From Watching Her Father's Reentry to a PhD: Dr. Sharhonda York Chea's Fight to Reduce Recidivism
Contributing writer Lizzy Nyoike profiles Dr. Sharhonda York Chea, a Ramsey County parole officer and founder of OurFathersOurSons LLC, whose research firm helps justice-involved organizations reduce recidivism through data and program evaluation. York Chea's path began when her father was incarcerated during her sophomore year of high school, and her doctoral research later found that roughly 84% of people she studied returned to the community with zero or one social bond, a gap she's now building partnerships across Minnesota to close.
Dr. Sharhonda York Chea wears multiple hats. She is a Ramsey County parole officer, research consultant, mother, wife and, most recently, a PhD graduate from Iowa State University.
She is also the founder and CEO of OurFathersOurSons LLC, a research consulting firm dedicated to helping justice-involved organizations strengthen their programs through research, data analysis, program evaluation and training. Her work centers on improving outcomes for justice-impacted individuals, their families and the communities they return to.
York Chea’s work recently received recognition from the governor’s office, acknowledging her growing impact in criminal justice reform and her commitment to creating evidence-based solutions for Minnesota communities.
While the recognition celebrates years of professional achievement, York Chea says her journey into criminal justice began long before she earned her PhD.
When she was a sophomore in high school, her father was incarcerated for 15 months.
Successful reentry into the community often depends on the support a person has waiting for them. But not everyone returns home to that stability.
When York Chea’s father completed his sentence, he came home to a wife, five children and a family committed to helping him rebuild his life. For York Chea, watching the bond between her father and his parole officer inspired her to pursue a career dedicated to helping others successfully return home after incarceration.
“I remember talking to his parole officer asking, ‘how do I do what you do?'” she recalled. “He said, ‘You need to go to school.'”
She never forgot those words. Years later, she fulfilled that goal, becoming a parole officer herself.
She didn’t stop there.
Wanting to better understand why some people successfully reintegrate into society while others struggle, she returned to school to pursue her doctorate. Her research focused on family structure and the role social bonds play in reducing recidivism.
Individuals returning to supportive families and strong community relationships are less likely to reoffend. Although, many people leave incarceration without those critical support systems in place.
Using data collected through her work with people on parole in Ramsey County, York Chea found that 34.41% of individuals had no social bonds upon release, while another 49.25% had only one social bond, 16.13% had two social bonds and just one individual, 0.22%, had all three. The findings revealed that roughly 83.66% of those in her study returned to the community with zero or just one social bond.
Rather than allowing those statistics to remain in her academic dissertation, York Chea built a business around them.
Through OurFathersOurSons LLC, she partners with nonprofits, government agencies and justice organizations to evaluate programs, analyze data and develop strategies that better serve individuals returning home after incarceration. She believes organizations can create lasting change when research and real-world experience work together.
“I have a research background as well as that practitioner piece,” she said. “Combining those two together, to help create change for our people coming back into the community.”
York Chea recently partnered with the Minnesota Justice Research Center on a project examining how fines and fees affect people navigating Minnesota’s criminal justice system. She hopes the research will help inform future policy decisions and reduce barriers that often make successful reentry more difficult.
Looking ahead, York Chea hopes to collaborate with the Minnesota Department of Corrections to create family therapy and counseling programs that begin while an individual is incarcerated, not after they are released.
OurFathersOurSons was inspired by her own family’s experience. Her father was incarcerated. Years later, her brother was too. She sees purpose in this work.
“These are our fathers and our sons who are cycling in and out of the criminal justice system, and so I couldn’t think of a better name,” she said.
As York Chea continues building partnerships across Minnesota, she hopes her work will encourage organizations to invest in the people behind it. For York Chea, successful reentry represents a father’s return, a family rebuilding together and a community made stronger.
For more information on OurFathersOurSons LLC, visit www.ourfathersoursons.org/.
Lizzy Nyoike is a Hubbard School of Journalism & Mass Communication student and contributing writer for the Minnesota Spokesman-Recorder. She welcomes reader responses at lnyoike@spokesman-recorder.com.