InnerChange Freedom Initiative

The InnerChange Freedom Initiative (IFI) is an American Christian prison program operated by Prison Fellowship Ministries (PFM), a 501(c)(3) nonprofit established by Chuck Colson.

In 1997 the IFI program was introduced to the Carol Vance Unit, a prison in unincorporated Fort Bend County, Texas. Since then, other IFI programs opened at other prisons throughout the United States.

In 2003 the Americans United for Separation of Church and State criticized the implementation of a state-funded IFI program in Iowa, accusing it of violating the United States Constitution's separation of church and state provisions.

A prisoner's participation in the IFI begins 24 to 18 months before his or her scheduled release. Phases one and two occur during the prisoner's incarceration; phase one concerns what the program refers to as the inmate's "personal values and thought processes and encourages the development of spiritual and moral filters." The program states that the second phase "tests the inmate's value system in real-life settings and prepares him/her for life after prison. Inmates may spend much of the day in off-site prison work programs or involved in the reentry portion of the IFI curriculum." After release, the prisoner participates in IFI programming for an additional 12 months, with volunteer mentors providing mentoring and support.

The 15-hour days of the participants are dominated by Christian beliefs. Many Bible study sessions are held. For instance the Alcoholics Anonymous meetings directly refer to Jesus instead of using the phrase "higher power." The program considers drug addiction to be a sin instead of a disease. The program tells prisoners that homosexuality, masturbation, and premarital sexual intercourse are sins. In order to graduate from IFI, one has to be employed for six months after he is released, as well as meet with a trained local mentor, and attend a pro-social group. Some IFI prisoners are involved in Habitat for Humanity projects.

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