Coming home from jail or prison in AtlantaA short guide: who to call first and what to expect.
Start with your ID, because almost everything else asks for it. Get your birth certificate first, then a Georgia ID and a Social Security card. The Social Security card is free. Crossroads Community Ministries and Emmaus House help people get these papers.
For a place to live, ask your parole or probation officer about reentry housing before you take the first room you find. Houses differ a lot in price and rules. Ask what it costs each week, what the rules are, and whether they take people with your charge. IMAN Atlanta and other groups listed here run reentry housing with job training.
For work, some employers hire people with records on purpose. The Center for Employment Opportunities gives paid work right away to people who are just out. First Step Staffing places people fast, often in warehouse jobs. Georgia Works is a live-in work program for men who have been homeless.
To clear your record, call the Georgia Justice Project at 404-827-0027. Georgia lets you seal many old arrests and some convictions, including many misdemeanors after four years with no new conviction. A sealed record stops showing up on most job and apartment checks. Their help is free.
For food, a drug conviction does not block you from SNAP (food stamps) in Georgia. Apply at gateway.ga.gov.
To vote, you can register again once you finish your whole sentence, including probation and parole. A misdemeanor never takes away your right to vote.
When you call a program, they ask about your release date, your supervision and your record. Answer plainly. It helps them place you.
4Horsemen is a nonprofit that helps men and women coming home from jail or prison. They offer coaching, mentoring, and life-skills classes, and they help people connect with housing, job, health, and other community help. Most programs run about 16 weeks, and mentoring can last 4 to 18 months.
Georgia Justice Project is a nonprofit that gives free legal help to people in Georgia who have been touched by the criminal legal system. It defends some people charged in Fulton and DeKalb counties and helps people clean up old records so it is easier to get a job or a home. It also helps with ending felony probation early, job license problems, and questions about voting.
Center for Employment Opportunities (CEO) Atlanta helps people who recently came home from jail or prison find steady work. New members start right away on a paid work crew, get job skills training and coaching, and receive help finding and keeping a permanent job afterward. CEO is growing its program on Atlanta's Westside, in neighborhoods like English Avenue and Vine City.
The Georgia Department of Community Supervision watches over people on state parole or probation in Georgia. Its reentry staff help people leaving prison or under supervision find housing, work, and mentoring. The Atlanta field office serves Fulton County.
Essence of Hope is an Atlanta nonprofit that has helped people with housing and support since 2007. It offers housing for people who are homeless, veterans, people coming home from jail or prison, and people finishing court programs. It also helps with case management, job readiness, and benefits sign-up.
LifeChangers, Inc. is a nonprofit that helps men and women who have been in the justice system and people returning home. It offers free job workshops, a free one-year mentorship program, a resource directory, and a place to complete court-ordered community service. Its workshops teach job searching, applications, resumes, and interviews.
This nonprofit helps young Black men ages 18 to 28 build better lives. It offers free workshops, job readiness classes, mentoring, and referrals to other agencies. It also works with employers who hire program participants.
Project Restart is an Atlanta nonprofit that helps people with criminal records and people who are locked up. It offers a free 12-week training program, one-on-one reentry support, a six-week program inside two facilities, and free online resource guides. The 2026 cohort is already full, and new details are expected in 2027.
The Salvation Army Center of Hope is a shelter and housing center at 469 Marietta Street in Atlanta. It offers emergency and transitional housing for homeless men, women, and families with children. It also has a 90-day drug treatment program, help moving into permanent housing, a re-entry program, and a program for veterans.
Connecting Communities and Families helps young adults leaving foster care, people coming home from prison or jail, and families with low to moderate incomes. They offer job training, computer skills classes, job placement help, and support like case management and rides.
LiveLikeMike Homes runs recovery (sober living) homes and transitional homes in Atlanta. The homes are drug-free and have clear rules and daily support. You can ask about a room by filling out a short online inquiry.
Jesus Set the Captive Free is a faith-based nonprofit in the Atlanta area that helps homeless men and men who have been in prison rebuild their lives. It offers apartment-style transitional housing where rent is based on income, plus spiritual mentoring, case management, life-skills classes, and transportation help. Residents can stay from six months up to two years while they work toward steady housing and a job.
Integrity Transformations CDC helps people on Atlanta's Westside find jobs and build better lives. It runs job training and placement programs, offers The BRIDGE for people returning home from jail or prison, and helps residents with housing and homeownership through financial education.
Women on the Rise is led by women who have been in jail or prison. It helps women coming home with case management, monthly support circles, and links to housing, jobs and mental health care. It also organizes for fairer laws and helps people learn about their voting rights.
Game Changing Men is a group that supports masculine-presenting people, including transgender men, men of color, and men who have been in jail or prison. It offers support groups, workshops, a 24-week class on family violence for male-identified people, mentoring for people inside jails and prisons, a yearly retreat, and a youth leadership program.
The Georgia Department of Juvenile Justice is the state agency for young people in the juvenile justice system, up to age 21. It runs probation, case management, and programs for youth in its care, such as mental health care, substance use treatment, school, and chaplain services. Its Office of Victim Services helps crime victims with information, release notices, compensation applications, and restitution updates.
PAD is an Atlanta nonprofit that offers help instead of police response or jail for people dealing with extreme poverty, substance use, or mental health problems. You can ask for a PAD team by calling 311. PAD also gives case management to people diverted by law enforcement or with open court cases.
New Beginnings helps people who have left prison get ready for work and daily life.S. Attorney's Office and run by the Urban League of Greater Atlanta in downtown Atlanta. It offers an eight-week class followed by guided help with a job search.
Barred Business is a group started in 2020 by formerly incarcerated Black women.E. program for formerly incarcerated women and works on bail, voting rights and fair laws for people with records. People with records and their families can join as members.
Forever Family helps children in Georgia who have a parent in prison or jail. They take kids on chaperoned trips to visit their mothers in prison. They also give travel vouchers for visits with fathers, and offer programs for children and caregivers.
