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County court backs rebrand and expansion of El Paso Promise into 'preentry' support program
Summary
Criminal justice officials told the commissioners court the El Paso Promise program will be rebranded as a "preentry" support service and expanded beyond ages 17–28. Officials said the phase 2 rollout will be cost-neutral for the county in the current fiscal year and aims to reduce recidivism by providing housing, education and workforce supports.
Criminal justice officials presented a plan to rebrand and expand the El Paso Promise program on March 16, telling the El Paso County Commissioners Court the move would shift the county's emphasis from post‑incarceration services to earlier intervention.
"We are preentry support services," Catherine Jones, criminal justice director, said as she laid out the proposed realignment. Jones said the change reflects the department's focus on early intervention and coordination with community partners to keep people from entering — or re‑entering — the criminal justice system.
Dominique Olivares, the program's community resource coordinator whom Jones asked to elevate to El Paso Promise (preentry) coordinator, described phase 1 outcomes and phase 2 goals. Olivares said the program has established memoranda of understanding with local partners, launched a no‑cost diversion collaboration with the district attorney's office, and enrolled participants in GED and workforce programs. "Approximately half of all of our participants don't have a high school diploma," Olivares said, noting the program now connects people to EPCC's Opportunity High School Diploma pilot and other training pathways.
Jones told the court she intends to realign two existing positions into the El Paso Promise team and use salary savings to temporarily fund the promoted coordinator in fiscal year 2026. She estimated the permanent cost to sustain that coordinator in FY27 would be less than $30,000 annually. Jones said other reorganizations and job reclassifications will be cost neutral.
To illustrate potential savings, Jones contrasted supervision costs with detention: "63¢ a day is what I'll tell you [to supervise someone], versus a $100 plus keeping them in jail," she said, arguing prevention reduces fiscal pressure on detention and related systems.
Commissioners voiced broad support for the proposal and for the language change to "preentry." The court gave consensus to proceed; Jones said remaining HR and budget steps will follow the usual processes and that the court will receive quarterly reporting on implementation.
The presentation described the program as a community‑connected strategy that provides education, ID/documentation support, housing stabilization and recovery services to reduce recidivism and help participants enter the workforce. Jones and Olivares said the model relies on no‑cost MOUs with partners; the only county cost in year one is the proposed coordinator promotion funded from salary savings.
