San Quentin’s Prison University Project (PUP) waved goodbye to Program Coordinator Heather Hart on July 3. But she leaves intent on continuing her fierce advocacy goals in a potentially broader scope— through philanthropic influence.
“After four years here, I started to feel like there was more I needed to learn, more skills I needed to ac- quire in order to get to a place where I could make the most impact,” Hart told SQNews. “Exploring this world of philanthropy, I want to see for myself. How are resources—money— given to the community?
“I’m really interested to learn how people decide how to distribute the money to the causes that they consider to be pressing. It’s a gap in my knowledge—something that I feel is super important to know.
“I believe it’s a responsibility I have to the community to build that skill-set, so when the time comes and there’s an opportunity, I’ll be equipped to answer that call.”
Hart started working for PUP in 2015 after first entering SQ to work for the California Reentry program.
“This job really broke down the dichotomy for me—you know, between service provider and beneficiary,” she said. “I worked at nonprofits my whole career, so that dynamic existed. This job made me totally question that division.
“Getting to know the students—hearing about their personal experiences—I came to understand that there’s just such a wealth of information, knowledge and talent already well in existence within the student body.
“All we need to do is help actualize that paradigm shift. They have everything they need to help themselves. We just need to provide them access to opportunity.”
PUP student Edmond Richardson vividly remembers a moment where Hart guided him in the right direction: “When I joined Last Mile coding, I was selected to be a presenter for one of my projects. I was nervous, scared—really doubting my- self,” he said. “I came back here, the PUP office, to practice, and I was freaking out. “I can’t do this.”
“Heather walked by and I started telling her how I’m not gonna do this. But she was there to tell me, ‘You’re being your worst enemy— just get out of your own way. You are enough.’”
That bit of encouragement and reassurance from Hart took place almost two years ago, but Richardson said the conversation sticks with him like it was yesterday.
“It impacted me so much,” he said. “Now, whenever I find myself in moments where my mind’s filled with all those destructive thoughts—I think back to what she said to me…
“Thanks to Heather, I know to get out of my own way, embrace every opportunity—because ‘You are enough.’
“I never told her any of this and now I wish I’d expressed to her the impact she had on me while she was still here.”
Incarcerated PUP Clerk Corey McNeil, part of the 2019 graduating class, witnessed Hart’s many behind-the-scenes acts of support and understanding.
“That’s what Heather does,” said McNeil. “And re- ally, all the PUP staff interact with us in that same way. It’s the biggest reason I enjoy working with them—they’re all real people—just totally unpretentious and caring folk.”
STEM PUP’s Coordinator Neil Terpkosh equally appreciates Hart’s contributions to the day-to-day dynamics of PUP. He joined the team around the same time she did, in 2015.
“She’s always challenging us, asking, ‘Why do we do it this way? How could this be better?’
“Oh my God, Heather taught me so much about encouraging people to just be exactly who they are,” said Terpkosh. “We learned a lot about being coordinators together.”
Hart described the lessons she herself learned at PUP— albeit easy lessons, she said, but nevertheless they’re lessons that really can only be learned by being immersed into this community.
“It’s not like I’m giving anything to you guys,” Hart said. “I’m part of a community where we’re doing things together. I had to be willing to change my mind to things and see that.
“That two-way relationship straight blew up the whole dichotomy for me. It’s mutual— I’m learning as much as what others learn.”
James King, another incarcerated PUP Clerk, worked integrally with Hart for several years. “Heather’s commitment to her values of radical inclusion and respect for all em- bodies what PUP is all about,” King stated.
Coordinator Allison Lopez said she has too many fond memories of Hart to count— both personally and professionally. Lopez became part of the PUP staff a little more than six months before Hart.
“Heather came here with all this professional experience and critical thinking skills,” said Lopez. “She loves to ques- tion ‘the way things are.’
“She’s always challenging us, asking, ‘Why do we do it this way? How could this be better?’
“Heather was like a constant force on our team, driving the critical thinking machine—es- pecially toward improvement. She genuinely brought tools on board to do that—strategies and tools that are usable, trans- ferable.”
Student Wilson Nguyen pointed out how “helpful and nice” Hart always was to him and all the other incarcerated students. “I remember when I was on the verge of dropping one of my classes, but Heather, Allison and one of the teachers encouraged me to stick with it,” he said. “They taught me to just be positive and stay motivated—that really made a big difference for me.
“I never met people like that who encouraged me to do my school stuff. Most grown ups in my life—only a handful ever cared.
“PUP staff genuinely care about my education. That means a lot.”
Hart’s philosophy became clear when asked about the relationship between education and rehabilitation.
“I’m not necessarily comfortable with the term ‘rehabilitation’ because I think that implies a person is broken and needs to be fixed,” she said. “On one hand, education—like a formal degree—provides access. You now have something you can show that is valued by society.
“On the other hand, there’s a real power that comes from learning, especially learning to interact with the world around you.
“If done well, education is actually connecting you with yourself, so you can be more intentional about how you will impact—or be impacted—by the world around you.”
One word consistently came up whenever students and staff spoke about Hart’s departure: “bittersweet.”
“I want what’s best for her, but it leaves a hard-to-fill hole in the team—as far as I’m concerned,” said Lopez. “Heather is woven into so many things and the way we do things here…
“Some are sustainable, some more susceptible to her absence. I’m just such a Heather fan. Anything is better if Heather is in- volved.”
Hart is not at all worried about PUP’s future without her. “PUP does great work that needs to continue to happen—and it will,” she said. “I can’t wait to come back for open mic, graduation, ROOTS, etc.
“Now that I’m not PUP staff, I’ll have to be cleared like the public, but as long as programs will have me and clear me—I’ll be there.”
