San Mateo County's New Jail Will Give Inmates Much-Needed Job Skills

REDWOOD CITY (KCBS)— The new San Mateo County Jail opens in 2014 with an emphasis on vocational training for inmates.

Inmates will be able to sign up for a number of different programs to learn skills including dog grooming and culinary training that will include how to be a barista.

The jail, approved by supervisors last week, includes plans for a 1,200 square-foot kitchen.

KCBS' Mike Colgan Reports:

"Everybody likes their coffee in the morning, so we'd like to explore the opportunity of teaching people the whole coffee making, you know, barista skills and then perhaps having our own kiosk outside the Hall of Justice," said San Mateo County Sheriff Greg Munks.

San Mateo County Supervisor Adrienne Tissier said providing inmates some form of vocational training makes it less likely that they'll return to prison.

"We're going to provide a lot more programming than we've been able to do in our existing facilities [for] both men and women," Tissier said.

She added that the point of the program is to assess inmates and make sure they are provided with the necessary tools for when they get out of jail.

"That's one of the critical factors when people leave our jails," Tissier stressed, "So they can have a continue of care when they get out and find jobs."

The San Mateo County Jail has a 70 percent recidivism rate.

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