Welcome to REFORM in Focus, our thought leadership series that spotlights innovators reimagining probation, parole, and public safety. Each edition features experts who are driving meaningful change to our supervision system.

Maranda Williams spent nearly two decades working for the Indiana Department of Corrections, and today she is REFORM’s Indiana State Organizer. She’s also officially an adjunct professor at the University of Indianapolis, teaching a class for the school’s criminal justice department. We caught up with her about her work, including a recent Gen Z Prison Reentry Simulation event. 

Maranda, you’re the Indiana State Organizer for REFORM. How did you find your way to this work? 

I got involved in criminal justice reform when I was the Director of Transitional Healthcare at the Indiana Department of Correction (IDOC). While serving in that role, I noticed that our prison system was being used as a catch-all for so many other issues – mental health struggles, homelessness, and addiction among them. Society was defaulting to incarceration, even for problems that needed community-based alternatives. So, I collaborated with the parole staff to try to change procedures so that technical violations – minor rule-breaking of supervision conditions, not new crimes – would not send someone back to prison unnecessarily. But even still, I would see a stunning amount of people sent back for non-criminal violations. I was deeply inspired to understand ways we could improve our supervision system and help get people better support. 

After spending 16 years at the IDOC, I was ready to fight for change as an organizer. I was incredibly excited when REFORM came to Indiana, and I remain thrilled to be a part of the movement here. 

Can you give an example of someone returning to prison when they didn’t commit a crime?

One man got sent back to prison because he told his supervision officer that he was having suicidal ideations. He was sent to the county jail and was then transferred to the IDOC. 

He didn’t even commit a probation violation, let alone a crime. He just needed some help. He should’ve been sent to a crisis center for assessment, but instead, his probation officer called him a “safety concern.” So sending him back to prison was the system’s knee-jerk response – it shows that we really need to address problem-solving abilities to find better ways to deal with issues like mental health crises without putting people in cells. It was simply outrageous. 

At the IDOC, that really catapulted our efforts to change some things. Whenever people would say, “Oh, that doesn’t happen,” we’d point to that case and say, “Well, it does.”  

How did you learn about REFORM? 

I learned about REFORM from the Free Meek movement, when Meek Mill was sentenced to 2-4 years in prison for technical violations of his probation in Pennsylvania. The global outrage about what happened to Meek was inspiring to see. At the same time, I was witnessing people sent back to prison daily here in Indiana for similar violations. I knew there were a lot of people who were struggling the way Meek was and who just didn’t have that support. When I learned about REFORM, I was thrilled, and when I saw that REFORM was coming to Indiana, I knew I had to apply for this job. 

What are you currently working on at REFORM?

I’ve been working on building our Indiana coalition – the Indiana Secure Communities Coalition – and spreading the word about why we need changes in our supervision system. I’ve been focused on expanding our network to include more businesses and fair-chance employers. And I’m doubling down on efforts to bring more young people into this fight. I want all our Hoosiers out there to know that this issue isn’t just about people in the system; it affects everyone in the state.

Speaking of young people, you just had a big event at the University of Indianapolis. Tell us about that.  

Yes. We partnered with the University of Indianapolis and the Indiana Department of Corrections to host the Prison Reentry Simulation for students on campus. It’s the first time REFORM has partnered with a university and a department of corrections to host this type of experience.

A reentry simulation is a way to help people understand what it is like to return back to your community after spending time in prison. Participants get assigned a packet and an identity of an individual recently released, and then they have to figure out how to navigate all that’s involved with coming home after spending time inside. There are tables around the room, each representing a different community entity: a bank, a pawn shop, a probation office, a jail, a grocery store, and so on. 

And the thing is, the packets aren’t the same. Some have money, some don’t. Some have identification or their birth certificates, some don’t. Some have bus passes, some don’t. You have what you have, and that’s it. If you’re not able to complete your assignments, you have to go back to jail. It replicates the reality of what it’s like returning back to your community and having to navigate the different systems and the expectations of society.

What were the goals of the reentry simulation event?

We invited students pursuing degrees that are more likely to lead them to cross paths with justice-impacted people – students studying criminal justice, psychology, and sociology, especially. There are some students who may have already been exposed to the criminal justice system through their own personal experience or through a family member or friend, but the majority don’t have that firsthand experience. 

So the idea was to give them a deeper sense of what it actually feels like to transition after incarceration, as a way to build more empathy and understanding for the challenges people face and shine a light on what we need to do to better improve our systems to support people when they come home. 

Why do you think it’s so important to reach Gen Z?

The young people are essential to this movement. They’re the change agents. I want them to take ownership of this issue and be proud to tackle it. Really, I want them to be my boss someday. 

One last question. What keeps you motivated to keep doing this work?

For me, it all goes back to my daughter. I’m building a safer community for her to grow up in. I want her to live in a world where she feels valued as a young woman and she knows that the laws and the policies we have helped pass are going to make her community stronger and more secure. I also want her to understand that we can’t expect perfection in an imperfect world, and we should have a system that gives people the chance to rebuild their lives. I want to leave her a legacy that she’s proud of. I know that if we keep doing this work we’re going to help the people that want to be helped and empower law enforcement to do their jobs more effectively.