Lani Burns began working as an employment specialist for women justice programs at Family and Children’s Services in Tulsa, Oklahoma, six years ago. In 2022, she was promoted to Director of Employment and Education for Women in Recovery.

Burns’ current role is a significant shift from her previous position as a program supervisor at Apple, but it aligns closely with her passions and values.

B&G: What inspired you to make a dramatic change in your career?

Burns: Growing up with an incarcerated father, I understand the profound impact that having a parent in prison can have on a family. A wonderful mentor once asked me what I would do if I could choose anything. I said I would work in the criminal legal system, especially if there were ways to avoid separating families. He introduced me to Mimi Tarrasch.

B&G: Coming from a corporate technology world, what were the surprises for you as you began supporting Women in Recovery? 

Burns: One of the big surprises was that this is often referred to as a “Second Chance” program. And yet, for many of the women I meet, this is really their first real chance. Maybe they grew up in a house of addiction. I remember asking someone about the first time they ever used a substance, and she said, “Well, I was around eight and my dad said I was talking too much so he handed me a bottle of beer, and that was my first drink.”

That was a surprise to me. How young some of the individuals were when they started using, and then they were in and out of the criminal legal system, without any treatment that focused on substance abuse or mental health.

The other surprise to me was that there are so many barriers in place to getting jobs – for example, trying to get an employer to even interview women when there are so many gaps in their employment history. And, in Oklahoma, we don’t have a Ban the Box law. So, on most applications you have to disclose any sort of criminal legal involvement and that becomes the employer’s first impression.

B&G: Are there other barriers?

Burns: Transportation is a major issue. In Tulsa, we have a very limited public transit system and it’s not 24 hours a day, yet many manufacturing jobs, which have higher pay, have start times of 6 a.m. Or shifts from 3 to 11 p.m.

We have women who have lost their driver’s licenses for things that aren’t even related to driving. I had one who owed $10,000 to get her license reinstated. Even though we have good relations with the courts, they have no oversight when it comes to the dollar amount that it takes to reinstate your license with the Department of Motor Vehicles.

This is really a struggle for me because you take someone’s ability to earn money by removing their license, and they can’t get it back unless they have the money to pay.

I see my job as breaking down barriers and helping the women we work with to learn to do that for themselves. 

B&G: Could you describe the emphasis on education in your program?

Burns: Education has really been a focus for us. The Bureau of Justice Statistics has data that shows the strong power of education to reduce recidivism. 

At any point, a third of our women come in without a GED (General Educational Development diploma) or high school equivalency. And so, we have onsite GED programming daily, individual tutoring, and online learning platforms. 

We know that a GED is the start to even getting into vocational programs and getting your GED is the gateway to higher education. Our own data shows that a GED raises wages by about $3 an hour.

B&G: Are there other ways that you prepare women for getting a job? 

Burns: Most of our women have not had significant professional work experience. And so, we teach a course called employment readiness where we focus on soft skills. We talk about time management, conflict resolution and communication. They start that class in the first phase of the program, which is when they get here. 

We also meet with them immediately and assign them employment specialists. We talk about what they want to do and work with them on an employment assessment and skills inventory. 

B&G: At what point do you start working with them to find jobs?

Burns: I think one of the things that is important is that they have a period of time when they are not working, when we don’t allow them to work. That’s an important part of what we do because when you’re trying to deal with past trauma or with addiction, you have all these life needs pulling at you. You have bills. You have kids that need you. So, in phase one, we take care of basic needs, and we give them time to do the work that is really hard to do to address addiction and the trauma they’ve experienced.

B&G: And when women are ready, can you describe the kinds of vocational partnerships you’ve developed?

Burns: Three years ago, we started a partnership with a local technology school, Central Tech, to start a women and welding campaign. They provide all the classes, training, coaching and instruction in addition to the necessary gear that the women need to start their employment. They provide welding hoods and welding gloves, flame retardant shirts, steel-toed boots – all brand new and as long as they successfully complete the program, they get to take all the gear that’s needed with them at the conclusion of the training. In addition, we have pathways for commercial driver’s licenses, CNC (Computer Numeric Controlled) machining, and industrial maintenance.

We also have created a partnership with the Oklahoma State Department of Mental Health and Substance Abuse Services for peer recovery support specialist training. WIR provides a 10-week course that is aligned with the training they do at the state level. It helps make the transition much easier in going from being clients to serving clients.

Conversations are intensive and critical with topics discussed such as boundaries to self-care; telling your story, and what is appropriate to disclose and not to disclose. We talk about how to effectively lead groups, and we have a full and robust curriculum to help better prepare for this important role in the community.

B&G: Can you give an idea of the pay for some of the jobs that your graduates are getting?

Burns: Our women who have graduated from these programs earn, on average, $18 an hour to start. We had one graduate who went through the welding program and got hired by one of our manufacturing partners. She has received several promotions and is now making over $28 an hour with full benefits. Prior to this job, her only legal work experience had been in the food industry, which never paid more than $10 an hour. 

We are talking life-changing financial security. 

B&G: After women graduate from the program, does your involvement with their education and employment needs end? 

Burns: We continue to support our graduates well into the future whether that is returning to the classroom, advancing in the workplace or support during a struggle with addiction. We are a safe support system and will always be here as needs arise. 

B&G: How many employers do you now have partnerships with?

Burns: We have hundreds of employers that have hired women from our program, as well as true core partnerships – companies that we have worked with for a long time. 

We focus on those that offer living wage employment and benefits. That’s where we’ve tried to put our efforts. 

B&G: Based on what you’ve learned, what advice would you give to somebody who wanted to start a program like Women in Recovery? 

Burns: One of my first takeaways is that education is critical, but not all education is created equal. Know your community. Know what the in-demand occupations are. Know what the needs are and do they align with the population being served.

I think I would also say that volunteers are essential. In the GED program, while we now have paid teachers, we started with and continue to utilize volunteers. Currently, they include a retired judge, a retired teacher and an economist. If you don’t have the funding to hire a team, there are always people who want to find ways to give back, if you can make them feel valued and equip them with the tools needed.

B&G: Are there other lessons you’ve learned?

Burns: I think one of the biggest lessons learned is to show and talk to employers about what we do and the range of services provided. To accomplish this we invite key employers to our facility and show them around so they get to meet women and gain an understanding of the comprehensiveness of services. This approach also helps breaks the stereotypes that many have about addiction

This has really made a difference. I can go out of the office, but it’s much more valuable when they come here and see the way this works.

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