It's difficult for a convicted felon to find a job.

But it's possible for the felon to find work and be productive in society if the felon hires himself.

That concept is behind a University of Pittsburgh pilot program which trained 10 former inmates to become entrepreneurs so they can start their own businesses.

The program, called the Entrepreneurial Mindset, graduated the 10 students in a ceremony at the Loews Club restaurant at The Waterfront on Tuesday. The participants can continue to receive help with their business plans through Pitt.

The program is part of the Institute for Entrepreneurial Excellence in the Katz Graduate School of Business at Pitt and was done in conjunction with the Mon Valley Initiative with funding from the Heinz Endowments.

Two of the graduates, Terry Neal and Kunta Bradford, said they already have nearly 100 customers for their own business, Family Direct Connect. For $19.95 a month plus an initial fee, the business provides a local phone number so that those who are incarcerated can save money on phone calls home.

Mr. Neal, 54, of the North Side, and Mr. Bradford, 33, of East Liberty, met in a halfway house last year and began working together after they got out.

"We started with no money," said Mr. Bradford.

The two spent time in the Squirrel Hill branch of the Carnegie Library of Pittsburgh working on their plans.

Mr. Neal said phone calls from a prison can run $5 to $9 for a 15-minute call, once operator and long-distance fees are computed. While operator fees still apply, the ability to make the calls local reduces the cost, thus making it possible for inmates to afford more calls home.

Those calls home are vital for staying connected with families, helping inmates to realize the prison isn't their only reality, said Mr. Neal. Some families are reluctant to bring small children to the visiting room, so the cheaper calls provide an alternative.

Mr. Bradford called the Pitt program "a blessing."

"When you get out of prison, unless you know someone or have the ability to create your own business, society has given up," he said.

Former inmate Christopher Lyons, 30, of Brentwood, and two business partners today are planning to meet with a banker to try to get funding for a bar-restaurant -- named Second Chances -- which they'd like to open in Bridgeville.

Mr. Lyons said he worked for about a year in shipping and receiving after getting out of prison but was laid off when the company went out of business. This time, he's hoping to be able to count on his own business.

"I want to move forward with my life," he said.

C.J. Handron, a management consultant for the Institute for Entrepreneurial Excellence, said participants had a variety of goals, including setting up a care home, becoming a home inspector, starting a youth center, finishing college and saving money.

"We need to be making the commitment to people who have made mistakes. This is an incredibly talented group of people," he said.

"They've paid their debt and want to move past this, and recognize every single day the mistake they made is going to follow them."

Ann Dugan, assistant dean of the Institute for Entrepreneurial Excellence, said employers usually won't hire someone who checks the box for felon on a job application.

Bomani Howze, program officer for the Heinz Endowments, said he learned of this approach when he judged business plans of inmates in a Texas pre-release program.

The concept then was developed here for those who already had been released, some of whom have been out for years.

Prospective participants were interviewed, and 16 were chosen from 35 applicants, Ms. Dugan said. The program was voluntary, did not pay the students and was not a condition of probation, she said.

The students have attended a three-hour class once a month since December, learning techniques and listening to speakers from businesses. They also received one-on-one counseling once a month.

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