In 1886, the first prison industry shops were built within the Nebraska State Penitentiary, for cobbling shoes, making furniture, processing laundry, and canning penitentiary-grown produce.  We've come a long way since then!

Past shops and factories include a broom factory, a garment factory that included dry-cleaning, a shoe repair shop, a canning operation, a dental laboratory, and a large-scale farming and dairy operation.  Past products included wicker furniture, brooms, shoes, and false teeth!

CSI Today

Today, CSI continues to operate shops and programming throughout NDCS institutions.  Our product lines range from Braille transcription and repair to fine custom wood to printing to medical transcription to laundry services to license plates and janitorial, clothing, and dry goods.  We have shops located within the Nebraska State Penitentiary, Reception and Treatment Center, Omaha Correctional Center, Nebraska Correctional Center for Women, and Tecumseh State Correctional Institution providing meaningful jobs and programming for hundreds of inmate workers.  In addition, CSI is responsible for the provision of inmate road crews throughout the state that assist other state agencies and political subdivisions.  To expand our operations, thereby offering more programming opportunities for our inmate workers, CSI is in the process of adding an additional building at the Omaha Correctional Center, with long-range planning for additional expansion at the Tecumseh State Correctional Institution, as well.