CDL Program
Justice 4 Housing’s CDL Program works hand in hand with Truckucation, our Massachusetts-based CDL training, credentialing, and driver-advocacy nonprofit under the Corepath Alliance umbrella. Our model is simple: we teach, we hire, we train. We also go one step further. We help people build businesses.
We’d like to thank the Cummings Foundation for their generous support, which is helping us expand our CDL Program and provide justice-impacted individuals with access to career training and opportunities for rebuilding their lives and achieving long-term stability.
Recognized as members of the First Timers Club with an Excellence Designation from CMSC Parker CDL School for passing the CDL exam on the first try.*
Program Overview
Our CDL Program provides vocational training and reentry support for individuals returning from incarceration, offering a structured pathway to a career in commercial driving.
Participants in the program have the opportunity to secure employment that provides a livable wage upon completion, with an annual salary range between $85,000 and $130,000 in this career path.
Participants are provided with:
- Scholarship to Parker’s CDL education center
- Training provided by Switching Lanes with Wayne
From a job to a business.
Most CDL programs stop at a license and a placement. Ours is built as a full ecosystem, so a returning citizen can grow from trainee to employee to business owner:
- Truckucation trains. Participants earn their CDL and can also take our Broker/Dispatch curriculum, which opens a career path off the road as well as on it.
- Corepath Logistics hires. Qualified graduates can be hired directly as W-2 drivers on our carrier fleet. The fleet runs cargo vans, box trucks, dry van, reefer, flatbed, and heavy-haul freight. That gives them real experience and a steady paycheck.
- CCR Freight connects to the market. CCR Freight is a freight brokerage, founded in 2020 as the first Black woman-owned freight brokerage in Massachusetts. Through it, participants see how freight is booked, priced, and moved.
- OT Nation (OTN) builds businesses. OTN is our consulting arm. It helps drivers who are ready to become owner-operators, dispatchers, or small carriers. We cover business formation, authority and compliance, branding, and how to avoid the predatory lease-purchase deals that trap so many new owners.
For people coming home from incarceration, ownership matters. A business they control is often the most reliable route around the hiring barriers they face. Our goal is to make that route realistic and safe.
Why now is a critical moment:
The trucking workforce is going through a major shift. Since June 2025, roadside inspectors have been enforcing the federal English Language Proficiency requirement as an out-of-service violation. A driver who can’t show proficiency at an inspection is pulled off the road on the spot. FMCSA reports more than 26,000 drivers placed out of service under this enforcement, and the American Trucking Associations estimates about 2,000 drivers a month are being sidelined. In August 2026, USDOT proposed a rule to make this standard permanent.
As a result, many drivers are losing their jobs. Carriers are actively looking for qualified, English-proficient, well-trained replacements. That opens real doors for returning citizens who complete quality training, both as drivers and as the next generation of small carriers and dispatch businesses.
Program Eligibility
- Must be 18 years old to obtain a CDL license for use in Massachusetts and must be 21 years old to drive out of state
- A student must be able to pass a D.O.T. physical exam to obtain a Medical Examiner’s Certificate (D.O.T. Card)
- Official copy of driving record must be brought to the school for a confidential evaluation
- Must have be a US citizen, Legal Permanent Resident or Non-Domiciled CDL Applicant
- Passing Grade on the Admission Test, with a minimum grade of 70%
- Go through a personal interview
Justice 4 Housing's CDL Program Interest Form
At this time, our CDL Program is not accepting new inquiries due to the high volume of interest we’ve already received. We appreciate your enthusiasm and will share updates when space becomes available.
Meet CDL Program Participant, Jason!
Jason, who has been in both our SHARP & CDL programs, shares how earning his Class A CDL and receiving support from our staff helped him land a great job with Arctic Glacier Premium Ice. Seeing our program participants step into stable careers and new opportunities is exactly why we do this work.