Quest 4 Life
Preparing people for a future beyond incarceration
Quest 4 Life prepares people for a future beyond incarceration through peer-led mindset and personal leadership coaching.
Delivered to more than 2,000 people across California prisons, the 12-week program helps participants develop a clear vision for their future, set goals, and take responsibility for their choices. In doing so, Quest 4 Life helps participants build the skills and mindset they need to create the future they want.
Quest 4 Life was created by men serving life sentences in CTF Soledad. CROP currently facilitates Quest 4 Life programming in Folsom, Solano, and Central California Women’s Facility (CCWF). At CTF Soledad, the program continues to be led by incarcerated coaches who were trained by CROP’s founding team prior to their release from prison.
Program structure
Quest 4 Life runs in 12-week cycles, meeting once a week for two-hour sessions. Sessions combine group conversation, journaling exercises, and accountability circles. By the end of the program, participants have mapped out the concrete steps they can take to turn their vision into a reality, and have started to follow through with a supportive community beside them.
Participants work through six areas:
Vision: What do you want to achieve in the next 12 weeks?
Current Reality: Where are you now?
What’s Wanted and Needed?: What needs to happen to reach your goals?
The Freedom of Forgiveness: Letting go of the stories and beliefs that hold you back
The Power of Promises: Committing to goals and taking accountability for your choices
Finishing Well: Reflecting on what you’ve learned and carrying it forward
impact
Quest 4 Life is designed to change more than individual behavior. By bringing people together around a shared commitment to personal growth and responsibility, the program helps create a different culture inside prison - one where people support one another’s goals, hold each other accountable, and choose a different path from those that shaped their lives before and during incarceration.
After completing Quest 4 Life, 99.6% of participants remained violence-free, and 87% continued taking positive steps forward, such as pursuing employment or education or participating in self-help groups. 95% said they were satisfied with the program. Participants have gone on to earn their GED, enroll in college classes, develop business plans, and reconnect with estranged family members.