Education – Page 3

Princeton students support ex-cons getting higher education

July 9, 2019 by Harry C. Goodall Jr.

“Formerly incarcerated applicants are among the most vulnerable, and we should treat them with respect, if not admiration”

Princeton University has taken a stance against a student movement called “Ban the Box.” The “box” refers to a section of the college admissions application that inquires about a prospective student’s criminal history. Applicants with criminal histories are very likely to be rejected from academic institutions. Students argue that by allowing criminal histories to weigh into admissions decisions, the Princeton administration is perpetuating inequality and is unfairly denying the formerly incarcerated second chances. Higher education is also an important contributor to decreasing recidivism.

During a meeting held at the Council of the Princeton University Community, a mixture of opinions emerged regarding how exoffender applicants should be treated.

Some, including many students, thought that once a person has served his or her time, he or she should be able to regain all the rights of full citizenship.

Some, representatives of Princeton expressed their opposition.“I think there are some kinds of criminal activity that may be related to risks that could occur on campus,” said Christopher Eisgruber, President of Princeton University. “We take those risks seriously.”

“I think there are some kinds of criminal activity that may be related to risks that could occur on campus”

Samuel Aftel, a Princeton University student, expressed frustration at the university’s reasoning for maintaining the box. He said that accord- ing to the university’s logic, a former convict will be more likely to commit violence outside FitzRandolph Gate than on campus. Princeton claims to protect its campus community above all else. Some say that the university is okay with the violence as long as it happens outside its campus gates.

“We take those risks seriously”

There is limited research on the potential impacts of banning the box and no hard data suggests a formerly incarcerated person will endanger other students. Some feel that to deny a person’s civil liberties after incarceration is to essentially keep that person incarcerated after his or her release.

“Formerly incarcerated applicants are among the most vulnerable, and we should treat them with respect, if not admiration,” says Aftel.

Prison and Jail Tour offers unique insight into incarcerated conditions

June 25, 2019 by lloyd payne

A group of college students got a first-hand, up-close look at the California prison system on a recent tour arranged by a former inmate.

About 20 students from Loyola Marymount University went on the Prison & Jail Tour created by a formerly incarcerated man, Francisco “Franky” Carrillo Jr.

Carrillo was innocent, and he proved it several years ago with the help of the LMU Law Clinic. After obtaining his freedom, Carrillo worked to educate others about the prison industrial complex and mass incarceration.

The 2019 prison tour was organized by Charlye Sweeney and Emma Gibson. For Sweeney, a 21- year-old communications major, the journey was personal. Her father was incarcerated. She had unanswered questions about what the systemic oppression was like for him.

The educational trip started at the California Center for Service & Action – LMU Alternative Breaks program.

LMU Alternative Breaks has a number of trips it coordinates for students. They have the option of taking trips to places like Haiti and Ghana to do humanitarian work combating poverty, hunger and genocide, or visiting jails and prisons.

Growing up, Sweeney heard stories about prison being a distant, unwholesome, crowded and noxious place for people.

They visited the Los Angeles Twin Tower Jail Mental Health Infirmary first. The firsthand account of one officer was tough for Sweeney.

“The officer was just telling us how it’s us versus them, and how he can tell who is mentally ill, and who isn’t,” Sweeney said. “It confirmed what I heard.

“It was horrible to see how people were living in there. It was dehumanizing, and they were not benefiting from being in jail like that.”

Gibson said, “They told us how they checked on them every 15 minutes, but we all felt like what they were saying was odd.”

Sweeney and Gibson reported the sheriff’s deputies explained that past reports of police brutality were not true in the mental health infirmary but happened in Central Booking.

They also visited the Reception Center and general population at the California Institution for Women (CIW).

They spoke to incarcerated peer counselors who assisted other women with anger, substance and drug abuse, education, and other cognitive behavior needs.

At CIW the students met a male guard from Corcoran State Prison. He was contemplating transferring to work at CIW because he said he hated working in the men’s prison. Originally he wanted to be a children’s hospital nurse, according to Sweeney.

“The women’s facility was so different from Corcoran. It’s too different; it doesn’t feel like a prison,” the male guard said, according to Sweeney.

Soledad was the next prison the students visited. Sweeney said the Soledad prison information officer (PIO) said, “You’re going to have a great time at Soledad.” However, Sweeney said they did not get to interact with prisoners.

“I didn’t like that it was super selective,” Sweeney said. “We did not get to see any cells or where they sleep.”

The PIO took them to a prison-based dog program where prisoners train service dogs for disabled people.

“One of the men talked about crying when he had to let his dog go,” Sweeney said. “It’s like your kids— you help them grow, and they grow up, and come back to see you, but the dogs don’t come back.”

San Quentin was the last stop on the prison tour. They went to the Museum, looked at old memorials and learned its history before going inside the prison walls.

Once inside, they were escorted by SQ Lt. Sam Robinson to the Art Building to look at the painting and art of prisoners. There Sweeney met artist La’ Mavis “Shorty” Concoiwilla, who is serving life in prison.

“La’ Mavis’ story touched me, because he told me about how his daughter was sick in the hospital, and he was just trying to take care of his daughter who died,” Sweeney said.

Concoiwilla said, “I told her I wish I had a daughter to call, and get on her nerves, but I can’t. I told her, ‘Her dad’s greatest punishment was not being there with her.’”

The group also visited the SQ Media Center, including the San Quentin News. Sweeney said she felt more open at San Quentin then the other prisons, because the students were able to interact with prisoners and hear their stories without a guard towering over them.

Scott J. Lawrie’s poetry was inspired by an ex-con poet

May 15, 2019 by Juan Haines

When the young Scottish lad Scott J. Lawrie was introduced to the country’s most famous poet, Robert Burns, it was the beginning of his fondness for poetry. His introduction to American poetry came through the Beat movement. However, his connection to San Quentin came through an obscure poet who did time here—the late Ed “Foots” Lipman.

After Lawrie researched Lipman’s works, he published Only By Flashlight and sent a copy to Zoe Mullery, who holds a weekly creative writ- ing class at San Quentin. Only By Flashlight was reviewed in the March 2018 edition of SQN.

Lipman’s “deliberate and brutal honesty, wit, humor and intelligence” moved Lawrie.

He added, “I feel that a poet must leave part of them- selves on the page. No matter what the subject matter is, the reader will connect emotion- ally and that is what will bring people together and help people understand one another.”

Lipman’s poetry and what your research has revealed, describe your understanding of San Quentin, then and now.

Lawrie: My under- standing or first impression of San Quentin came to me in my early teens through Johnny Cash’s concert. I have listened to that album hundreds of times, especially during this project. Reading Lip- man, I developed a sense of its early injustices, its violence and solitude. This inspired me to find out more about how the prison is today. I discovered the wonderfully accomplished podcast Ear Hustle, which I have been promoting alongside the sales of the collection to help people have a deeper understanding of San Quentin and everything it is achieving.

My understanding now of the prison is that there seems to be a collective effort to better its inmates and to encourage art in all its forms. I recently watched the short film More Than Basketball (there’s a link to the film at www.san- quentinnews.com), I was truly moved and inspired by it. I have never played basketball; I have never been to prison, but I was touched by the humanity nonetheless. I hope that is what Lipman’s poetry can, for others, go some way to achieve.

Mullery: Did or does this affect the way you feel or think about prison and prisoners?

Lawrie: Before this project, I hadn’t given much thought to prison and prisoners. Which I suppose is the unofficial mis- sion statement of the system:

you don’t see them and you don’t have to worry. During the time I have been working on this project, I started to explore my own moral self. How was I in society? What was my place? Was I that ignorant? How did I feel about the justice system—about prisons and rehabilitation? This took a lot of time. I was torn creatively and morally. I was going to release a collection of poetry by a man who had broken the law. On the other hand, I was going to release a collection of poetry by a poet. I asked myself , “Can one man be both?” I think you can. I think the existence of his and many others’ poetry proves that you can. I think the existence of art in the most desperate of surroundings proves it. I came to the understanding that a man who is in prison has already been judged. I am not a judge.

Artist and mentor Pat Mahoney retires

May 6, 2019 by Juan Haines

Pat Mahoney spent the last 40 years coming inside San Quentin to mentor incarcerated artists on the finer points of art; however, he’s best known as a keen listener and caring person.

Mahoney is one of the founders of the San Quentin Arts in Corrections program, sponsored by the William James Association. He retired from the Arts in Corrections program last February.

Mahoney helped create the Upper Yard mural with the Helen Caldicott quote: “We are the Curators of life–We Hold it in the Palm of our Hands.”
“He’s very idiosyncratic and works in an intuitive way,” said Carol Newborg, Program Manager of the William James Association. “His art is inspired by aboriginal themes. It’s holistic — mind, body and earth, very untraditional.”

Several inmate artists gave their comments regarding Mahoney’s impact on them professionally and personally:

“What I noticed besides his artistic talents was his interest to the guys,” said Anthony “Sonny” Ramirez who is in his 20th year of incarceration.

Ramirez has been at San Quentin for around eight years and in the Arts in Corrections program for seven years.

“Guys would start off talking about their art, and then the conversation of the inmate would switch over to someone in his family, like his wife or daughter. What I noticed is that he had the ability to pay attention. I think one of his greatest assets was his willingness and ability to listen.”

Ramirez continued, “Pat likes to portray figures seen on the walls of caves and canyons. Not too many people see them unless they are archaeologists, and they search for that kind of art — those tiny figures are enjoyable to see.”

Lamavis Comundoiwilla has been involved in the Arts in Corrections program since he arrived at San Quentin about 18 months ago. He has been incarcerated 24 years.

“Because of Pat, I start creating my own style of paint- ing,” Comundoiwilla said. “I have a unique form of pointillism, cubism, surrealism and impressionism that are merged together. I learned how to do that from what Pat taught me.”

Jeffrey Isom has been at San Quentin for about a year. He got right into Arts in Corrections and credits Mahoney for improving his art.

“Pat inspires me because he’s very patient when he works with someone,” Isom said. “You can see the love from all of his students. He make me feel accepted. When he teaches, he encourages at the same time.”

Mark Stanley-Bey, has been in the Arts in Corrections eight years. He’s been incarcerated 35 years.

“Pat Mahoney’s character and experience in the art field only increased my ability to express my point of view by using art as my medium, and his instruction has been welcomed and honestly appreciated,” Stanley-Bey said. “The Arts in Corrections program brought to me an opportunity to express the beauty of art and to give back to the community—a sense of purpose and peace through art.”

Mahoney continues to be involved in the art community through his painting, drawing and working with family.

Google attends San Quentin mixer

May 6, 2019 by admins

Harry Hemphill speaking about graduating from the coding program

The morning of April 11 started with fun and games with participants from Google.org and incarcerated coding students as a way to socialize.

The first game, the circle name game, an icebreaker consisted of everyone yelling out his or her name and that of the person next to them as fast as possible, which was easy to see that the day was going to be relaxed and fun.

Subsequently, the room was broken into groups to play Charades, Game Night and then Family Feud, San Quentin style.

The coding program is the brainchild of venture capitalists Beverly Parenti and Chris Redlitz.

This husband and wife team had a “crazy idea” after they met some incarcerated men here at San Quentin in 2010, Parenti said. They wanted to create business opportunities by integrating entrepreneurship with social justice – the result: The Last Mile (TLM). “We wanted to start The Last Mile because of the high recidivism rate, and help influence [lowering] that”, said Parenti.

Four years later, they launched the computer-coding program, Code. 7370.
Half the day consisted of games played in groups of individuals separated by personality types, an idea from coder Isaiah Love who said, “I noticed that identifying your personality builds almost immediate commonality and rapport. In other words it fosters an immediate connection.”

The nine groups were separated based on personality types, such as reformers, helpers, achievers, individualists, investigators, loyalists, enthusiasts, challengers, and peace- makers.

The rest of the day, the tech industry and mass incarceration were discussed.

Parenti spoke about a recent luncheon she had with about 15 TLM and Code.7370 graduates who paroled from prison.

“We talked about our success. Now we’re giving Googlers that same experience,” Parenti said. She told the incarcerated men, “There is no reason for you not to come home with these skills and fit in. You have persevered through the hardest of circumstances. You all inspire us to do more.”

Jason Jones spent more than 13 years in prison, the last five in Code.7370.

He returned to San Quentin to say, “If not for The Last Mile, I would not have known what to do with my life.” He then credited Brain Asey as a mentor who advised him to apply for TLM. Jason also said, “I wouldn’t have come to prison if there were programs like this when I was growing up.”

He added, “When you want to influence or impact people, you have to socialize with them,” turning to the incarcerated men he said, “I encourage all of you when you get out to go back to your communities, your hoods, because they need you they want you. When I went back, they saw the change in me and they wanted to follow that lead.”

It was Googler Megan Wheeler’s first experience inside a prison.

“I have not been more impacted in my life,” Wheeler said. “It’s eye opening. I learned a lot from Jason. He pushed us and made us think about why we came here. I feel that I could better explain how the criminal justice system operates because of this experience.” She added.

“Now, I will be more mindful as to how it plays into my everyday life. It pushed me out of my comfort zone.”

Wheeler said that she looks forward to having a conversation with her mother, who works in the juvenile justice system in Arizona, saying “now I have a deeper understanding of her work.”

One of the topics in the group discussion was on “Imposter Syndrome” and of a time that each person felt “othered.”

(Top Row) Jason Jones, Jacquelline Fuller (Bottom Row) Erin Hattersley, Megan Wheeler, Amanda Irizarry, Justine Steele, Maab Ibrahim and Beverley Parenti

Googler Justine Steel shared that he felt like an outsider when attending engineering school.

“If you’re feeling othered in tech, you probably need to be there”

“I was in the honors program and was the only one of color in the program,” adding that he, “still feels a lack of connection today at Google.”

Googler Maab Ibrahim said, “If you’re feeling othered in tech, you probably need to be there.”

Nicola Bucci said he “felt looked down on in the past as a blue collar worker in tech… I’m as soft guy who had to put on a front when I first got to prison.”

Harry Hemphill said, “Although prison is a dark place, graduating from the coding program brought me light.” He said that he is ready to go home with confidence and employable skills.

Robert Barnes, who recently finished the final track of the coding program, and is now a teacher’s assistant for the program, said, “It’s a pleasure to be part of Code.7370 I never thought I would be hanging out with Google.org executives. It’s been a blessing just being associated with Beverly Parenti and Chris Redlitz.”

TLM and Code.7370 graduate Sherman K. Newman said, “It’s a great day to get to know these tech folks. This is a great opportunity for us to connect with society, and it’s great for them to see the people behind these walls and see that we can better ourself.”

Googler Jacquelline Fuller asked the “men-in-blue” what assets they would bring to the tech world.

“We have the resilience to overcome obstacles. We have learned coding without internet access,” Hemphill said. “I have the passion and the willingness to help the next person, because we understand.”

Parenti said, “Offering opportunities to at-risk communities keeps dollars out of prison beds and puts money into schools and helps the youth.”

The conversation shifted to prison reform.

Jones said, “Prison is not a good thing, but having programs like The Last Mile inside prison is good. So, I can’t say abolish prisons, but I wouldn’t punish [prisoners] the way we do. What we can do is provide programs like The Last Mile in the community. I joined a gang at 11 because I was looking for a family.”

Then Parenti said, “Meeting with governors throughout the country, I see a shift in our politics, relating to mass incarceration…The best data are the stories about people coming home after these kinds of programs.”

Gregory Morris said, “When I came to prison at 18 I was vulnerable. The worst was that I could have been raped or killed. The best has been the programs that helped me turn my life around. However, in most prisons people spend most of the time in cells and only have programs like AA/ NA. There are people who will never change, but most of us want to change. So, how we look at prisons has to change so that the people who want to help prisoners change have better access.”

Hemphill said, “Prisons are a result of a bigger problem… money needs to be focused on the educational system. We’ve lost focus and need to re-focus on not a bandage solution to a bigger problem.”

The day was a way for Googlers to get to know the inmate population within San Quentin and see that there are many professional and qualified men in the Code. 7370 program and throughout the prison system that have changed their lives and deserve a second chance in society and within the tech industry.

As Googler Gayatri Divekar said, “I think this population is going to be part of the hiring pool in the Bay Area, [it’s] important to get to know the population that will work at Google or other tech companies [in the future]. Google did not look to bring in this type of people in the past… So it’s good for Google to look to this population and get to know them.”

Code.7370 students, SQ media with Google.org representatives in the SQ’s Protestant Chapel

-Juan Haines of the San Quentin News co-authored this story.

More credits offered under Prop 57

May 6, 2019 by michael.johnson

“As of May 1, 2019 (under new emergency regulations), people can earn 10 days of (Rehabilitative Achievement) credit for every 52 hours of participation(in eligible self- help and volunteer public service activities), up to a maximum of 40 days credit per year.”

The programming credits under Proposition 57 have been enhanced once again, and many inmates are happy to see these changes.

Inmate David Hill said, “I think it’s a good thing; it’s going to make me more inclined to stay in my groups now that the credit hours roll over into the next year.” These Rehabilitation Credits will get me out of prison at least five months early. Which means I’ll get to my family almost six months sooner.”

The voters of California passed Prop. 57, the Public Safety and Rehabilitation Act of 2016 with more than 64% of the vote. Prop. 57 gave the California Department of Corrections (CDCR) the authority to make changes regarding credits by issuing new emergency regulations in order to keep the prison population within the federal court-ordered limit aimed at reducing crowding in prisons.

Since then, CDCR made small changes that increased the programming credits for inmates. For example, a college student who successfully completes a course with a grade of C or better now receives 3 weeks of Milestone Completion Credits rather than 2 weeks for each course. This change went into effect August 1, 2018.

Now, according to the Prison Law Office, “as of May 1, 2019 (under new emergency regulations), people can earn 10 days of (Rehabilitative Achievement) credit for every 52 hours of participation (in eligible self-help and volunteer public service activities), up to a maximum of 40 days credit per year.” In addition, “If a person earns excess credits, the excess credits will be rolled over and can be applied during following years,” said the Prison Law Office.

Another change affects the Educational Merit Credits. “Starting on May 1, 2019 (under new emergency regulations), a person who earns a high school diploma or equivalent earns 180 days of credit; people who previously got only 90 days of credit under the older rule will be granted an additional 90 days of credit,” according to the Prison Law Office.

“I got my GED back in 2016, here at San Quentin, I did it to show my mother that I was changing for the better,” said inmate Ryan Dietz. “I was stoked to get 90 days off of my sentence and it’s even better now that I’m going to get an- other 90 days off and get home to my family this July.”

The U.S. Departments of Justice and Education said in 2013 that education dramatically improves the lives of incarcerated people, improves employment opportunities, reduces recidivism, and saves money for the state.

Most inmates are able to earn credits for successful participation in approved rehabilitative programs, but it’s important for inmates to verify with their Correctional Counselor to make sure that they are eligible for programming credits.

The information on how Milestone Completion Credits, Rehabilitative Achievement Credits, and Educational Merit Credits, are processed can be found in section’s 3043.3, 3034.4, 3034.5, of the 2018 California Code of Regulations, Title 15, Division 3.

It’s important to know that can Milestone Completion and Rehabilitative Achievement Credits may be lost due to rule violations; however, Educational Merit Credits cannot be taken away.

Senate Bill 3435 Beyond the box for higher education

May 1, 2019 by Michael Jace

About two-thirds of post-secondary institutions ask applicants to submit criminal history, according to The Crime Report.

The Center for Community Alternatives found that 25 percent of these schools bar applicants with criminal history from attending. This prevents individuals who have already paid their debt to society from finding success going forward.

There are an estimated 70 million American citizens with criminal records, according to The Crime Report. Colleges and universities can help remove barriers to higher education for these people. Higher education can be an essential tool to finding successful employment, especially for former prisoners re-entering society after their sentence ends.

Help may be on the way. Sen. Brian Schatz (D-HI) has introduced a bill (Senate Bill 3435, the Beyond the Box for Higher Education Act of 2018) that would provide resources and recommendations for colleges and universities that want to remove criminal and juvenile record questions from their applications.

On average, those with post-secondary education make 74 percent more than people with a high school diploma or less. People with doctoral and professional degrees earn three times as much as those with less than a high school diploma, accord- ing to the Bureau of Labor Statistics.

These trends contribute to a positive cycle, as children are more likely to attend college if their parents did.

There are still opponents to the efforts to remove criminal record questions from college applications. Opponents fear increased crime on campus if these questions are removed. However, screening applicants for prior convictions has not proven to reduce campus safety. In fact, to date, people with no criminal record have commit- ted some of the most serious crimes reported on campuses, according to The Crime Report.

There is significant evidence that education provides an essential pathway to success. Among other things, employers increasingly seek cognitive skills (like communication and analytics), rather than physical skills, from their applicants. Now, colleges and universities have the opportunity to end one barrier to higher education entry for the 70 million Americans with criminal records.

Students have great impact on UC Davis after prison

May 1, 2019 by San Quentin News Contributer

University students, who are formerly incarcerated, are changing life and perceptions on their campus by taking over a college classroom to challenge traditional teach- ing methods and holding informative seminars to bring awareness to who they are as students.

Beyond the Stats (BTS), an organization of formerly incarcerated and system impacted students at the University of California Davis introduce a panel discussion and a class course title Education as Freedom: AKA “Amerikkka This is How You Made Me,” last year and continues to grow.

The panel discussion was a chance to engage the public and other UC Davis students regarding the returning citizens social positions, generational influences, and their place in the university and community.

“It’s a way to tell our own stories truthfully and bravely while also highlighting larger social systems, structures and histories that we are products of,” said Daniel Mendoza-Jacobo and Tina Curiel-Allen, founders of BTS, in a joint statement to San Quentin News.

“We don’t want to frame our stories as sob stories or highlight the potentially salacious nature of our backgrounds. We want to highlight inequities, common struggles, experiential knowledge and what we as students bring to academic settings and conversations,” said the founders.

The panel discussed topics such as: their relationship to higher education, their experiences in the classroom and the images or conversations surrounding their backgrounds.

“I wasn’t sure if I truly had a place to speak, or what I was going to say,” said Tiana Williams, a panelist. “I knew that my father’s experience with being incarcerated had affected my views, but I never thought that my voice as a system impacted student mattered as much when talking about the system.

“We are all affected and touched by the system in some way–and being able to share my own family’s experiences and having it validated along with those who were formerly incarcerated meant so much to me,” Williams added.

Williams is a McNair Scholar currently doing re- search on the impacts of the 1960s and 70s prisoners’ rights movements and the prison industrial complex.

Bringing students and professionals together provided an inclusive atmosphere to in- spire conversations around the discussion topics amongst the audience.

“It simultaneously challenged stigmas, imposed identities, and perpetuating narratives in greater society,” said Scharleth Guadamuz, panelist and BTS member. “By doing so, we brought the conversation back to the people. It (wasn’t) only revolutionary, it provided room for healing, too.”

Guadamuz is a Latin scholar, writer and activist. She is also pursuing a double-major in Sociology and History with a minor in Human Rights.

Briana Zweifler, spoke from the panel about her experience with the juvenile and criminal legal systems and how she turned that situation into be- coming a youth advocate.

“It simultaneously challenged stigmas, imposed identities, and perpetuating narratives in greater society”

“It was so empowering to speak about my experience of feeling silenced,” said Zweifler. “It made me feel stronger to know that we are all doing this in our own way but we are doing it together.”

Zweifler graduated from the UC Davis School of Law and is a proud BTS alumna. She is a Legal Fellow work- ing on the California Youth Justice Initiative at the National Center for Youth Law.

Professor Dr. Ofelia Cue- vas moderated the event. She bought her own more than 20 years of work and experience as a prison abo- litionist into the conversa- tions.

After the discussion panel, the formerly incarcerated scholars launched the “Amerikkka This is How You Made Me,” class and curriculum.

The class and readings tackles sexism, racism and controversial figures such as: Malcolm X, Assata Shakur and Huey P. New- ton. The course compares their real life experiences against academia research.

“We built this primarily as a discussion based and consciousness raising seminar so that we can learn from and with each other,” said Curiel-Allen. “We will explore these works together to see what knowledge can be gained when looking directly at one’s experience such as: the prison system, the family, academia and the university … as they come up against the writers’ experiences.”

The class also includes writings from Black Feminists, immigration issues and a session on Hip Hop and White Privilege.

“Like prison narratives, hip-hop is a reflection of the streets that made many of us,” said Curiel-Allen. “We had a list of songs to listen to that we discussed in class. We asked others to bring in their own songs on the topic they wanted to discuss.

“It is our hope that through these readings, we can uncover a path towards education that leads to self- determination and freedom by understanding the struggles and fights of our forbearers,” Curiel-Allen concluded.

Dr. Gabor Maté lectures at SQ’s Enneagram event

May 1, 2019 by Juan Haines

Susan Olesek, Jason Griffin, Ronell “Rauch” Draper, Dustin M. Baldwin and Dr. Gabor Maté

Once a week, Susan Olesek comes inside San Quentin to help incarcerated men discover the roots of their personalities and how it plays into the way they see everyday life.

The program she oversees helps men realize how life experiences mold personalities and how negative experiences create behaviors that turn into serious problems.

Gabor Maté was invited to San Quentin, on March 1, to lecture on brain development, trauma and addiction to an audience of more than 150 people.

Olesek said she’s followed Maté’s work as a “need to understand how we heal. We’re continuing to blend our work together— how attachment is integral to healing and how personality forms.

“Gabor practices Enneagram Principles with- out even knowing it,” she added.

Maté talked about how addicts become discon- nected from themselves, which turns into low self- esteem—“all the things that land people in prison.”

Enneagram participant sharing his thoughts about the program

Several members of the audience spoke about how the Enneagram System changed their lives. They included EPP staffers, several San Quentin EPP graduates, EPP alumni who’ve returned to free society, and interested inmates.

A formerly incarcerated man said before getting an understanding about Enneagrams, he’d been in and out of prison, for 15 years.

“It has helped me stay out of custody since December 2016,” he said. “All of my relationships are better, because of this. I learned how to communicate. When something sets you free, you want to keep it.”

Camilla Field, an EPP facilitator, made these comments: “I keep coming be- cause the experience I have working with the men in blue is extraordinary. I feel like I have to be present and meet the men where they’re at. That means that I bring the best version of myself. The ways I experience my work with these men is divine.”

To explain the Enneagram System, Maté and Olesek took center stage with inmates Ronell “Rauch” Draper, Dustin M. Baldwin and Jason Griffin.

The Enneagram System classifies personality traits as follows:

1. Idealist/Reformer
2. Giver/Helper
3. Performer/Achiever, 4. Romantic/Individualist 5. Observer/Investigator 6. Skeptic/Loyalist
7. Epicure/Enthusiast
8. Protector/Challenger 9. Mediator/Peacemaker.

He said that he came from a close-knit family; however, he didn’t meet his father until he was 16 years old.

“For a long time, I thought that my grandpa was my father,” Baldwin said. How- ever, he said when he was 11 years old; his mother told him his grandfather was not his father. Coming to terms with this, Baldwin said, “The hard parts of my childhood, I suppressed.”

Olesek explained, “Parts of your personality distorts the truth from you.”

Baldwin wondered how being incarcerated affected his son’s life.

Maté asked Baldwin to talk about his son, while understanding that his son is experiencing an absent father. He asked Baldwin to explain his son’s feeling of isolation, loneliness and depression that comes with having an incarcerated father.

“Understanding your own experience would allow you to be more compassionate toward your son,” Maté told Baldwin.

Olesek then turned to Draper, who is a 4. Romantic/ Individualist. Sensing that Draper “has a tendency to withdraw,” Olesek asked him to talk about relationships.

“The impulse for me is to shy away,” Draper said. “I’ve been through the class like 10 times, but until I feel connected, it’s make-believe. It’s not real.”

Draper talked about his mother not being capable of expressing love or care.

“There was a lot of abuse. I couldn’t hug her,” he said. “It became ingrained in me that this was my reality until I became the person that she couldn’t hurt, even though I was still hurting.”

Drapers said as a child, he “spent a lot of time frustrated and angry. I would go to anger immediately.”

He went on to explain that because of his early life experiences, it was difficult for him to trust people or him- self.

“You have to trust your- self,” Maté said. “One of the things trauma does is, it stops us from trusting ourselves. However, one of the great projects is working on self- trust. It’s easy to turn to not trusting the world. But, you have to trust yourself and

Participant asking Dr.Maté a question Susan Olesek, Jason Griffin, Ronell “Rauch” Draper, Dustin M. Baldwin and Dr. Gabor Maté have compassion for your- self.” The last person, Griffin, was categorized as a 7. Epicure/Enthusiast.

“A seven teaches us what joy is,” Olesek said.

Griffin called himself an “eternal optimist,” adding, “I wonder how people don’t see how beautiful life is, even in San Quentin with all the people—the connections.”

Maté responded, “He has something that I don’t have—joy.”

Griffin replied, “About joy—I have a deep love of life. I see even in my negative emotional experiences and sadness, there’s joy to be had. For years, I sup- pressed my sadness because I was afraid of it.”

Griffin talked about liv- ing with an alcoholic father, struggling with substance abuse and wanting to be “a perfectionist.”

“I was an only child. To deal with that, I kept myself extremely busy to the point that I didn’t experience anger or sadness,” Griffin said.

Maté posed the question: Is addiction choice or dis- ease?

“It’s neither,” Maté said. “It’s an attempt to solve a problem. We must ask what problem the addiction attempted to solve. How did you develop that problem? Addiction isn’t wrong, but it brings more problems than it tries to solve.”

In closing, Maté said, “I’ve never felt more comfortable than with these men. They were gentlemen—all authentic. Most places you go in the world, there’s a lot of pretend. There’s no pretend here.”

Stanford joins with SQ in collaborative engineering project

April 30, 2019 by Juan Haines

Stanford and TLM students of the Unlocking Innovation Inside Prison project

Stanford students and prison inmates joined forces by participating in a ten week engineering course aimed at finding solutions to social problems.

The collaboration grew out of a chance encounter, about 10 years ago, between Stanford Professor Tina Seelig and venture capitalist Beverly Parenti. The two stayed in contact and floated around ideas.

Seelig came to San Quentin about four years ago to observe The Last Mile (TLM), an entrepreneurial program and a computer coding class, Code.7370 that Parenti co- founded.

During the visit, Seelig said inmate Heracio Harts’ presentation called Healthy Hearts encouraging people to make better dietary choice, impressed her.

Gabreil Ostolaza speaking with TLM students Moua Vue on Zoom Session

“It changed my life,” Seelig said. “All the potential locked inside here.”

Over the years, the two worked on small projects, which finally turned into Unlocking Innovation Inside Prison, a curriculum taught as part of San Quentin’s computer coding class.

The class consisted of 16 Stanford students and 16 inmates. They divided into eight teams of four each.

The course launched Jan. 14.

Ricardo Romero having a conversation with his team and Stanford student Ali Edip Sarilgan

On Tuesday and Thursday, the class met via Zoom (similar to Skype). Seelig invited several business experts as guest lecturers. On Thursdays, half the Stanford students went inside San Quentin to work directly with their inmate teammates.

“It was just as much an experience for the Stanford students as it was for the TLM students to show such an impact from all side,” said The Last Mile staffer Gaby Andrada.

On March 12, the class held a demonstration of their project ideas inside San Quentin.

Victoria Yoo, a marketing expert and a guest lecturer, was at the demonstration.

Stanford students Victoria Yoo talking with Garrett Jensen

“I thought it would be life changing for someone in prison to have a class like this, but it was life-changing for me,” Yoo said. “In society we have categories and label- ing — in this classroom, we don’t have that un-empowering and labeling social con- struct. I am totally impressed with the outcome of the pro- gram.”

Standing in the classroom, she added, “In life people are in their own prisons — this room is only one form of awareness, depression and addiction are also prisons. Prisons should be thought of as a hospital where care can be taken to heal. We can’t just say, ‘lock ‘em up.’ To get to a better society, there should places for rehabilitation.”

Each of the teams presented their ideas in front of the class.

Inmates Ricardo “Ricky” Romero and Michael Holmes joined Stanford students Tammy and Ali to make up Team 7.

Romero, serving time for a first-degree murder, committed in 1996 when he was 23, talked about their idea, “Relive,” which is a virtual reality device that allows Alzheimer’s patients to re-experience their life.

TLM students Chai Saetern (center) with Gregory Morris and Stanford students Dillon Rose Schoen & Ryan Youra — TLM students Chai Saetern (center) with Gregory Morris and Stanford students
Pallavi Sathya Babu & Claire Lior Rosenfeld

Romero said that the collaboration was “eye opening.”

He said learning some- thing as difficult as coding is “a small part of the equation”. To succeed in the business world, “you also have to be a people person and you have to know how to ask for help.”

Romero came to San Quentin to be closer to his wife and because of the coding program, which he said is “very challenging without direct internet access.”

To assist in the training, teaching assistants roam the classroom; however, Romero said that the students rely on each other, which “helps develop team building skills.”

TLM students Robert Barnes and Niccola Bucci zooming with Sarah Kimball Stebbins (left) and Yael Yahya

“Normally, I’d say the skills and employment opportunities make the program stand out, but I came to realize that coding is the number one skill that’s needed in the tech world today,” Romero said. “That gives me job security, knowing that there’s a six figure income — that beats working for Mc- Donald’s. Also, knowing that I design things that impact consumers — that’s the biggest takeaway.”

It was Stanford student Tammy’s first visit inside a prison. She took Unlocking Innovation Inside Prison wanting to learn about design thinking.

“I’ve always been interested in the intersection of business and social impact,” the Stanford undergrad in Management Science and Engineering said. Referring to the Team-7 experience, she added, “I’ve never been in an environment where everyone is so passionate about learning.”

Stanford student Ali moved from Istanbul, Turkey to the U.S. to further his education.

He said the classroom optimism surprised him.

“Everyone has hopes. It’s good to get that energy here,” he said at the demonstration. He added, “I’m surprised to see everyone is working on self improvement.”

In an interview, prior to the presentation, Seelig said, “It’s not about only starting companies, it’s about starting life. The hope is that people will walk feeling much more empowered in their lives. It’s a combination of looking back and looking forward.”

Stanford student Fatima Hassan conferencing with Maria English and TLM students Orlando Harris and Kennard Love

Regarding support from the California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation, Romero said, “They know what they’re doing. They are like an open book. We could always go to them for help. The instructors all have great personalities and are very encouraging.

“It’s one thing to learn cod- ing, but another to learn innovation — learning how to be your own boss,” Romero said. “I would have never thought that I’d be in front of this caliber of teaching.”

Romero’s first chance at parole will come in 2024.

Team-1: Stanford: McKinley McQuaide & Wyatt Martin San Quentin: Gabriel Ostolaza & Moua Vue Product: “The Life Change Network” helps at-risk youth find careers

Team-2: Stanford: Pallavi Sathya Babu & Claire Lior Rosenfeld San Quentin: Chai Saetern & Dale Cottrell Product: “What I Wish I Knew” storage sharing, user generated

Team-3: Stanford: Yael Yahya & Sarah Kimball Stebbins San Quentin: Nicola Bucci & Robert Barnes Product: “Through the Gate” eases life after prison

Team-4: Stanford: Garrett Jensen & Mya Havard San Quentin: Juan Haines and Keith Worten Product: “The Purpose Pillow” is an AI embedded pillow

Team-5: Stanford: Dillon Rose Schoen & Ryan Youra San Quentin: Vah Saechao & Gregory Morris Product: “Cheer Match” matches youth with cheerleaders

Team-6: Stanford: Fatima Hassan & Maria English San Quentin: Orlando Harris & Kennard Love Product: “The Mom App” encourages healthy eating, exercise, and limited social media

Team-7: Stanford: Tammy Hu Wu & Ali Edip Sarilgan San Quentin: Michael Holmes & Ricardo Romero Product: “Relive” VR headsets allow Alzheimer’s patients to relive experiences

Team-8: Stanford: Paola Martinez & Nikhil Varun Raghuraman San Quentin: Jamie Sanchez, Mark Radke & Troy Whitley Product: “VR Family” virtual reality headset that takes incarcerated individuals to friends and family

Editor’s note: Juan Haines enrolled in the class for reporting purposes