San Quentin News

Written By Incarcerated - Advancing Social Justice

Stanford joins with SQ in collaborative engineering project

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Stanford and TLM students of the Unlocking Innovation Inside Prison project
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
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
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
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
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
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

Skyping with SQ’s Last Mile and DJJ

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Juveniles and state prisoners meeting through Skype


Thanks to San Quentin’s first-ever Skype computer conference call to be allowed between California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation prisoners and youth in the Division of Juvenile Justice (DJJ), California officials think they’ve opened a door to exchanging valuable instruction between inmates at different institutions.
The July face-to-digital-face electronic encounter was a part of an Adult Youth Offender Mentorship pilot program. The partnership was formed between the Last Mile and DJJ.
Prisoners of the San Quentin’s Last Mile spoke with youth at Ventura Youth Correctional Facility. California corrections officials say they want juvenile offenders to learn computer coding.
“We brought the Last Mile in to teach our youth coding and prepare them for their future,” DJJ Director Chuck Supple said. “We don’t want them to have to go San Quentin to get this skill.”
Supple said the goal is to provide rehabilitative programs and job skills to keep the youth from reoffending and ending up in adult facilities. .
The incarcerated coders at San Quentin and in Ventura viewed each other on theater screens at their respective locations. The group of 14 youngsters and three adult prisoners broke the ice by sharing their struggles learning coding and navigating prison life.
“They (the youth offenders) seemed hungry for guidance,” said Jason Jones, one of San Quentin’s coders. “I think they just need someone to validate their dreams, visions and the things they do.
“They don’t have to come here to get their success. I think seeing us on screen is another reality check for them to wake up and take control of their lives,” Jones added.
The defining moment of the conference came when one young woman stood up, walked to the camera and shared that her mother was recently released from prison after eight years. She felt the pressure of having to get out and emotionally and financially take care of the rest of the family.
“I struggle to tell my family that I need to focus on myself,” she said. “I love my mother, but I know I have to be better.”
At that moment, tears began to fall from the eyes of the several officials, instructors and inmates. The realities of the youngster’s pain and personal issues were now at the forefront.
Jones shared with her that he is going through a similarly contentious relationship with his mother. He said sometimes you have to let people go – so you can grow. Then you can come back and take care of them.
“Yeah I teared up,” said Zach Moore, another adult coder, “They inspired me just hearing their stories and what they were going through. It’s our job to instill in them that coding is more than a program; it’s an opportunity to do whatever you want to do with their lives.”
Harry Hemphill, adult coder, added “I didn’t think they would be so engaging. They were able to relate to us, and I think that helped them to open up.”
The youngsters have been learning how to code for just two months. The program is co-ed with young adults ages 17-23. But like their adult counterparts, their hope lies in gaining skills that can land them high-paying jobs once released.
Not all the youngsters see coding as their future. Some wanted to be social workers, firefighters or members of the military as options.
“I don’t want to live my life in institutions,” said Thalia Ruiz, 20, a youth coder. “I want to travel and live life without substance abuse.”
Ruiz credits the Last Mile in Ventura for her new direction from gang-banging and abusing drugs and alcohol.
Supple said the first Skype session was a success. The plan is to hold at least one or two sessions a month, where the adult prisoners will mentor the youth through their coding lessons.
“The youth seemed to hang on to the mentors’ every word, and their messages of hope and encouragement were getting through like arrows hitting the bulls-eye,” Supple said. “I think staff in the room recognized that the San Quentin mentors were valuable partners in the efforts to help the youth.”
The plan is to open the Last Mile program in other youth institutions. The Stockton facility is next. The Ventura program seeks to expand to 48 students in two six-month tracks. DJJ will initiate a program allowing the Ventura graduates to earn money while doing coding for outside companies.
The Last Mile will help the graduates find internships once they are released.
“We all are making history,” said Beverly Parenti, a leader of The Last Mile. Then she looked at her San Quentin mentors and said at the next session they better talk to the youngsters about improving their posture, and the remark filled the room with laughter.

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UK coding program takes its cues from The Last Mile

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San Quentin’s pioneering training program teaching prisoners to write computer code has attracted attention in Great Britain, as well as other countries abroad.

The new coding program in the UK was patterned after San Quentin’s Last Mile, a program which is now called Code.7370.  The British program opened in the Her Majesty’s Humber Prison in the United Kingdom (UK).

“I read about The Last Mile a couple years ago and asked if I could do something similar over here in Europe”

“I read about The Last Mile a couple years ago,” Michael Taylor, Code4000 founder, told San Quentin News. “I reached out and ask if I could do something similar over here in Europe, and Chris Redlitz at the Last Mile was extremely helpful. We more or less mirrored The Last Mile project here in the UK.”

Chuck Patillo cutting the ribbon to the newly renovated Code.7370 workspace

Chuck Patillo cutting the ribbon to the newly renovated Code.7370 workspace

Taylor has a background in teaching coding under difficult circumstances. He taught refugee kids and troubled youth in a program called CoderDojo.

Taylor took his interest in teaching prisoners how to code to the Ministry of Justice in London. It was close to a year before the prison program was up and running.

The program currently has 16 prisoners, most of whom had zero knowledge of coding. The prisoners are trained in web development but without being connected to the internet. All the self-help videos and books for the curriculum are downloaded to an offline server in the classroom. The program facilitators have internet connection to do a Google search and to find answers.

“Normally you would just say log on to this course and do this course. We can’t do that, so we have to do everything offline,” Taylor said. “Our volunteers write stuff for us and they do little micro-courses that the guys can use… It’s all mentoring.”

Once participants are trained to work on external projects, they can move to the senior coder level. Upon release, Code4000 tries to get graduates apprenticeships with real companies or into full-time employment. So far only one person has graduated, who paroled and currently works as an apprentice coder.

“According to a RAND analysis, every $1 invested in such [inmate] education generates at least $4 in economic return,” reports Fast Company.

“Coding is a great leveler,” Taylor said. “A lot of people in prison tend to have some kind of mental-health issue, or have the letter combinations like ADHD or OCD, or social problems. Coding can be that kind of thing that strips away those things and become a positive thing when you’re coding.”

“The one graduate was basically a painter and decorator before that,” Taylor added. “He didn’t really know English or math, but that didn’t stop him or other people in his position from learning coding.”

The stigma that formerly incarcerated people face in the United States is the same in the UK, but it’s different when it comes to coding jobs, Taylor said.

“Tech companies tend to be run by a younger generation with less hang-ups about this kind of thing,” Taylor said. “It’s a bit easier for us to talk to companies and talk about getting ex-offenders into employment in the tech sector than it would be in other sectors.”

Taylor is starting to understand the challenges working within the prison system.

“A lot of people are enthusiastic about this at the higher level but as it gets pushed down the chain, people get more cautious, and the culture of risk aversion kicks in,”  he added. “Mostly people cover their backs by saying ‘no.’ You have to push against a culture that doesn’t like trying new things.

“I had to find some champions within the system who were willing to take the risk.”

Code4000 is expected to open at another prison and hopes to expand the program to 10 prisons within two years.

“Finding the money is always the problem. It’s like prisons are the most forgotten and least funded social engagement projects in the UK,” Taylor said. “They’re not sexy enough. Do you know what I mean?  It’s like nobody’s really interested.”

Just as Taylor contacted The Last Mile to help establish coding programs for prisoners within his country, interested people in Australia, New Zealand, Chile and Code Phoenix in France have been in touch with Taylor to do the same thing.

“It’s kind of an idea whose time has come,” Taylor said. “If you teach people in prison all these skills but you don’t teach them coding, you’re really missing out… it’s an obvious thing to do.”

http://sanquentinnews.com/san-quentins-big-transition/

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Coming back to prison to help bridge the digital divide

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Tulio Cardozo with Jon Gripshover

Tulio Cardozo with Jon Gripshover

Behind San Quentin’s walls, there is a pair of programs dedicated to closing the digital divide, Code.7370 and TLMWORKS. Tulio K. Cardozo, a former San Quentin inmate, runs one of them.  These programs are sponsored by The Last Mile.

Cardozo is in charge of TLMWORKS, a coding development joint venture. It pays a whopping wage of $16.49 an hour to inmates.

“I’ve got to make four client calls this afternoon,” said Cardozo as he guided me to the TLMWORKS offices. “Why don’t you speak with a few of our team members first?”

The men of TLMWORKS are completely quiet as they write code for clients ranging from private companies and municipal governments to nonprofits and our own San Quentin News.

The coding rooms have numerous customer logos framed and hanging like trophies on the walls. Each one represents a successful client project. 

Anouthinh Pangthong  chimed in when asked about what sets Cardozo apart, “Tulio believes in us. Everything that I’ve done here is identified ‘PROUDLY DESIGNED AND DEVELOPED AT TLM WORKS.’ He makes us shine.”

Cardozo appreciates the importance of respect. He was a San Quentin H-Unit dormitory yard inmate for more than three years.

“From 23-30 years of age I was incarcerated; this is my chance to give back to society,” said Cardozo about one of his main his reasons for returning to San Quentin.

As the on-site manager, Cardozo’s chief role is keeping each project on task and time. 

“The way I learned this stuff is by trial and error. Just like you are now but you have the benefit of my experience,” Cardozo told a teammate, Jason Jones, who was working to optimize a client’s website.

Around us, tech-jargon was flying hot and heavy: “Debugging Node from JavaScript” and “Have you used Chrome DevTool to allow you to decompile more efficiently?” asked Cardozo of Jones.

The work vocabulary is necessary to facilitate precise communication of what the team needs to do on a given client-project. A key procedure for Cardozo, is to explain a specific skill then find a way to convey it to all the other inmate-employees of TLMWORKS. 

“These men learn cutting-edge technology through Code.7370, and then we keep their skills up to date [at TLMWORKS],” said Cardozo.

The consistent opinion heard from the TLMWORKS team is that Cardozo demands the best of them and does all he can to provide them with the tools and skill sets needed to succeed.

“He walked the same path as we do. The fact he came back here as a success tells me that I can also have a career in coding,” said Jones.

“I’ve been involved with The Last Mile since 2013,” said Harry Hemphill. “Working for TLMWORKS for almost two years already. My salary is $16.50 an hour for an average of 30 hours a week.

“He was an inmate and was in H-Unit where I live. He taught himself to code, left prison and started his own web-design shop.

“My passion is to start my own dev-shop,” Hemphill continued. “He is guiding me to be able to have all the skills necessary to become my own boss. It is not his job; what most impresses me about Cardozo is that he is compassionate and really wants each of us to succeed at TLMWORKS and on the outside.”

When asked about the most difficult aspect of working at San Quentin, Cardozo said, “The process of how to work without direct connection to the net always adds complexity to an already complex process.”

Authorized to have internet access, Cardozo must walk inmate-workers through the information that will help them do their job. Tutorial videos verified by Cardozo as appropriate and authorized for release was played to the team.

“This is first and foremost a business. All our employees know that both the company and they are accountable to our clients,” he said.

All of the TLMWORKS inmate employees were graduates of CODE.7370 training program also offered at San Quentin.

If an inmate can complete at least two of the six-month CODE.7370 training cycles, he can apply to work at TLMWORKS. All the current employees have completed all three cycles offered by CODE.7370.

“There is real opportunity here,” Cardozo emphasizes, “If you really connect in this space, if it excites you and you want to come back to class and challenge yourself, we have the tools to allow that.”

When asked about the key to successes at both CODE.7370 and TLMWORKS, Cardozo said, “You can believe in yourself. This is the best opportunity to practice here and learn what it is like to work on a team at both a professional and individual level. There is no better time to build professional habits than right now.”

TLMWORKS is growing. “I now have six people on my roster and looking to hire more when the next batch graduates [from CODE.7370].   

“We operationally can handle about three projects at one time right now. We have a well-developed pipeline of potential clients. Like many development shops on the outside, we don’t have a shortage of projects, rather of talented people. We will hire as many as can come through the CODE.7370 program,” said Cardozo. “If you are qualified and able, I will consider you as a serious candidate to become part of our team.”

http://sanquentinnews.com/optionb-org-support-group-overcoming-effects-incarceration/
https://sanquentinnews.com/game-theory/
Boatwright

Code.7370 host Lance Armstrong

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Lance Armstrong and Chris Redlitz walking across San Quentin’s Lower Yard

Lance Armstrong and Chris Redlitz walking across San Quentin’s Lower Yard

In a small classroom with popular catch phrases like Think Different and Believe in the Process on its walls, about two dozen San Quentin prisoners waited for a surprise guest—the world-renowned, once top cyclist, Lance Armstrong.

“I’ve never been in jail. But I know what it’s like to run afoul of the system,” Armstrong said, on Jan. 11, to inmates enrolled in a highly touted computer coding program.

Venture capitalists Beverly Parenti and Chris Redlitz created Code.7370 in conjunction with the California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation and California Prison Industry Authority.

“What do you expect?” Redlitz probed the students about Armstrong’s visit. “The unexpected,” several inmates chimed in. “You guys can relate to how life changes,” Redlitz replied.

Armstrong told the class that his life previously revolved around cycling and after falling from grace, he had to rebuild his life.

“I barely squeaked through high school and didn’t attend college,” Armstrong said, adding, “If it weren’t for cycling, hell, I may have ended up here.”

Code.7370 and their instructors posing with Lance Armstrong

Code.7370 and their instructors posing with Lance Armstrong

The classroom went silent, and then everyone burst out laughing.

Armstrong said he made himself an easy target for the doping investigation by how badly he treated people.

“It was the level of arrogance that got me,” Armstrong said. “Once they compiled all the evidence, the case was made against me.”

In an attempt to rebuild his image after his fall from grace, Armstrong went on Oprah and sheepishly admitted wrongdoing… It did not go over well – he became the face of sports doping.

“The fall was so dramatic that people didn’t want to associate with me,” he said.

Armstrong has continued to address his past.

In an article written last year by Outside Magazine, Armstrong was portrayed as “a humbled man who is working to try to deserve the forgiveness of millions of people who once believed in him.”

He told the students that they didn’t have to endure the kind of public ridicule that he underwent. They could build a fresh start. However, he previously thought it would be difficult to convince an employer to hire someone who had been in prison for murder.

Armstrong, a huge believer in image rebuilding and branding, said he began thinking differently after meeting Redlitz.

“When I asked Chris [Redlitz] how many people got out and came back, and he told me none, I was surprised. That’s the brand. That’s a super powerful message. You guys are part of a movement that is pretty damn surprising.”

He suggested that the men embrace their pasts and go forward. “It’s never straight. You can’t run from it,” Armstrong said. “In 2018, everybody knows everything.”

“Your reputation precedes you. Mine precedes me,” he said. “That’s a hurdle, but you have to get over it. Most people don’t even get to the door.”

“You guys are the example of forward,” Armstrong said, after learning that Mark Zuckerberg visited the program in 2015.

Damon Cooke graduated from the coding program in 2015.

“Once I decided it wasn’t about what is done to me, but how I respond, I found a deeper meaning to my life,” Cooke said.

In a continuing effort to address his conflicted past, Armstrong hosts a weekly podcast, called Forward.

According to Outside Magazine, “Forward is a very deliberately chosen word, and in fact, it defines Armstrong’s new narrative: others may want to or expect to see him curled up in a fetal position in the dark, but he is moving ahead, not allowing himself to be crushed by the weight of the past.”

Ultimately, Armstrong believes that having close friends and family are the most important things in life.

“Some of your friends stay with you,” Armstrong said. “Some lean in. Some lean out. When you get out of here, you’re going to know who your real friends are.”

Armstrong, the ultimate competitor, walked out of the classroom and across the prison yard. He saw the pull-up bar and jumped right on it, pumping to 10 quick chin-ups.

Not to outdo himself, after finding out about the San Quentin Marathon, he challenged the reigning champion, Markelle Taylor, to a run-off at the November meet.

https://sanquentinnews.com/game-theory/

Inspirational speaker spreads message to Code.7370

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Chris Redlitz, Sebastian Terry, Jon Gripshover, John Guidon and Lee O’Donovan

Chris Redlitz, Sebastian Terry, Jon Gripshover, John Guidon and Lee O’Donovan

Sebastian Terry makes a living out of only doing things that make him happy. He came to San Quentin on Oct. 5 to share his mantra with a classroom of incarcerated computer coders, teaching them that if you “dream it, wish it, do it,” you can lead a fulfilling life.

“The very reason you’re in this room is that you’re pursuing your dreams,” Terry told the inmates in the coding school, Code.7370.

Code.7370 is a collaboration of Hack Reactor, a private San Francisco coding school, the California Prison Industry Authority and Silicon Valley venture capitalists Chris Redlitz and Beverly Parenti of The Last Mile.

Redlitz and Parenti invite business professionals like Terry to work with inmates in California prisons in order to “bridge the gap between the penal system and the technology sector,” prison officials said in a press release about the two business professionals. The venture capitalists invited Terry after they saw his inspiring story on ESPN’s Sports Center.

During Terry’s visit to the prison, he presented his approach to life, an approach he calls 100 Things. 100 Things helps participants identify meaningful goals and guides them through the steps to achieving them.

Terry said the whole idea came after a close friend died. He felt that even though his friend died young, in his 30s, he had lived a happy and wholesome life. The friend’s life and untimely death made Terry question himself.

“If I were on my death bed, would I have any regrets about my life?” Terry asked himself. “What would I have done that would have made me happy?”

Terry said he took a pen right then and there and wrote down everything that makes him smile. The list gained momentum. He dropped everything he was doing and started pursuing activities on the list.

“Kids know what happy is, but when we get older, we lose that”

Number two on the list was to marry a stranger in Las Vegas. It was not the most romantic affair – a 24-hour wedding, to a willing stranger — but he did it all the same.

“It seems kind of stupid,” he said. “But it was the first time that I’d identified a life goal that seemed important to me, and I did it.”

Terry said he feels extremely happy about his journey, which he has been on for the past eight years. “This is not about a bucket list — it’s about purpose, growth and connection, especially connection to self — getting out of your comfort zone,” Terry said.

He also recounted a tale of being on the red carpet at the Cannes Film Festival in France. “I didn’t even know if what I was doing was legal. I could have got tased. I was sweating. I was scared. My heart was beating fast. At that moment, getting on the red carpet, I felt like the most successful human, ever.”

Terry said that after getting to the 72nd thing on his list of 100 things to do that would make him happy, he met a man named Mark, who was paralyzed by a tick bite, confining him to a wheelchair.

Mark asked Terry if he could shave his head, help him run a half-marathon and a bike race. To do this, Terry had to train for four months, but he says the experience of helping Mark was life-changing for him. He decided to work to help people achieve their dreams.

Terry said that helping Mark has been the greatest thing he’s ever done. The two are now very close friends.

Terry is currently being approached by people all over the world for help. He said that he has had to change his life and business model from being a person who asks for help to helping people who need aid finding their happiness.

After the presentation, Terry told the inmates that they have to give themselves permission to do what makes them happy. Then he asked the inmates what would be on their lists.

Sebastian Terry talking to the students of Code.7370

Sebastian Terry talking to the students of Code.7370

“It could be anything; that’s the beauty of it,” Terry said.

The inmates had a wide variety of dreams. Among other things, they wished to go to Mecca, to run a marathon in San Quentin, have a family, dance on Broadway, play a complicated piece of music on piano, visit Machu Picchu, skydive, scuba dive and river raft on the same day, interview a member of the KKK—even one of the staff teachers chimed in saying because of his shyness, he’d like to start a YouTube channel.

Terry said he was amazed at the range of ideas presented in the classroom.

“I’ve done this exercise in a corporate environment, and there’s dead silence,” Terry said. “But when I go to an elementary school, full of kids, they come up with all kinds of things that they know would make them happy. Kids know what happy is, but when we get older, we lose that.”

Terry stressed that the move toward happiness can be simple – can be made up of small steps. “Dreams do not require money,” he said. “We are here to do the things we dream to do.”

 

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SQN launches new website, SanQuentinNews.com

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The Last Mile inmate coding program, Code.7370, has designed a new website for San Quentin News at www.sanquentinnews.com.

Inmate Harry Hemphill built the website. He graduated from the coding class in April 2015. His work is the third iteration of the website since it debuted in 2010.

Harry Hemphill (center) at work with other coders

Harry Hemphill (center) at work with other coders

“I’ve acquired a lot of technical skills,” said Hemphill. “I’m passionate about giving back to the community.”

According to Hemphill, the project was budgeted for 150 hours of work, but he said it probably took a little more time. He said working on projects for other companies was fun, but having an opportunity to do work for San Quentin News was “engaging and exciting.”

Another Code.7370 graduate and former San Quentin News staff writer, Aly Tamboura, who paroled in October 2016, developed the previous website.

Hemphill worked closely with Tulio Cardoza, who left San Quentin in 2011. He now works as a staff member for Code.7370.

“It’s an honor to be back, and even more of an honor to support (the program),” said Cardoza. “People here take the opportunity they’re given and run with it.”

“Tulio was an asset to get information I didn’t have readily available to me,” said Hemphill. “He gave me the tools and support I needed to get the job done.”

Several News staff members participated with getting the website ready after learning how to add San Quentin News editions, May 2017 through September 2017, to the website.

Because inmates do not have access to the Internet, News staff transferred photos and text from the newspaper’s Adobe InDesign files to WordPress software on a server in the coding program. Once staff members added the information on a stand-alone station in prison, outside Code.7370 staff placed it on the San Quentin News web page.

The idea for a new website was first presented in 2013 when students from the University of California, Berkeley Haas School of Business wrote a 56-page expansion plan for San Quentin News. Later, donations and a grant from The Reva & David Logan Foundation provided funding to make it possible.

Steve McNamara, an adviser to the News since it was revived in 2008, and adviser Jon Spurlock, who wrote the “Haas Plan” while attending U.C. Berkeley’s Graduate School of Business, negotiated with The Last Mile to get the project underway.

McNamara built the first website for San Quentin News. He purchased do-it-yourself software, read the instructions, and with the help of his son posted snapshot versions of the newspaper online.

“What was missing in my primitive version was a search function and a sophisticated design that newspapers have moved to with their web versions,” said McNamara. “Now we will have both.”

After nearly a decade back in operation and almost 100 published editions, San Quentin News now has a website that some say rivals many mainstream newspapers.

Snap shot of the new SQ News' website

Snap shot of the new SQ News’ website

San Quentin News & Wall City Merchandise


http://sanquentinnews.com/optionb-org-support-group-overcoming-effects-incarceration/
http://sanquentinnews.com/the-100th-edition-san-quentin-news/

Arnulfo T. Garcia a dream continues to prosper

San Quentin’s big transition as non-designated facility

A Look Back at Aly Tamboura’s Legacy and Accomplishments

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Top:Samantha, Aly, Alyssa and Sean Tamboura with Carolyn
Johnson. Bottom: Marcia Tamboura holding graduation cetificate

Earlier this month, Aly Tamboura regained his freedom after 12 years of incarceration for assault. To say he is rehabilitated would be an understatement because, as it is sometimes said, “all felons are not created equally.”

Tamboura, 50, did not serve a life sentence, so he could have sat around, done nothing and paroled from prison the way he entered, or worse. Instead, he strained tirelessly to change his life by taking advantage of every conceivable opportunity to redeem himself.

Aly Tamboura

“My aunt told me when I came to prison that I would never have this kind of time to focus on improving myself,” Tamboura said. “I earned a college degree; I learned to write computer code. I did all this so I could go directly into a job.”

Tamboura was successful before prison, so he knew exactly what to do when he arrived, which was to excel at everything he set his mind on. “Coming to prison at my age, gangs and malefactors couldn’t influence me,” said Tamboura.

Tamboura was the class valedictorian when he received his Associate of Arts degree from Patten College in 2014. He also participated in creative writing and completed GRIP (Guiding Rage Into Power) and The Last Mile, an entrepreneurial training program, where he came up with the idea for Verisite, a company that creates underground, digitized maps for mobile devices.

Tamboura is the former owner of Subdynamic Locating Services, Inc., a geotechnical company that located underground utilities and structures. He incorporated his work experience and knowledge to expand his horizons. His talents did not go unnoticed by the prison’s Education Department.

Arnulfo with Bonaru, John Wilkerson and Aly Tamboura in the Print Shop in 2011

Arnulfo with Bonaru, John Wilkerson and Aly Tamboura in the Print Shop in 2011

“Principal (Ted) Roberts came to the print shop one afternoon and pulled me aside,” said Tamboura. “He asked me if I would like to start a prison newspaper. I explained that I had no idea how to run a newspaper, but I would think about it.”

Tamboura said later Warden Robert Ayers Jr. visited the print shop and pitched his idea of starting a newspaper to the shop supervisor, John Wilkerson.

“I was terrified,” said Tamboura. “The warden never said anything to me personally, but Ted and John pushed hard for me to be a part of the project.”

Tamboura said at the time he believed the idea to be “a fool’s errand,” believing any inmate who would agree to run a newspaper in prison would be labeled a snitch at best, or worse victimized by other inmates. He is one of the original inmates who helped to resurrect San Quentin News.

“The men (inmates) had no clue about how to turn the machines on, let alone use the software to type, edit, and publish text in a newspaper,” Tamboura said. “Basically, if there was going to be a newspaper, I would have to do all of the computer work and the printing prep work.”

Tamboura said he started by calling a friend who worked at Adobe to get a list of professional publishing software. He then wrote requests for quotations and filled out forms to purchase Adobe Creative Suites software and other tools, such as 10 portable Neo word processors, ink, paper, and other printing supplies.

Top: John Wilkerson, Michael Harris, D. Hartley, John Eagan David Marsh Bottom: Aly Tamboura and Kenny Brydon

Top: John Wilkerson, Michael Harris, D. Hartley, John Eagan David Marsh
Bottom: Aly Tamboura and Kenny Brydon

“It was a tremendous amount of work and John left it all to me,” Tamboura said. “The hardest part was earning trust with the administration and the inmate population.

“In the beginning we got hell from inmates and staff,” Tamboura said. “Inmates felt the News was a mouthpiece for the administration and some guards thought it was an inmate rag. That changed because of the writing and the relevance of the articles.

“One of the things that got some guards involved was Suduko. When they finished with the puzzle, they started reading,” Tamboura said.

He noted Warden Ayers assembled the team of retired journalists from the community: John Eagan, Joan Lisetor, Steve McNamara, and Steve Cook. They guided the inmates in operating the newspaper. He said Eagan and the other advisers and Ayers were the only ones who believed the newspaper would work.

“We had meetings twice a month where it was becoming apparent that none of the prisoners who were writing articles understood how to write in journalistic style,” said Tamboura. “I come from a technical background. Learning to write as a journalist from behind prison walls is challenging, to say the least.”

Grant Gutierrez, Rhona Bitner, San Quentin News staff, CDCR Public Information Officer Krissi Khokhobashvili and Associate Governmental Program Analyst Michelle Mraule, December 2015

Tamboura said he and then-Editor-in-Chief Kenny Brydon approached the director of the Prison University Project, Jody Lewen, and asked for help. He said she brought in Nigel Hatton from the Stanford University to teach a semester-long class on journalism. In subsequent years, Eagan taught weekly writing classes in the San Quentin Journalism Guild.

Over the years, Tamboura served the News as writer, layout designer and distributor. He also trained many of the men who have come and gone, including current Editor-in-Chief Richard “Bonaru” Richardson, who started as a student in the print shop as an offset printing press operator.

“We didn’t really like each other at first, but after a while we became good friends. In fact, all of us became friends,” Tamboura said.

“Becoming a friend to Aly (Tamboura) has benefited me greatly in life,” Richardson said. “I’ve learned extensive life and job skills from him that have been very valuable toward my growth as a person.”

“I wouldn’t be forthcoming if I didn’t tell about all of the arguing that went on,” said Tamboura, reflecting on how everyone had ideas on what direction the newspaper should go, discussing those opinions into intense disagreements.

“When I first met Aly (Tamboura), I thought he was too smart,” said Arnulfo Garcia, executive editor of the News. “I didn’t think I was going to be able to establish a good conversation with him. But over time, working with him in the print shop, I found that his knowledge was useful, not only to me but to other men around him.”

For the last two years, Tamboura has been a student in the Code.7370 program where prisoners learn computer coding. He used what he learned to single-handedly build the current San Quentin News website from scratch.

“I learned what it means to have integrity,” said Tamboura. “It’s something John Eagan always pushed: ‘Write what you know and write the truth.’ ”

Tamboura said he is grateful and owes many of his accomplishments to the vision that Warden Ayers had for San Quentin. “He ran this prison more like a college campus and rehabilitation center. I really hope the current administration can look to things Ayers did to keep it going as a model for what prison should be.”

He said he plans to take what he has learned and apply it to life. “Immediately upon my release, I’m going to work in San Francisco as an intern for The Last Mile.” In January he will start school at a coding academy to strengthen what he has learned in prison. “If I complete these milestones, I have possible employment at a tech company.”

Tamboura is starting a new chapter in life. He came to prison; he achieved and returned to society, debt paid.

Aly Tamboura pitching his VeriSight Company at The Last Mile Demo Day


 
http://sanquentinnews.com/game-theory/
 

Beverly Parenti Awarded for Her Work With SQ Inmates

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Providing inmates with valuable skills that they can utilize for employment once out of prison became a priority for Beverly Parenti and her husband, Chris Redlitz, after a visit to San Quentin State Prison five years ago.
“Our mission is to provide marketable skills that will result in gainful employment,” said Parenti in an interview with CBS SF Bay Area News. “We believe that having a job is truly the key to successful re-entry.”
Parenti and Redlitz, who spent years working in the high-tech industry, were inspired to create The Last Mile program after meeting the inmates at the prison. The program has also taught inmates how to start a business and other entrepreneurial skills necessary in the industry today. Shortly after The Last Mile began teaching computer coding at San Quentin.
For her ground-breaking work with the inmates of San Quentin State Prison, Parenti recently received the Jefferson Award, reported CBS News.
“What The Last Mile did was introduce us to the idea of how technology has changed, the way businesses operate and the way businesses compete,” said Kenyatta Leal, a graduate of the program, in an interview with CBS.
Leal is one of the graduates of The Last Mile who is now out of prison and gainfully employed. Leal currently manages campus services for RocketSpace, a technology incubator in San Francisco.
“Computer coding is one business area where you would be judged by the quality of your work, not by the stigma of your past,” said Parenti.
The Last Mile program has become so successful that it has received funding for expansion to six more prisons including two women’s facilities.

San Quentin News & Wall City Merchandise

Skyping with SQ’s Last Mile and DJJ

7 Prisoners Pitch Business Ideas

Computer Coders Show Their Skills

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Harry Hemphill (center) at work with other coders

Harry Hemphill (center) at work with other coders


The most recent group of San Quentin inmates to complete a computer programming class demonstrated their coding skills for more than 100 invited guests, including the head of prison industries, Charles Pattillo, during a Dec. 9 event held at the prison.
Thirteen inmates participated in the latest class of Code.7370, an innovative technology-training program. It is managed by the California Prison Industry Authority in collaboration with the California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation (CDCR) and The Last Mile (TLM).
TLM is the brainchild of venture capitalists Beverly Parenti and Chris Redlitz and provides prisoners with the opportunity to develop original business ideas.
Since its inception in 2014, Code.7370 has been praised by prison officials and inmates alike as an invaluable training program. It is the only in-prison coding training program in the U.S. and is supported largely by volunteers.
“This program teaches people skills that keep them out of prison and (allows them to) be able to support their families,” said Warden Ron Davis. “What the volunteers do, you cannot put a price tag on.”
In attendance were local community members, including Scott McGrew, anchor of Press: Here, an NBC tech-business television show, tech-business executives and curious citizens. Inmates Jason Jones, Jerome Boone, Damon Cooke and Reginald Hola built Getting Parents’ Attention (GPA), an app that helps parents stay involved with their children’s education in order to help their children get into colleges with sports scholarships.
“GPA is not only my dream, but something I wish I’d had,” Jones said.
It took inmates Sam Hearnes, Lucious Jackson and Aly Tamboura six weeks to build Project Tycho, a project that incorporates an analysis of data from the University of Pennsylvania to highlight the importance of childhood vaccinations. Hearnes said he found that effective teamwork was just as important to the success of his project as learning to code.
The inmates faced a challenge in Code.7370 unique among coding training programs: They did not have access to the internet in prison. All of their work was done without that one tool considered integral to coding and web development work.
Inmate Harry Hemphill and his teammates had to use uncommon techniques to over-come the challenges of building without internet access. Hemphill said that since they could not Google answers, they had to struggle through problems and teach themselves specific skills. But by doing so, they got far more appreciation what hard work means.
Parenti said that each Demo Day brings her a great sense of accomplishment. “We are a small but mighty team,” Parenti said. “We see challenges as opportunities.
During the second cohort, we got a surprise visit from Mark Zuckerberg, the CEO of one of the largest companies in the world who cares about what’s happening behind these walls.
We hope to continue the conversation.” Parenti added that TLM’s business partners are interested in giving internships to Code.7370 graduates. “We believe that having a job is the key to breaking the cycle of coming back to prison,” Parenti said.
“One is judged by the quality of their code, not the stigma of their past.”
In fact, the success of programs like Code.7370 and San Quentin News has inspired motivation to add similar innovative programming to other prisons across the state, according to Brant Choate, acting director of the Division of Rehabilative Programs at CDCR.

PIA Enterence at SQ


“Code.7370 is something new. We need to continue to look for new things,” Choate said. “Everybody is asking for a transfer to San Quentin and more programs like (the ones at) San Quentin. They shouldn’t have to do that. Those programs should be at those prisons, too.”
Choate says there are current plans to expand a tech center at San Quentin with several hundred additional computers.
The event allowed inmate Chris Schuhmacher to demonstrate Fitness Monkey, an online platform he built with Jorge Heredia and Joseph Demerson that encourages using fitness to combat addiction. Schuhmacher felt optimistic after the demonstration.
“Is it just me,” he said, “or can you feel the buzz of possibilities in this place?”
–Bonnie Chan contributed to this story
http://sanquentinnews.com/game-theory/

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