The Safer Foundation in Chicago, Illinois, is the largest community-based provider of employment services for ex-offenders in the United States. Established in 1972, Safer has a professional staff of nearly 200 in 6 locations. Safer runs a private school, called the PACE (Programmed Activities for Correctional Education) Institute, at the Cook County Jail, and it operates a work-release center that provides extensive educational and employment readiness programming. Safer also uses a small-group, peer-based approach in its basic education skills program to help participants overcome the barriers to learning commonly faced by ex-offenders. Special case managers, called lifeguards, are available to help clients address transitional problems for 1 year after they have secured employment. Of the nearly 1,102 clients who received job placement assistance from the Safer Foundation in 1996, 60% were still employed after 20 days. Of the 72 participants who completed the Safer Foundation's basic education course for ex-offenders aged 16-21 years, more than two-thirds entered school, vocational training, or employment. After 180 days, 58% of those individuals were still in their placements and only 1 had been convicted of a new crime. (Seven contact persons and three World Wide Web sources of additional information are listed.) (MN)