The future of work is being built right now. We’re making sure everyone has a hand in it.
Ours to Build trains justice-impacted community members to teach AI and technology skills to their peers, starting with those coming home from incarceration.
What the data says
What we found
Most surveyed had already found AI tools on their own
85% of justice-impacted individuals surveyed across the Midwest had already used AI tools. Access was not the barrier.
Online survey (n=26, Tally)
Nearly 3 in 5 didn't feel these tools were made for them
59% disagreed that AI applications were designed with people like them in mind.
Online survey (n=26, Tally)
Nearly everyone wanted more sessions
94% said yes or maybe to attending additional workshops after just one session.
CBCF Workshop Survey (n=16, Jan 2026)
Our Mission
Why We Exist
There is no structured AI literacy program inside U.S. correctional facilities. Not one. Meanwhile, AI is reshaping nearly every industry those coming home will enter. Ours to Build exists to close that gap by training people with lived experience to lead, not by bringing in outside experts. The most credible voice in any room is the one that knows what it feels like to be in that room.
“I would work with you on this and your journey.”
The model
Why Peer-Led
When someone who has been through the system stands in front of a room and says “this tool can help you rebuild your resume, navigate reentry, and prepare for what comes next,” it lands differently than when an outsider says the same words. Trust is built through shared experience. That’s the foundation of everything we do.