OMAHA, Neb. (AP) — The Douglas County Corrections Department is set to receive $1.75 million to start a re-entry program aimed at helping inmates avoid going back to jail.

The Sherwood Foundation’s three-year grant will pay for eight social workers, who will evaluate incoming inmates and work on plans for when inmates are released from jail.

Justine Wall, the department’s in-house program coordinator, told the Douglas County Board Tuesday that release plans for inmates will include connecting them with service providers in the community.

The grant will pay for the total cost of the program, as well as for researchers from the University of Nebraska at Omaha to track and evaluate the program’s effectiveness.

The Sherwood Foundation is a Nebraska-based organization that promotes social justice.