Justice-impacted Montanans in Tech

Explore the content and resources below featuring stories of justice-impacted Montanans leveraging opportunities in the high-tech industry, and learn how you can get involved in creating employment opportunities through Fair Chance hiring.

Content & Resources

  • Article: The Last Mile's First Montana Cohort Apply Their Skills in Internships with Fair Chance Employer

    Two Montana alumni of The Last Mile technology training program, Jason Ho'omalu and Adam Wilson, share how TLM has prepared them for their next chapter in the tech industry.

  • Webinar: The Last Mile Technology Training Program at Montana State Prison & Fair Chance Hiring

    The Last Mile is an innovative technology training program that aims to disrupt the cycle of incarceration through technology education. Recorded Nov. 14, 2023.

  • Article: Tech Sector Leaders Visit Montana State Prison to Meet The Last Mile's First Technology Training Cohort

    On September 19, 2023, program directors for The Last Mile invited a group of Montana tech leaders to visit with students and learn about the innovative program.

Technology training programs like The Last Mile are helping to break the cycle of incarceration with technical education and training that champions students’ success after their release.

Additional Resources

  • Based in Oakland, California, The Last Mile (TLM) is a 501(c)3 organization driven by a mission to provide personal and professional development opportunities for justice-impacted individuals through technology training. Intensive course material helps prepare students for jobs related to web development, software engineering, or audio and video production. Founded in 2010, TLM’s programs are active in 20 classrooms across 7 states with more than 1200 student participants supported through prison education, transitional support, and workforce reentry.

  • The Montana Department of Corrections provides evidence-based programming and strives to create a safer Montana through accountability, rehabilitation, and empowerment. The Last Mile technology training program at Montana State Prison in Deer Lodge aims to reduce recidivism by teaching justice-impacted individuals to create websites and full-stack web applications using industry-standard technologies. 

  • Reentering the community can be difficult, but finding employment can aid the process and help justice-impacted individuals meet their goals. The Montana Department of Labor and Industry's "Tips for Workers with Criminal Records" pdf provides a framework for increasing a justice-impacted individual's chances of getting hired.

Do you have a helpful resource you’d like to suggest we add to this guide? Do you have information you are searching for, or other feedback? The Montana High Tech Business Alliance would love to hear from you. Please reach out to us at communications[at]mthightech.org.