What Is The Cicada Project?

The Cicada Project was not created from theory. It was created from lived experience. Observation. Heartbreak. Growth. Accountability. And a deep desire to create something different for adults impacted by incarceration. Some of us involved in this work have served time. Some have worked inside the system. Some have loved people through addiction, incarceration, sentencing, release, relapse, healing, and rebuilding. For me personally, my connection to this work comes from many different directions. I have worked as a corrections officer in a county jail, where part of my responsibilities included transporting individuals to prison. I witnessed firsthand the emotional weight of sentencing, the fear behind the silence, and the uncertainty many people carried while waiting to learn what their future would hold. I also witnessed the impact incarceration has on families. I watched loved ones come to visitation carrying pain, confusion, anger, hope, shame, loyalty, and exhaustion all at once. And outside of my professional experience, incarceration has deeply affected my own family as well. My older brother has spent much of his life cycling in and out of prison since he was a teenager and is currently incarcerated today at 50 years old. Both of my children’s fathers have served prison time, with one currently serving a life sentence. My father — the founder and visionary behind The Cicada Project — recently completed his own prison sentence. My sister and two sons are also felons who have experienced the cycle of incarceration through jail involvement and the challenges that follow. Because of this, I do not approach this conversation from only one perspective. I have seen incarceration from the side of the officer. The inmate. The daughter. The mother. The partner. The sister. The visitor. The child. And now, the advocate. What I have learned is this: Incarceration does not affect one person. It affects entire families, communities, nervous systems, identities, and futures. And while accountability is necessary, punishment alone does not teach people how to heal, regulate emotions, rebuild relationships, or reconnect with purpose. That is where The Cicada Project begins. The cicada became our symbol because transformation takes time. A cicada spends years underground before emerging into something completely different. Quietly growing. Developing unseen. Preparing for a new stage of life. Many adults impacted by incarceration understand what it feels like to live unseen. To feel buried beneath mistakes, labels, shame, or survival mode. To wonder if people will ever allow them to become more than their past. The Cicada Project exists to create spaces where transformation is possible. Not through shame. Not through pretending the past did not happen. But through intentional growth, emotional wellness, accountability, community, and purpose. Through initiatives like Open Skies, emotional wellness workshops, intentional living practices, mentorship, and community collaboration, our mission is to help individuals reconnect with themselves and move forward with intention. We are not here to “save” people. We are here to walk beside individuals who are ready to do the work of becoming. Because we believe people are capable of growth. We believe purpose changes lives. We believe healing and accountability can exist together. And we believe communities become stronger when restoration becomes part of the conversation. The Cicada Project is more than a nonprofit. It is a movement toward intentional healing, meaningful support, and honest conversations about what happens before, during, and after incarceration. And this is only the beginning. Isabel “Izzy” Black President & Co-Founder of TCP