The Mayor’s Office of Criminal Justice is taking the next step on Next Mile NYC — by offering free commercial driving license (CDL) training for individuals affected by the justice system. On July 9, the city announced plans to expand the initiative with the NYC Department of Probation, opening the door for more people to become truck drivers while reducing the chances they reoffend.
“Public safety is built by creating the conditions that allow people to establish stable lives,” said Mayor Mamdani. “Expanding Next Mile NYC means thousands more New Yorkers on probation will have access to good-paying jobs, a pathway to long-term stability and the chance to provide for their families. When we invest in opportunity, we reduce recidivism, strengthen our economy and make our city safer for all.”
Next Mile NYC plays a kind of matchmaker between a population disproportionately struggling with unemployment and a well-paying industry facing a labor shortage despite a low barrier to entry. The program connects formerly-incarcerated individuals, who face unemployment more than 13 times the national rate, with online CDL permit courses and behind-the-wheel training, as well as to prospective employers in the commercial trucking industry. Salaries range from $70,000 to $125,000, all without requiring a high school diploma.
The MOCJ, which handles many of the city’s criminal justice diversion initiatives, operates the program with vendor Emerge Career, a tech-based workforce development company. Applicants can apply through a brief questionnaire, and it is entirely free.
“It’s not just the curriculum; we also cover all the fees associated with getting your license,” said Samantha Kleinfield, MOCJ’s executive director of community innovations. “[If] you have to pay for a medical exam or a retest, we cover all of that. We also have success coaches [who] are each assigned to a participant when they sign up and they are everyday checking in with the participant [on] if there’s any barrier preventing them from completing their training.”
According to Kleinfield, Next Mile NYC is also an early adopter of artificial intelligence in city government. Not to replace jobs, but rather fill them. The adaptive learning platform examines the participants’ strengths and weaknesses during the exam studying process and adjusts accordingly.
To be clear, nothing previously stopped New Yorkers on probation from applying for the program. But the partnership with DOP bolsters credibility and confidence for people seeking a CDL, as training around the city costs thousands of dollars and may belie predatory practices, including outright scams. Additionally, probation officers can refer their clients whom they think could qualify.
“Expanding Next Mile NYC ensures more New Yorkers have the chance to gain valuable skills, secure stable employment, and successfully reintegrate into their communities,” said NYC Probation Commissioner Sharun Goodwin. “That is how we build safer neighborhoods and [a] stronger future. Every person deserves the opportunity to write a new chapter. At the Department of Probation, we see the potential in the people we serve every day, and we know that access to meaningful employment can change the trajectory of a life.”
Next Mile NYC stems from a three-year pilot tied to the fiscal calendar and initially recruited justice-impacted individuals staying in transitional housing through a 20-person cohort. Not only did the program help participants leave the shelter system, but some are on the pathway to buying their own home.
Since then, more than 300 participants have obtained their permit and another 187 participants have acquired their CDL already through the program. Among them, 111 already secured a full-time job and another 72 have pending offers — oftentimes multiple offers from different employers. And not a single participant has been rearrested since the program’s start.
In March, another expansion brought Next Mile NYC to people currently detained on Rikers Island through the Department of Corrections. Individuals detained in city jails could still put in the 40 hours for the online course over a tablet in preparation for the road test after release. 22 people have so far completed the training.
While paying for CDL training is far from cheap, the expenses pale in comparison to the roughly half-million dollars needed to incarcerate a single person in New York City. As the city looks to reduce the jail population to meet a legal mandate to close Rikers Island and transfer a smaller in-custody population to four borough-based facilities currently under construction.
“People are taking advantage of the opportunity so you’re not seeing recidivism,” said Deanna Logan, MOCJ Director. “For Rikers to be able to close, you need to not add people in. You need to make sure that there are meaningful pathways for people on Rikers to move out. And you need to make sure that the people who have left do not have a reason to go back.”
To apply: https://criminaljustice.cityofnewyork.us/programs/next-mile-nyc/
Author’s Note: An updated version of the quote from Mayor Mamdani was provided after publish.
