In 1976, Walter Evans, Chief U.S. Probation Officer for the District of Oregon, located a residence in S.E. Portland that had been incorporated in 1964 by the Greater Portland Council of Churches for offenders but which later had been abandoned. In 1966 the Council obtained the current 501(c)3 private non-profit organizational status. Seeing the need for residential correctional services for federal offenders, he established a new Board of Directors to meet this need and found funding to purchase the residence. The original Bylaws of the Council established in January 1970 and amended in March 1976 allowing Chief Evans and the Board to appoint a Director to develop this new program called the “Oregon Halfway House” which then in June 1976 contracted with the Federal Bureau of Prisons. In 2005, the Board expanded its services from the original 15 bed program by relocating to a 150 bed capacity, 40,000 square foot facility located in Northeast Portland where we are currently located. The organization legally changed its name from “Oregon Halfway House” to Northwest Regional Re-entry Center (NWRRC) in January 2011.
NWRRC has balanced the needs of offenders and public safety concerns successfully since 1976. NWRRC has continued to expand its programming for offenders throughout the years and is proud of its successful heritage. While we are proud of our efforts to assist offenders, we are equally proud of our successful role in protecting the community through positive behavioral changes of residents, holding them accountable to our program rules and regulations, and an active role in collaborating with enforcement of law.
Mission
Our mission is to support, educate, and encourage our residents, while they do the work necessary toward successful transition from the criminal justice system back into their communities with improved life skills. We are committed to assuring effective supervision, providing structure, expecting accountability, and as a result protecting the community.