability to move onto a new career.
The app is optimized for tablets, as that is the technology that is most commonly supported in prisons and presumably the career centers upon their creation. The idea is that individuals could use the app in their final days in prison to prepare for their release, and continue to use it while they are out for guidance.
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Prototyping
My final prototype included many features that were added in later iterations. Initially, the main features of the app were about career development. A comparison could be made between New Connections and LinkedIn. It featured a career profile, where users could write their experience (included jobs they held in prison), skills, etc. The key feature is that users could search within a network of other users who are released from prisons. Users could search for careers that interest them, and from there they can 1. see other released prisoners in that position who could possibly give them a job, 2. see companies that hire released prisoners, or even 3. apply to companies that were founded by released prisoners. This way, these individuals wouldn't have to face the discrimination that they ordinarily would.
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An additional feature I added to later iterations is the resources feature. I realized the need for this feature after researching the issues that newly released individuals often face. For instance, it allows users to search for affordable housing options near them that will accept released convicts. It also has information about scholarships specific to them, government programs to support them, etc.