Coming home from incarceration shouldn't mean facing homelessness. RELAMP™ connects people reentering society with housing through the same Coordinated Entry system ARCH already runs statewide, working directly with the parole and probation officers who support them.
The name is intentional: RELAMP™ takes the same case-management model behind ARCH's ALAMP™ Certificate Program and points it at one of the most overlooked moments in a person's housing journey, the day they walk out of incarceration with nowhere to go. Reentry without stable housing makes everything harder: keeping appointments with a supervising officer, holding down a job, staying connected to family, and simply staying out of the situations that led to incarceration in the first place. RELAMP™ exists to close that gap, fast, and through a system ARCH has already built and trusted for years.
RELAMP™ isn't a separate, parallel process. People coming home from incarceration go through ARCH's Rural Alabama Coordinated Assessment System (RACAS) exactly like anyone else experiencing homelessness or housing instability across our 37 counties, assessed fairly under the same statewide prioritization standards. What RELAMP™ adds is a direct, dependable bridge between the criminal justice system and that process, so referrals happen before someone falls through the cracks, not after.
A safe, stable address isn't a bonus on top of successful reentry, it's often the foundation everything else depends on. Without it, meeting the basic conditions of parole or probation becomes dramatically harder, and the risk of returning to incarceration climbs. ARCH built RELAMP™ because rural Alabama's homeless services system and its criminal justice system have always been asking about the same people; RELAMP™ is what happens when those two systems actually talk to each other.
“A key doesn't care what door it used to be locked behind. Everyone deserves one.”
Four steps, starting wherever the person already is: still inside, just released, or months into supervision and still without stable housing.
A parole or probation officer, DOC reentry coordinator, case manager, family member, or the individual themselves reaches out to ARCH, ideally before release, but any time works.
The person completes the same RACAS assessment as anyone else in the system, fairly prioritized alongside every other household seeking housing help.
ARCH matches the person to the right intervention, rapid re-housing, permanent supportive housing, or transitional housing, through the Balance of State CoC's provider network.
ARCH stays in touch with the referring officer throughout, so supervision requirements and housing stability efforts move in the same direction.
RELAMP™ works because ARCH doesn't operate in a silo. We coordinate directly with parole and probation officers, DOC reentry coordinators, and correctional facility staff across the Balance of State's 37 counties, so a referral is a warm handoff to a real person, not a form disappearing into a general inbox.
You already know which of your caseload is one bad week away from being unhoused, and which of them will struggle to meet supervision requirements without a stable address. Reach out before that becomes a crisis. ARCH will walk the person through Coordinated Entry, keep you looped in as their housing search moves forward, and treat your referral as the priority it is.
A RELAMP™ referral doesn't have to come from a formal agency. It just has to come from someone who knows the person needs help.
The most common referral source, and the partnership RELAMP™ is built around.
For referrals that start before release, so housing is already in motion on the outside.
Already working with the person on employment, treatment, or other services? Loop ARCH in on housing.
Sometimes the first call comes from a parent, spouse, or friend trying to help someone land on their feet.
Reentering yourself and need housing help? You can call RACAS directly, no referral required.
RELAMP™ referrals go through ARCH's existing Coordinated Entry system, the same front door as every other housing referral in the Balance of State CoC. Call the 24/7 RACAS line, or start the Coordinated Assessment directly.
Mention RELAMP™ and that the referral is reentry-related when you call, so it reaches the right team quickly. Questions about the partnership itself? Reach out at arch@archconnection.org.