Backend Software Developer – Justice Reform Innovation Lab

Overview

Backend Software Developer – Justice Reform Innovation Lab at San Quentin Skunk Works. San Quentin Skunk Works is an incarcerated-led innovation lab transforming prison from the inside out. We unite incarcerated leaders with outside professionals to design bold solutions — from art and gaming to research and software — that shift prison culture and create scalable models of reform.

One current build is Gate Clearance, a workflow app designed to replace the outdated, paper-heavy system for volunteer onboarding at San Quentin. Today, volunteers must pass through multiple steps (fingerprinting, TB testing, training, approvals), tracked by email and spreadsheets. The result is long delays and lost data.

• Collaborate on feature design and workflow mapping for the Gate Clearance project and other initiatives.
• Build intake forms, dashboards, and API endpoints.
• Help shape the Postgres data model and secure document handling.
• Contribute to authentication, security, and scaling discussions.

• Frontend:
  Next.js (App Router), React, Type Script, Tailwind CSS
• Backend/API:
  Next.js API routes (Node.js), Postgres with Drizzle ORM
• Tooling: ESLint, PostCSS, Turbopack
• Integrations (planned):
  Google Workspace, Gmail, Calendar
• Hosting:
  Vercel (or comparable)

Be part of a skilled, hybrid team of incarcerated leaders and outside professionals working shoulder-to-shoulder. See your code have immediate, real-world impact — enabling hundreds of volunteers to bring education, healing, and opportunity into prison. Join a tech-for-good movement where software is a lever for systemic change.

• Associate

• Engineering and Information Technology

• Civic and Social Organizations and Non-profit Organizations