A Curiae Anecdotes: Jason's Journey through Mentorship

By Naomi Friedland

Jason Baum, 49, grew up in the San Francisco Bay Area, mainly in San Mateo. He said that despite being college-educated and coming from a good family, he still found a path toward incarceration. When Baum was arrested in 2013, he was working as a recruiter in the tech space, an industry he had been in since 1999. 

Baum utilized his time in prison to reflect and better himself. “I used this time as if I were in school,” he said. 

Baum said his mother would tell his daughter, who was four at the time Baum went to prison, that he was in school because she was too young to understand incarceration. 

Baum said framing prison as school to his daughter inspired him to treat prison as an educational opportunity. While inside he completed four degrees at Taft College, the local community college by the prison where he was, in addition to completing a master's in business administration for inmates through Cornell University. He read books about how to be a better father and to improve his business knowledge. Baum also volunteered with Those Outspoken, an organization that works with parents and students struggling with addiction.

Baum was released from prison at the start of the COVID-19 pandemic, in March 2020. A year and a half into his probation period, his probation officer and an A Curiae staff member visited him, telling about the Northern District of California's Reentry Court Program. Baum said he initially did not want to take part in the service because he was conditioned to reject accountability and being around police. 

“Something inside of me told me to say ‘yes’,” Baum said.

“This was brought to me for a reason, just do it,” he said he told himself. 

Baum credits the program with his success after getting out. It was a significant commitment, he said. He went to weekly three-hour meetings at a federal building with judges and attended regular follow-up meetings on Zoom. 

While he learned career-related skills like resume building in prison, he said none of them would help him get acclimated to life after prison. A Curiae's mentorship program, in particular, gave him tangible skills, preparing him to re-enter the workforce. The mentorship program helps individuals in collaborative court programs or under federal supervision with professional growth through guidance on resume building, interview skills, and career advancement. 

President and founder of A Curiae Wyatt Lim-Tepper connected Baum to professionals in the tech industry working with a lead attorney on professional development. He learned from one-on-one conversations how to confidently present himself, given his criminal background. 

Baum said being open to professionals about his criminal history was the biggest hurdle for him to re-enter the workforce. He said he learned how to communicate with professionals about his criminal history and accept potential judgment from colleagues.

Baum successfully returned to a career in the technology industry after serving a seven-year prison sentence. He credits much of his success after leaving prison to A Curiae’s professional mentorship initiative. He is a managing partner for Multiplier Partners, a technology consulting organization, and is the Head of Talent Acquisition for Strata Identity, a cybersecurity company. 

He said A Curiae provided him with a community of people that understood the difficulties of coming back home and developing relationships with family and community after leaving incarceration. 

“Wyatt’s the kind of guy [who] will do anything he can if it’s within reason,” Baum said. 

“Having somebody that cares so much, it goes a long way.” 

Baum continues to stay connected with A Curiae since he graduated from the professional mentorship initiative in December 2024. He said he enjoys driving up from his home in Calabasas, CA, to attend graduations of others involved in reentry programs. Baum lives with his partner and is raising her 11-year-old with her.