X FACTOR 

 Citizen Service Corps
"The Past does not Define the Present or Limit the Future"
Changing How the Community Receives and Supports formerly Incarcerated People




What is X Factor?

 At our core, X FACTOR is about helping returning citizens become and feel whole, purposeful and productive members of the community. That is why we started the X FACTOR by forming a Citizen Service Corp, as a way for formerly incarcerated individuals to come together to build their better selves while building a better Dayton. Working in collaboration with numerous partners, X FACTOR supports its members through a holistic range of programs and initiatives including, Lifeskills, Job Skills, Housing, Social Enterprise employment in construction and green jobs, peer-mentors, wellness programs, the arts, and perhaps most importantly, an accepting community. 

X FACTOR also offers Leadership Development as an in-reach program, along with sending X FACTOR team leaders into the prisons around the state to plant seeds of positivity with those for whom release is imminent. Ultimately, X FACTOR aims to be the front door for those individuals returning to the Dayton region—a place where individuals will find acceptance, honesty and a 24/7/365 commitment to their success.

X FACTOR’s methodology is underpinned by THE RICKTER SCALE, an instrument developed in England to monitor the reintegration of returning citizens in their communities. RICKTER will permit the peer self-awareness, to identify key elements in their lives that they might prioritize to work on, to offer the opportunity to explore possibilities, to make informed choices, to take responsibility for those goals and to develop an action plan. X FACTOR works with the research/evaluation team at the Substance Abuse Resources and Disability Issues (SARDI) Program in the Boonshoft School of Medicine at Wright State University to provide data and program evaluation. 

Background

In Ohio, one in 25 adults is in prison, in jail, on probation, or on parole, ranking behind only
Georgia, Idaho, the District of Columbia, Texas and Massachusetts; in 1982, this figure was
one in 1163 . Montgomery County residents constitute approximately 5.22% of all
commitments to an Ohio prison. At the time of incarceration, 42% of inmates from
Montgomery County lacked a high school diploma or a General Education Degree (GED),
54% were unemployed, 40% abused alcohol, and 75% abused other drugs. It is safe to
assume that these challenges create continuing barriers post-incarceration. Even those who
do not return to prison are often condemned to live life on the margins of society. Given the
significant obstacles faced by these individuals, most returning citizens returning to THE
Miami Valley RegionMontgomery County are in need of assistance in order to re-establish
themselves as productive citizens in our community.

Each year, roughly 1,500 people from Montgomery County are released from prison.
Roughly 30% of these ultimately return to prison, often due to the commission of new
crimes. Montgomery Country Reentry leaders note a real obstacle for nearly all of these is
the dearth of work opportunities. In fact, over 600 barriers in Ohio law restrict employment
opportunities for people with criminal records. This is a problem because stable employment
and livable wages are important predictors of successful reentry and desistance from crime.
Employment saves taxpayer dollars on prisons and public benefits.


Vision

Being a formerly incarcerated individual does not define who a person was, is, or will be.
The vision of X FACTOR is to create a national model for the reintegration experience of
formerly incarcerated people. Allowing people with records to earn an honest second chance
is a key element of the vision of X FACTOR. Integrating humanity and compassion in the
daily lives of returning citizens is an elementary component of the organization. People are
not defined by the fact that they have served time. X FACTOR defines all individuals by
their humanity and contributions to the common good.

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