Q&A with Mat-Su Re-entry Coalition coordinator discussing 2022 Mat-Su Reentry Summit

WASILLA — Mat-Su Re-entry Coalition coordinator Barb Mongar recently participated in a question and answer interview to discuss the outcome of the 2022 Mat-Su Reentry Summit.

Q: How did this year’s virtual event go?“This year, we had 138 attendees, which is probably the most we’ve ever had at the Mat-Su Reentry Summit, which is pretty awesome. The people that attended were both from corrections and community service providers, not just our community but all around the state. 31 percent of the attendees were from the Mat-Su Area. 30 percent were from Anchorage. 16 percent were from Fairbanks. After that, it was pretty much all over.”

Q: Does the virtual model help you reach more people across the state?“It does. When we had them in person, we did have people fly in. So, that was great but not as many as we’ve been able to reach with the virtual. That being said, I miss having it in person and a lot of people do miss the interactions that are in person. That’s why this year, we added a discussing and networking session at the end of each day. Those went really well.”

Q: What is the main objective of these reentry summits?“Basically it’s geared towards helping professionals with learning what programs are out there in reentry, and hearing from people who work in reentry… We had national and statewide speakers.”

Q: Does it feel like you’re picking up your overall reach and momentum with this annual event?“Yeah. This year, I incorporated all the different coalitions throughout the state who helped me with the planning of the summit so we could speakers from throughout. We do try to keep it Mat-Su-centric in some respects. Because we all work together, we also make it beneficial for people outside the Ma-Su who attend… I’ve had so many great comments, just how it’s helping with the future, with their clients.”

Q: Was social distancing the main reason for holding the event virtual last year and this year?“Yeah, basically. Some of it was that. Last year for sure it was because of COVID. This year, I was intending to try to do it as a hybrid, but COVID numbers started going up again, and a lot of people were telling me they wouldn’t be able to attend unless it was virtual… So we decided to do it virtually. Next year, we’re hoping to be able to do more of a hybrid… We always had our Mat-Su Summit in January. Since it’s more of a statewide reach, we’re going to move it to August.”

Q: Anything else that you want to add about your plans for the next summit?“Yeah, I was thinking even if we do it as a hybrid or virtually, I’d like to have more breakout sessions so there could be more discussions and maybe planning toward some solutions. We can use some of the knowledge that we learn from the summit to plan for some steps to take afterward. That, and just making sure we have some speakers with lived experience and some professional speakers that have good programs going in their areas so that we can learn from what they’re doing and possibly implement it here in Alaska.”

Q: How long has Mat-Su Reentry been around?“The coalition has been around since 2016, basically. There’s a homeless coalition out here in the Valley that made a committee for reentry and that grew into the reentry coalition… We’re different organizations here in the Mat-Su that are concerned about helping returning citizens when they get out so they can keep everyone safe and keep them on the right path for success.

Q: Aside from the Summit, what else do you do throughout the year?“We do a lot of outreach. We get together every month to make sure if there’s any problems occurring to work on the different areas in the Valley that are difficult for reentry. Housing out here is a pretty big priority of ours, just trying to get more transitional, low-cost housing. Transportation is a big one in the Valley. That one’s harder to tackle because we really don’t have public transportation out here. We sort of do, but not really, not like they do in Anchorage. Some of the other ones are health services, and substance abuse and treatment.”

Q: Are you encouraged by the amount of community participation behind this cause?“Yeah, I think our participation is up, and I think there’s a lot of eyes looking at reentry and how important it is. Like I said, it makes for safer neighborhoods. It’s important for everybody. The hardest part is… some people really don’t think about reentry and why it’s important. That’s our goal as a coalition, is to try to get the word out and try to take away some of the stigma behind it.”

For more information about the Mat-Su Reentry Coalition, visit mschh.org/mat-su-re-entry-coalition.

Contact Mat-Su Valley Frontiersman reporter Jacob Mann at jacob.mann@frontiersman.com