Community Education Centers Acquires CiviGenics; Becomes Nation’s Largest Provider of Offender Reentry Services

Combined Company to Have Revenue in Excess of $200 million, and Employ over 3,500, Operate 97 Facilities in 22 States

Roseland, N.J., May 21, 2007 – Community Education Centers, Inc. (CEC), the leading provider of offender reentry services, today announced that it has acquired CiviGenics, Marlborough, Mass., the largest provider of in-prison treatment programs. The move creates the largest offender reentry services company in the United States. The combined company provides services ranging from residential and non-residential reentry programs, in-prison treatment services, and jail management services.

The company will have a staff of more than 3,500, annual revenues in excess of $200 million and will operate 97 facilities in 22 states, which includes reentry centers, in-prison treatment programs, and jail management contracts. The company will be headquartered in New Jersey and will have an estimated 20,000 individuals in its daily care.

“The leaders of America’s prison systems are increasingly aware that recidivism reduction is the best policy for government and incarcerated individuals,” said John J. Clancy, Chairman and CEO of CEC.  “CEC has been committed to recidivism reduction since its inception over a decade ago and now our national reach will have an even larger impact. I’m excited about CEC’s increased ability to provide effective reentry services and the growth potential for all facets of the company.”

According to federal statistics, the U.S. incarcerated population has grown from 0.5 million in 1980 to 2.3 million in 2005, more than quadrupling in 25 years.  The number of offenders either incarcerated or back in the community is expected to increase from roughly 7.1 million now to 8.5 million by 2012. As a result, the public sector is now turning to companies such as CEC and CiviGenics that provide effective reentry services that reduce recidivism rates.

“Statistics show that 67.5 percent of individuals who leave a correctional facility will unfortunately be back within three years,” said Clancy. “Through education and treatment programs, we have helped individuals successfully reenter society with the life skills to remain out of prison.  In some cases, research has shown our programs have reduced recidivism rates by as much as 50 percent – a figure which holds tremendous promise if projected on a national scale.”

CEC and CiviGenics, Inc., share a business philosophy that focuses on an unwavering commitment to reducing offender recidivism. CEC noted several benefits of the acquisition, including utilizing a broader spectrum of expertise areas, not only in treatment and reentry services, but also jail management, resulting in an overall opportunity to strengthen the nation’s corrections system and combined resources to more effectively reduce criminal recidivism in the United States. CiviGenics, Inc., will continue to operate as a wholly owned subsidiary of Community Education Centers, Inc.

As part of the acquisition, CiviGenics’ Chief Operating Officer Peter Argeropulos, a 31-year veteran of the corrections field, and CiviGenics’ Executive Vice-President for Operations, George Vose, formerly a director of the Rhode Island Department of Corrections and Commissioner of the Massachusetts Department of Corrections, will join CEC’s Chief Operating Officer, Dr. Robert Mackey, in forming a three-man Chief Operating Team, reporting to the CEO.

CEC’s total post-acquisition offering will include Residential Reentry Centers, In-Prison Treatment Programs, Residential Assessment Centers, Therapeutic Communities, Parole Violator Programs, Work Release Centers, Specialized Women’s Programs, Pre-Release Programs, Day Reporting Centers, Drug Court Programs, Outpatient Treatment and GPS Services, Jail Management and Drug Testing Services.

About Community Education Centers, Inc.
Community Education Centers, Inc., located in Roseland, New Jersey, is the leading provider of rehabilitative and reentry services to the criminal justice system in America. CEC owns and operates residential reentry centers and day reporting/outpatient programs and provides a full range of therapeutic residential and non-residential correctional services with an empirically documented record of reducing recidivism.

About CiviGenics, Inc.
CiviGenics, Inc., headquartered in Marlborough, Massachusetts, is a national management services company. Assembled under its corporate banner are experts in in-prison treatment, community corrections, and jail management services. Founded in 1995, CiviGenics is the second-largest privately held corrections operator, and the largest provider of correctional treatment programs in the United States.

For more information go to www.cecintl.com.