Re-Entry Class Aims to Reduce Harm for the Incarcerated
Published on December 09, 2025
At the back of the ACJ’s Re-Entry Center, in the bowels of the facility on Level 1, Ronele Thomas and Tess Fiorentino gather their incarcerated pupils.
Clad in lime green jail garb, some decorated with designs of their own, the residents greet each other with handshakes and bro hugs before forming a circle from the desk-chairs inside the room for the day’s program.
Pathway to Care and Recovery, a local substance abuse recovery service, is here to address the twice-weekly Harm Reduction Class, a unique offering in the Re-Entry Center born mostly from Thomas’s lived experience and passion for helping others. A lifelong learner and the jail’s Diversion Coordinator, Thomas lost her father to substance abuse, and it became her mission to help others avoid the same fate.
“If I couldn’t help him, I figured I could help other people,” Thomas said.
Thomas earned bachelor’s and master’s degrees from Point Park University and a Drug and Alcohol certification in 2023 from CCAC. She was lunching one day with Re-Entry Director Amy Kroll and then-Deputy Warden for Programs and Services Connie Clark when she mentioned the idea of teaching a Harm Reduction class.
They told her to go for it.
Per the Centers for Disease Control, overdoses are the leading injury-related cause of death in the United States, with nearly 108,000 overdose deaths in 2022. That same year, just 13.1 million of the 54.6 million Americans who need substance use treatment had obtained help within the past year.
Harm reduction represents a different approach to substance use – one that aims to avoid stigma, while offering those who do choose to use drugs or alcohol the mental and physical tools to use more safely. Ultimately, they celebrate these steps as little victories.
“It’s really disheartening where people have that stigma, and harm reduction removes it so they do have that opportunity (to change),” Fiorentino said. “I want them to not only live for another day, but also to empower them to think they can change.”
The residents attend the class for different reasons. Some are referred there, either through their judge or their case worker. Some come for the education opportunity after taking other classes, like Financial Literacy or Parenting.
Lately, Thomas and Fiorentino have seen an increase in attendees simply from word of mouth around the jail.
“I’ve always valued knowledge (and) I heard about this class from a couple of people, and they told me basically it’s not that bad,” said J.M., an opioid user who largely avoided outpatient treatment in the past.
“They’re not telling me to stop, they’re telling me to be informed about what I’m doing so I have the choice to stop, and that’s what hooked me,” J.M. continued. “I don’t like preachy. I don’t like judgmental… This is the first time besides NA meetings where I found a group of people who are going through it, and understand what I went through, and understand the nature of addiction, not just the addiction itself.”
The classes themselves are more seminar than lecture, back-and-forth sessions with ample participation from students, instructors and guests. Most of the guest speakers have been there since the beginning of the program two years ago, having “bought in” to what Thomas is trying to accomplish.
“We recognize that people are going to use substances and there is nothing you can do about that,” Thomas said. “No amount of judgement, stigma, finger-pointing is going to change that. But we have known people to change their mind about it, and we’ve seen it in real time.”
One of those residents is D.R., a 26-year-old who said he had experimented with pills but was a daily marijuana smoker after first trying the drug as a preteen. Like most who take the class, the concept of reducing harm, rather than eliminating it entirely, resonated.
D.R. has been incarcerated for more than a year and is looking at another year at a state facility. He initially had no plans to stop using once he’s no longer incarcerated, but having already been sober for over a year, he wants to remain drug free after release.
“Why come home and start wasting money... when I could just stay on the sober path when I’ve already accomplished sobriety?” said D.R., who said Harm Reduction is one of his favorite classes he’s taken in the Re-Entry Center. “(The instructors) are actually trying to tap into our history and tap into our souls and really relate to us and try to help… I got a sense like they really cared.”
Participation in the class requires residents sign a Vegas-like contract – what happens in the group stays in the group. That allows the participants to speak freely, knowing it won’t be repeated later on housing units.
“Being in a place like this, it’s hard sometimes to become vulnerable,” said M.W. “When you got the right facilitators who allow the group to take this course and meet people where they (are) at, men are able to become vulnerable and share some things we normally wouldn’t share.”
M.W. also has personal experience showing the devasting consequences that can occur without harm reduction education in place. He had a non-drug-using relative contract HIV from a drug-using romantic partner and later died from AIDS. Interventions like needle exchanges have been found to lessen the risks. For M.W., that education is paramount.
“What I like about harm reduction is that’s it not necessarily about you having to stop,” he said. “I like it because it’s realistic. Not everyone’s intentions are to stop using drugs. But with being educated, it lessens the harm that could occur.”
Each class lasts for a dozen weeks, and Thomas and Fiorentino plan to continue. Fiorentino just celebrated her one-year anniversary at the jail. Already established as a harm reduction advocate when she was hired, Fiorentino has a bachelor's degree in sociology with minors in psychology and administration of justice. Her background as a Foundation of HOPE volunteer and her work in suboxone clinics and with the unhoused population made her a natural fit to assist Thomas.
The duo hopes to add a women’s Harm Reduction class in the near future, although the generally shorter incarceration stints for women make that a scheduling challenge. For now, they continue to educate and encourage, offering hope and new perspectives to those struggling with substance use.
“Basically, don’t give yourself a reason to say you can’t do it,” J.M said. “You can always do it. If you can get up, you can form an idea to go get high, do anything felonious, you can form a thought to do the opposite. I spend my days doing the opposite of my actual thoughts, and it’s kept me alive.”
And that – staying alive – is the ultimate goal of harm reduction, even if just for today.
Media inquiries may be directed to Jesse Geleynse, Public Information Officer for the Allegheny County Jail
jesse.geleynse@alleghenycounty.us or by phone at 412-350-1267 or 412-760-4760 (cell).