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Volunteering and Internships

Interns and volunteers are critical to helping us fulfill our mission.

Interns and volunteers help JHA with various aspects of our work, including helping track, log, and respond to communications; working at events; and going on prison monitoring visits. JHA conducts roughly 20 prison visits per year, and generally brings interns and volunteers on about 15 of them. Of the roughly 28 IDOC prisons in Illinois, only five are within a two-hour drive of Chicago, while ten are more than four hours from Chicago. Most JHA visits involve a two- or three-day trip downstate to see multiple prisons. Visitors are welcome to join for only part of a trip, but must provide their own transportation when doing so. We are unable to reimburse for travel expenses. We limit most visits to six volunteers not including JHA staff, and single-day visits to prisons near Chicago generally fill up quickly. Visitors should expect to leave before 8:00 AM and return home after 6:00 PM for most visits. 

Visitors need to be cleared by IDOC before they are allowed into a prison, which requires a background check. When visiting with JHA, volunteers should understand that we may be in a prison for up to five hours without access to food or belongings and with limited restroom availability. Visitors should also expect to be on their feet for hours at a time with a significant amount of walking, including up and down stairs. Some accommodations can be made for visitors with disabilities, but they need to approved by IDOC prior to the visit. Please read JHA’s rules for visiting correctional facilities.

• Internships: We have hired all summer 2025 interns. Please sign up for JHA’s mailing list and/or social media for news on when future applications will open.

• Volunteering: Please sign up for our mailing list and/or social media; we will advertise all volunteer opportunities via these methods. At this time, we are looking for volunteers with the specific skills outlined below; if you have these skills and are interested in helping out please use our contact form.

  • Data analytics/coding

  • Infographic creation

  • Spanish language translation

  • A healthcare background (and interest in going on monitoring visits)

 Contact Us

Report information or concerns to JHA using the form below.

Need to raise a concern directly to the Illinois Department of Corrections? Contact IDOC via their online form. You can also contact Natalie Mason, IDOC’s Family Liaison and part of their Office of Constituent Services, directly at 217-558-2200 x6226 (8:30am-4:30pm Mon-Fri) or DOC.Constituent.Services@illinois.gov. JHA is interested in hearing about your experience with this office.

Media Inquiries
The John Howard Association is the most reliable source for independent information about Illinois' adult and juvenile prison systems.

For media inquiries, please contact JHA's Executive Director, Jennifer Vollen-Katz, at jvollen@thejha.org or 312.291.9183.

Prison Communications program
People currently incarcerated in Illinois prisons/jails can send us privileged mail to report concerns at John Howard Association, P.O. Box 10042, Chicago, IL 60610-0042.

Other Inquiries
For all other inquiries, please contact Office Manager Dan Hoffman at 312-291-9183 or dhoffman@thejha.org.