Throughout its 23 shops and 27 labor contract partnerships, Arizona Correctional Industries (ACI) has taken to heart its mission to provide job skills training. The inmates working in the program not only learn the value of teamwork and satisfaction in creating quality products, but for many they are earning certifications from independent auditors attesting to their mastery of new technical skills.

Vicki regularly purchases products – from office supplies through raw fabric and steel by the ton – from more than 200 different vendors. And though some of it arrives via UPS, FedEx and the USPS, most of the products she buys each month arrive by the truckload (or several trucks)

“Working with Televerde allowed me to step out of my orange ever day for 8 hours,” Rebecca said. “I spent my days talking to decision makers at businesses across the country. I was a professional. And I was constantly learning.”

Originally, ACI had not set out to become an environmentally-conscious organization. But suddenly it was on this path with the start of the ACI Green Initiative.

“We first partnered with ACI in 1995 when we learned about the program. It made sense to us that by teaching offenders employable skills we could help give them better choices once they were released,” said Billy Hickman, Vice President of Operations for Hickman Farms.