At the Crow Wing County Jail, the IMPACT class meets twice a day.

“It’s a program that allows these guys to be able to learn some lifelong skills,” said Crow Wing County Sheriff Eric Klang. “If we can give them the tools to be successful on the outside that means they are not going to come back to us on the inside.”

IMPACT stands for ‘Inmates Making Positive Advancement Choosing Transformation.’

The Crow Wing County program just hit the one-year mark; during that time, more than 120 inmates have taken part in the 15-week program.

Participants take daily classes focusing on personal and professional topics, including employment, parenting, budget management and basic entrepreneurship.

Corrections officers serve in a coaching role to lead the lessons for the students.

The Crow Wing County Sheriff’s Office allowed 5 EYEWITNESS NEWS to observe one of the classes that focused on resiliency, overcoming failure, accepting failure and learning from your failures.

“To hear those guys having adult discussions about important topics and learning new things that will help them in the future that’s the most important thing for me,” said Ron Imgrund, assistant Crow Wing County Jail administrator.

“I’ve got some leadership skills,” said Matthew Enns, who recently graduated from the IMPACT program. “I wanted a positive change, I prayed for it, the answer came in the IMPACT.”

The idea for IMPACT was fueled by Corrections Officer Chris Saicoe, who moved from California to Brainerd. “They are just waiting for someone to extend a helping hand.”

Saicoe said he’s seen the success. “I’ve had them come up to me on the street and be like ‘Hey man, I appreciate that someone cared.’”