Level is an exceptional program that will have a significant impact on my nephew in prison. From the beginning, I felt like an integral part of the process, thanks to their inclusive approach and good communication. The Level staff is committed to helping people like me succeed along with my nephew.
AI reentry and career support for people in prison
No internet required. Simple for almost any facility to adopt. Shared with supporters on the outside.
Level created Carmen – an offline AI reentry and workforce development mentor for people in prison that requires no local internet and no added workload from prison staff. Carmen delivers personalized, localized, data-driven career guidance and reentry support. We're piloting now and selecting sites.
Prepare for release with AI reentry and career guidance built for the realities of prison
Carmen runs even without local internet – increasing access to vital reentry and career information. People in prison fill out a short self-assessment form. Carmen uses advanced AI and trusted data partnerships to produce a personalized, localized, step-by-step reentry and career plan unique to each person, shareable with family and supporters on the outside.
Reentry planning and local resources
Step-by-step guidance to get the documents reentry depends on – Social Security card, birth certificate, state ID – plus a local directory of current reentry support, all customized to each person's release ZIP code.
Job search and local employers
Carmen translates work history, including work done inside, into employer and applicant-tracking-system language, builds a starter résumé, and maps fair-chance employers and job centers in each person’s home area.
Career planning and upskill training
Beyond a first job, Carmen maps long-term career paths matched to each person’s strengths — with the local and online training to get there, and how to pay for it through apprenticeships, WIOA funding and Pell grants.
AI that helps people
How Carmen works
1
Intake on paper
Each participant fills out a handwritten self-assessment – work history, education, skills, interests, accommodations and where they'll live after release. No computer or internet needed. Have computer access? Carmen can be set up for that, too.
2
Carmen builds the roadmap
Carmen digitizes handwriting, pulls current local labor-market data, local employers, training options and reentry resources, and writes a step-by-step plan unique to each person – down to the ZIP code. Every plan is checked for accuracy.
3
Delivered and shared
Each roadmap is printed and delivered to the participant, and a privacy-protected web version is shared with family and supporters on the outside so everyone works from the same page.
See what Carmen produces
Successful reentry starts on the inside
Every roadmap Carmen creates runs six parts – from getting documents, to a starter résumé, to local fair-chance employers, to long-term career pathways and how to fund the training. Read a full sample plan produced by Carmen.
See a sample roadmap
Built by a team with lived experience
Carmen was built by people with lived experience whe have walked the road home from prison, and it shows. Carmen’s voice is realistic and empowering without being patronizing. Challenges are presented as obstacles to route around. Privacy is built-in: each roadmap carries no personally identifiable information, prison ID, or details of a person’s criminal record. Each plan opens with Carmen plainly introducing itself as an AI, built by a team with lived experience in the system.
A national base of trust, built over six years
Level's former prison education program reached 7,052 learners across 1,075 correctional facilities in all 50 states, delivering 111,200 hours of learning. That reach – and the trust built with people inside and their families on the outside – is the foundation Carmen is built on.
4.52
Satisfaction with our program
111,200
Hours spent using Level
1,075
Prisons reached with Level
81
Recommendation score, in the “World Class” range according to Qualtrics
- Georgia, sponsor of a nephew in prison
from level
News & updates
Updates
Level and Missouri DOC Settle Lawsuit Over Access To Education
July 29, 2026
When the Missouri Department of Corrections blocked people in prison from receiving free educational materials in 2023, Level partnered with the First Amendment Clinic at Washington University to challenge the policy in federal court. A settlement in that lawsuit has eliminated these restrictive barriers, restored First Amendment rights and reopened the doors to education across Missouri state prisons.
Success Stories
Vanessa Dempsey
July 2, 2026
Vanessa Dempsey is a devoted mother of four in South Texas managing the intense demands of solo parenting, supporting a loved one in prison. Refusing to let prison walls stall her family’s future, she proactively enrolled her husband, Damian, in Level’s educational program. Discover how their profound resilience and Level’s practical program are transforming Damian’s incarceration into a blueprint for their family’s entrepreneurial second chance.
Updates
A Difficult Update About Level’s Prison Education Program
June 15, 2026
For six years, Level’s prison education program has reached over 7,000 people nationwide. Today, we share the heartbreaking news that due to unsustainable funding, we are ending this program. Our team is devastated, yet our deep belief in human potential remains unchanged. Read the update for details.
