Developed By Harmony Richman
Emplower is an educational letter-generating application designed to help returning citizens gain meaningful and long-term employment. It provides critical information about the Fair Chance Act or "Ban The Box" and lays out the process employers will use to assess an applicant's fitness for the role. The User will be asked to answer specific questions about their history and experience and will receive a uniquely generated letter that is integral in the job application process. This letter is an opportunity for self-advocacy and to provide vital insight that the employer can use in making their decision.
Once a visitor reaches the site they will be invited to start learning. At this point they will read through each page to learn about The Fair Chance Act and Article 23-A. If the visitor is not alreay signed in, they will be prompted to sign in upon creating a letter. Once they are signed in they will be able to create a letter. They will fill out a form that addresses the applicable pieces of Article 23-A and will be able to submit the form and view their letter. The user will be also receive information on what to do if they feel their rights have been violated.
This tech stack used Node, Express, React, Redux, and PostgreSQL. I used PostgreSQL as my database to account for the relations between users and letters. I used Express through Node to make all database calls. I used React and Redux for my front-end to update generated letters with the form submissions which are also sent to the database.
Since this is an educational application, I will add more UI to break down the text heavy pages and make it a more interactive learning experience. I want this to be utilized by returning citizens and added into curriculums at re-entry programs to help users practice their computer fluency and take control of their narratives as they move into the job search.