By Nicole Bowman-Layton

ELIZABETH CITY — North Carolina First Lady Anna Stein brought her prison workforce and reentry tour to northeastern North Carolina on Friday, making several stops across the region before joining corrections officials, educators, local leaders and workforce professionals for a roundtable discussion at the NCWorks Career Center in Elizabeth City.

Her visit was part of Governor Josh Stein’s visit to the region. He gave the commencement speech at Elizabeth City State University on May 9.

The conversation followed visits to Edenton and Creswell and a tour of Pasquotank Correctional Institution. The discussion in a packed conference room focused on two challenges facing the state: staffing shortages inside correctional facilities and the need to prepare incarcerated people for successful reentry into the workforce.

Stein said her visits to correctional facilities across North Carolina have challenged many common public perceptions about prisons.

“The Hollywood version is different from the day to day, which can be pretty routine,” Stein said. “It’s important as we are looking to recruit people to work in our facilities to get out that more realistic version of what it looks like inside our prisons.”

She said she has also been struck by the fact that the incarcerated population is much older than she expected and has medical needs. She also noted the talents of many incarcerated people she has met — including writers, artists, musicians and avid readers.

Stein said staffing remains critical to both public safety and rehabilitation efforts. When prisons are short-staffed, she said, employees are often pulled away from educational and vocational programming to fill custody roles.

“In order to rehabilitate people, we have to have staffing levels up,” Stein said.

She said Gov. Stein’s administration recognizes the need to raise pay for correctional officers and other prison employees, but added that compensation alone will not solve the problem.

“It’s not just about pay. It’s about the culture of the place,” she said.

Pasquotank Correctional Institution Warden Daniel Everett said building that culture means maintaining the human side of corrections, staying accessible and working closely with community partners. He said the facility now offers open walk-in interviews five days a week and helps applicants complete the hiring process on site.

Two correctional officers, both military veterans, also described their paths into the profession. Correctional Officer Greta Sodamann, a longtime employee, said the structure and teamwork of corrections made it a natural transition from military service, while recent hire Correctional Officer Nate Hill said he discovered the opportunity through Indeed and the NCWorks Career Center in Elizabeth City.

Jennifer “Jen” Scialdone, NCWorks Career Center manager for Northeastern Workforce Development Board, said the agency has developed a strong partnership with the Department of Adult Correction through regular hiring events and applicant support services.

“We’re here to help with job-seekers complete applications,” Scialdone said, adding that the center also provides interview-skills assistance and career exploration opportunities.

Educators from College of the Albemarle and Elizabeth City State University described efforts to support both corrections staffing and inmate education programs.

College of the Albemarle has hosted Department of Adult Correction training programs for more than a decade and also provides continuing education and criminal justice pathways for correctional officers. Inside Pasquotank Correctional Institution, the college offers culinary arts, high school equivalency preparation, digital literacy and career-readiness programs.

Robin Zinsmeister, College of the Albemarle’s dean of Workforce Development, Public Services and Career Readiness, said incarcerated students have learned typing skills, résumé development and even used artificial intelligence tools to create illustrated storybooks.

“We know that the more education that they receive, then we know that the chances of reoffending is going to decrease,” Zinsmeister said.

The college is also preparing to install two HyFlex classrooms at the prison through a Digital Champions grant, allowing instructors to teach students both in person and remotely at the same time.

Elizabeth City State University is also working to reshape student perceptions of criminal justice careers. Dr. Chyna Crawford, dean of the School of Community and Social Sciences, said ECSU created a criminal justice advisory board and a course specifically focused on debunking myths about the profession.

“The perception of what criminal justice is has been a hurdle that we are trying to overcome,” Crawford said.

Elizabeth City Mayor Kirk Rivers said the discussion highlighted the importance of collaboration in rural communities. He noted that public safety remains one of the top concerns among residents, especially seniors. Rivers also noted that the city allows people with criminal records to apply for city employment three years after release.

“I always say second chance, because we all need second chances,” Rivers said.

The discussion also turned toward mounting concerns over workforce development funding across northeastern North Carolina.

Lloyd Griffin III, chair of the Pasquotank County Board of Commissioners and chair of the Northeastern Workforce Development Board Consortium, warned that workforce development funding in the region has dropped significantly in recent years, limiting access to services for job seekers and employers alike.

“The people that do need the money are not getting it to provide services,” Griffin said.

Federal workforce funding in northeastern North Carolina has fallen from approximately $1.8 million to $995,000 in the past seven years — a reduction of more than 45% before adjusting for inflation, according to data from the Albemarle Commission, which oversees the NWDB.

North Carolina’s workforce system relies almost entirely on federal Workforce Innovation and Opportunity Act funding and competitive grants, because the state does not directly fund NCWorks operations. Recently, Stein earmarked $15 million for the state’s workforce system in his proposed budget.

NC Department of Commerce’s Assistant Secretary for Workforce Solutions Andrea DeSantis, who facilitated the roundtable, acknowledged the funding pressure facing local workforce systems and said declining federal dollars are affecting communities across the state.

Stein closed the discussion by praising what she described as the “small and mighty” nature of northeastern North Carolina’s partnerships.

“You know each other,” Stein said. “You’ll get it on the table.”

Scialdone echoed that message, encouraging employers to offer second chances and reminding residents that the NCWorks Career Center remains open to anyone seeking assistance.

“We’re here to help you,” she said. “Come on in. No appointment needed.”