– SsVCC received the award for its Campus Within Walls prisoner re-entry program –
RICHMOND
- Governor Bob McDonnell announced today that an innovative
program begun under his prisoner re-entry initiative has been awarded a
national Bellwether Award finalist trophy in the category of Planning,
Governance and Finance at the Futures Assembly in Orlando, Florida. The
program, called Campus Within Walls, is spearheaded by Southside Virginia
Community College (SsVCC) and involves partnerships with the Virginia
Department of Corrections, the Sunshine Lady Foundation and Goodwill
Industries. Because of these collaborations and a Second Chance Grant from the
Department of Justice, the program has operated without cost to Virginia
taxpayers.
The Bellwether Awards annually recognize
outstanding and innovative programs and practices that are successfully leading
community colleges into the future. The award selection process involved a
critical review by a panel of national judges of hundreds of nominations from
all over the country. Only 10 programs were selected and invited to the
Bellwether Futures Assembly in the Planning, Governance and Finance category.
Speaking about the Campus Within Walls program
at SsVCC, Governor McDonnell commented, "I want to congratulate Southside
Virginia Community College, under the leadership of Dr. John Cavan, on
receiving such a prestigious award for a very important program which provides
offenders in our prison system with hope for a productive future. Campus Within
Walls is a component of our comprehensive prisoner re-entry program. As I have
long said, those who commit a crime must first repay their debt to society and
take responsibility for their actions. However, it is our job to work with
these offenders to prepare them for release from prison. The reality is that
the vast majority of the people that we send to prison eventually get out.
Therefore, in the interest of public safety and good government, prisoner
re-entry strategies must be put in place. This is the responsible and
cost-effective approach to 21st century corrections. We do not want
individuals released from our institutions to re-offend. In an effort to
further reduce recidivism in the Commonwealth, we have implemented a
comprehensive re-entry initiative designed to successfully prepare those who
have served their time to go back into their communities as productive members
of society. Campus Within Walls works with Virginia inmates to help them
receive an education credential so that they have the tools and skills they
need to support themselves and get a job once they are released. This valuable
program has been successfully implemented at SsVCC. Recently, 40 inmates who
participated in the program at Lunenburg Correctional Center graduated. These
individuals have made a significant step toward preparing to become successful
members of their community upon release from prison. The Department of
Corrections, with assistance from its many partners, has implemented a number
of innovative re-entry programs throughout our correctional system and Campus
Within Walls is an excellent example of what can be done to assist offenders
prepare for their return to their neighborhoods."
Dr. John Cavan, Southside Virginia Community
College President, commented, "This is just another example of Southside
Virginia Community College truly living the mission of a democracy's college.
The graduation of students from the Campus Within Walls and receiving the
Bellwether Award symbolizes the great commitment of Governor McDonnell in
creating a winning team of SsVCC, Department of Correctional Education and the
Department of Corrections to forward the governor's re-entry initiative."
Campus Within Walls is an intensive inmate
education program with unique features such as the housing of inmate
participants together in the prison to create a "learning community,"
the infusion of modern technology, the use of inmate tutors, and a well defined
curriculum designed to allow inmates to attain an educational credential while
incarcerated. The program increases safety within the prisons by keeping
inmates occupied with positive pursuits. The program also is expected to
produce long-term public safety benefits. Research conducted nationally and
within the Commonwealth demonstrates that certificate and degree attainment
reduces recidivism and thereby increases public safety. Participants are more likely
to have the skills and discipline to obtain and keep jobs, become law abiding
taxpayers and support themselves and their families.
Southside Virginia Community College (SsVCC),
in cooperation with the Department of Corrections (DOC), the Department of Correctional
Education (DCE), and Goodwill Industries Network (Lunenburg only) has created
this unique prison education program within its service region. On Friday, Jan.
27, SsVCC awarded an Associate Degree of Arts and Science, General Education
Certificates, IST Certification, Comp TIA A+ Certification, and Masonry
Certification to more than 40 other participants.
Summer is over......your readers are waiting for new posts. I have a bf who is incarcerated...does not share so much. I like the connection.
ReplyDelete