Accountability.
LOCKHART, Texas — A year-long program at the Coleman Unit is teaching women in Texas prisons how to plan a business, find their purpose and build a reentry plan, and it keeps helping them after they walk out the gate, according to the September 2026 issue of The ECHO, the newspaper published for people in TDCJ by the Windham School District.
Empowering Women Out of Prison (EWOP) is a Texas nonprofit that runs a 12-month leadership and entrepreneurship academy for incarcerated women. The program began at the Coleman Unit in 2019. EWOP leaders told The ECHO the program receives about 1,000 to 1,500 applications a year for roughly 100 seats.
What the program teaches
Participants live together in the program and attend class as a group. According to EWOP Executive Director P. Thomure:
- The first months focus on personal growth: writing down goals, values and “a hundred dreams,” and learning about vulnerability and honesty.
- The second semester turns to business: each woman develops an idea, writes a business plan, and learns marketing and finances.
- At the end, participants pitch their plans to a panel of judges in a “Shark Tank”-style competition and graduate with a certificate of entrepreneurship. Graduates who want to stay longer can apply to become “servant leaders” who help the next class.
Reentry planning starts on day one. “We make a plan while they’re [residents]. Once [in the community], we hold them accountable to that plan,” EWOP Director of Programs C. Trujillo told The ECHO.
Help after release
EWOP says its support continues once women are released, including:
- Connections to transitional housing partners across Texas
- Help with transportation, including getting to parole appointments
- Help staying in compliance with parole conditions, plus food security and clothing
- Help finding employment
- Caring for Kids, a program for mothers who have been stable in the community for at least six months, with a steady job and budget, to help them support and raise their children
According to Thomure, 18 graduates have started businesses, ranging from a food truck to senior adult care. EWOP told The ECHO that none of its graduates had returned to prison as of publication. Texas Prison News has not independently verified that figure.
Who can apply
EWOP accepts applications year-round. According to The ECHO, applicants must:
- Have a high school diploma or high school equivalency (HSE/GED) certificate. Those without one are encouraged to enroll with Windham first.
- Have no minor disciplinary case in the past six months and no major case in the past 12 months.
- Generally be within about five years of their projected release date, though EWOP said it sometimes considers individual situations.
“A lot of people are afraid to answer it honestly — don’t be,” Thomure said of the application. “We want to know your truth, because if we don’t know what your situation is or was, we can’t help you.”
For applicants who don’t qualify yet, Thomure’s advice was to stay out of trouble for a year and reapply.
How to apply
Women in TDCJ can get an EWOP application from their unit chaplain. The mailing address is printed on the application, and it can be sent by truck mail or regular U.S. mail.
EWOP was founded by the former CEO of the Prison Entrepreneurship Program (PEP), a similar program for men. According to The ECHO, PEP is currently offered at the Estes and Lychner units, and men can also get an application from their unit chaplain.
Families who want to learn more can visit EWOP’s website at ewoptx.org. If your loved one is getting close to release, see more reentry resources in our Reentry section.