Hello all,  

This is the first time I have put my two cents worth in these
discussion.  I have always enjoyed reading and learning how we are so
alike and different at the same time.  I am the Literacy Coordinator for
the Department of Corrections in Missouri.  As some of you may be aware,
education is mandatory for offenders in Missouri with some exclusions.  
Because of mandatory education we have a staff of over 300 including
vocational and education teachers, liberians, and administrative staff.
In our education department we provide essential life skills (ES/LS) as
a mandatory course along with the GED course program. All offenders
preparing to leave must complete the ES/LS program. 
One of my key jobs is to train offenders to be peer tutors. These tutors
have been an invaluable part of the education process.
We are also involved in a state wide process called the Missouri Reentry
Process.  This is a means to insure that all offenders are preparing to
reenter into society the moment they enter the institutions.  For more
information on MRP visit: http://www.doc.mo.gov/

Patty Kueckelhan
Literacy Coordinator
MO Department of Corrections 

-----Original Message-----
From: specialtopics-bounces at nifl.gov
[mailto:specialtopics-bounces at nifl.gov] On Behalf Of John Gordon
Sent: Wednesday, March 19, 2008 4:26 PM
To: specialtopics at nifl.gov
Subject: [SpecialTopics 900] Re: Building and sustaining
personalrelationshipsfor good referrals


David wrote: 

"Bill Anthony points to the importance of personal connections to
community resources. I wonder if our guest experts -- and other
participants -- have examples of state or county corrections
institutions and community-based institutions where personal
relationships have been built and sustained over time so that a referral
phone call or an email about an inmate who is being released results in
a warm welcome to the community-based education program, perhaps as part
of a number of community services (housing, employment, health  care,
counseling) provided on release. If so, what enables these
relationships? What sustains them? What undermines them?"


The Fortune Society has recently begun (with funding from the NYC Dept.
of Correction) a Discharge Planning Initiative at Rikers Island, New
York City's main jail. We meet people on the island and work with them
while they are incarcerated to develop a "Discharge Plan" and put in
place the needed supports before they are released. On the day of their
release, we pick them at the facility and give them a ride to their
destination (usually Fortune). Here, we get them set up for the services
they need (housing, drug treatment, education, etc.) and then stay in
touch with them for at least the next 90 days if possible. This
continuity makes a tremendous difference.

There are several other programs here in New York that have built
similar relationships, but without that institutional connection the
sheer number of people being released makes it difficult to maintain
relationships with staff on the inside. Still, many agencies do visit
and make presentations at Rikers. Unfortunately, the state prisons are
for the most part so far away and remote from New York City where the
majority of inmates are from, that the visits and phone calls that would
support those staff-to-staff relationships are very hard to build.

John Gordon


-----Original Message-----
From: specialtopics-bounces at nifl.gov
[mailto:specialtopics-bounces at nifl.gov] On Behalf Of David J. Rosen
Sent: Tuesday, March 18, 2008 7:44 PM
To: specialtopics at nifl.gov
Subject: [SpecialTopics 882] Building and sustaining personal
relationshipsfor good referrals



David J. Rosen
Special Topics Discussion Moderator
djrosen at comcast.net


On Mar 18, 2008, at 6:20 PM, Bill Anthony wrote:

> David Rosen,

>

> Regarding your question below --

>

> I was involved with Federal Correctional Education for some 25 years.



> I believe we did a relatively good job of preparing inmates for 

> release with GED, Vocational. counseling and Pre Release programs.  

> But, we did not do a particularly good job of "handing

> inmates off"  to the appropriate community education resources.   

> Many years ago we had release furloughs for lesser security inmates to



> allow them to connect with release plans in their release community.  

> Given increasing security concerns and the increase of Half Way Houses



> or Community Treatment Centers I believe we lost a step.  We began 

> turning people over to halfway houses with no direct contact and 

> probably very poor procedures for delivery of institutional education 

> records to the half way houses.

>

> The half way houses were often just an interim step between prison and



> final relief destination.  They helped in getting jobs, clothing tools



> , and rent money; but they ultimatley had to also "hand off" many ot 

> their clients to a final release area many miles away.

>

> We can take some solace in the fact that, as a federal instituion,   

> we were releasing inmates all over the country and a personal handoff 

> to local resources was particularly difficult.  State Prisons should 

> have it a little easier and county jails should be able to actually 

> maintain personal contacts with community resources.  But I think a 

> real key is to be able to provide personal connections to community 

> resources.  In a county jail situation it would seem that it might be 

> possible for direct relationships among prison staff and county 

> educational resources .  I'm sure the issue of privacy concerns might 

> be raised but it would seem inmates would have the right to waive such



> concerns.

>

> I also believe that there are a number of availabe education  

> resources that qualify as  "Lifelong Learning" resources.   That  

> is,  we can provide resources in the prison that can be continued on 

> the streets.  If we train the inmates to use a system such as the 

> Public Broadcasting, Educational TV, and Literacy Link materials for 

> GED and Workplace Skills;  the inmates can continue to use the same 

> resources on their own after release and possibly

> get help from community Adult Education programs where necessary.   

> I know the computer security issues in higher security prisons but, we



> are really at the point where we need to find ways to give

> inmates the skills to use internet resources.   Can we hook inmates  

> up with more internet resources that can go with them where ever they 

> go and whenever their schedule permits?  Use of this type of resources



> can also help improve "Family Literacy".  I suspect we all know that 

> many inmate families could use educational help also.

>

>

> Bill Anthony

> SYNSOL at cableone.net

>

> ++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++ 

> ++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++ 

> +++++++++++++++++++++++++++

>

> For all our guests:

>

> When an inmate who has been in an education program inside a state 

> corrections institution or county jail and is released, what needs to 

> happen for him or her to connect to and stick with a community-based 

> education program? Do these events need to happen immediately mon 

> release or can they be phased in over time after housing, shelter, 

> counseling and job needs are met? Are you aware of any exemplary 

> models of connections between inside education and community based 

> education programs? Can you tell us about them? What can community- 

> based education programs do to partner with corrections education 

> programs that release inmates back to their communities?

>

> David J. Rosen

> Special Topics Discussion Moderator

> djrosen at comcast.net

>

> -------------------------------

> National Institute for Literacy

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> Email delivered to djrosen at comcast.net


David J. Rosen
djrosen at comcast.net



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