march 2011 volume 1, issue 1 the oars oracle...the official oars newsletter. americorps oars volume...
TRANSCRIPT
Meet the AmeriCorps Members!
THE OARS ORACLE The Official OARS Newsletter.
A M E R I C O R P S O A R S
Volume 1, Issue 1
March 2011
What is Americorps? 2
What is AmeriCorps?
What is OARS?
2
Just Fifteen Minutes
of Your Time/ OARS
Service Projects
3
Trip to the Rotunda/
Lights, Camera,
AmeriCorps!
4
Great Stories of
Service
5
The Importance of
Goal Setting
6
Financial
Sophistication
Word Search
7
8
Inside this issue:
Lesley Burnett (RCC) Financial Literacy, Breaking
Barriers
Richard Hansen (RCC) Financial Literacy, Breaking
Barriers
Donna Harati (PNM) GED Tutoring, Lifeskills
Workshops, Family Reunification
Laura Kanewske (SNMCF) Breaking Barriers, Financial Literacy, College Tutoring
Guy McNeal (PNM) GED Tutoring, Financial
Literacy, Lifeskills Workshops
Fatou Ndao (PNM) GED Tutoring,
Lifeskills Workshops
Seth Pedigo (CNMCF)
College Tutoring, Breaking Barriers
Mark Rosebrough (ABQ) Community Service Project
Coordination
Andrew Valdez (CNMCF) Breaking Barriers, GED
Tutoring
Abby Poulos (SNMCF) Breaking Barriers,
GED Tutoring
This is a first-year grant (2010-
2011) for Opportunities with
AmeriCorps for Reentry Success
( O A R S ) f u n d e d b y t h e
Corporation for National and
Community Service (CNCS).
NMCD’s partnership with CNCS
through OARS affords us 14
full-time volunteers each grant
year dedicated to providing reentry
services through the Education
Bureau.
OARS seeks to promote public
safety by addressing recidivism
through education and reentry
related services for offenders and
ex-offenders as well as provide
opportunities for AmeriCorps
volunteers to complete meaningful
community-based service as a way
of helping their country. In its first
year, OARS has placed its
volunteers at state-run
correctional facilities
throughout New Mexico
specifically, Las Cruces,
Los Lunas, Roswell, and
S a n t a F e . O A R S
volunteers work in the
education departments of
their facilities, acting as
tutors in Adult Basic
Education and college
classrooms, offering
cognitive programming
such as Breaking Barriers,
working one-on-one with
offenders on family reunification, teaching financial literacy
workshops, and facilitating life skills workshops. At a time when state
budget cuts threaten the integrity of correctional education programs,
OARS fills the gap by providing facilities with passionate and driven
volunteers who are eager to share their knowledge and skills with an
often overlooked and underserved population.
What Is OARS? By Abby Poulos
Page 2 THE OARS ORACLE The Official OARS Newsletter.
What is AmeriCorps? By Abby Poulos
AmeriCorps is like the PeaceCorps only the volunteers in this program complete their year of service in
America instead of in overseas communities. State and National AmeriCorps programs like the
Opportunities with AmeriCorps for Reentry Success (OARS) program at NMCD are federally funded by
the Corporation for National and Community Service (CNCS) in Washington, D.C. There are
approximately 75,000 opportunities a year to volunteer with AmeriCorps to address critical needs in our
communities. Some of these critical needs are focused in many different areas of interest—from community
development, disaster relief, ex-offender reentry, education, elder care, environment, hunger, homeless,
public safety, etc.—but they all seek to eradicate poverty and improve the quality of life in communities.
In exchange for their full-time service each week, AmeriCorps volunteers receive a modest living stipend,
health and dental insurance, loan forbearance, loan forgiveness, and child care should they qualify. At the
successful completion of their service, a substantial education award is provided by CNCS. This education
award can be used to further one’s education, pay off students loans, and in some cases can be handed down
to dependents. More importantly, the experience gained during a year of AmeriCorps service can be
life-changing. It not only opens doors for future employment opportunities, it allows individuals to channel
their particular talents, interests, and passions to directly and constructively impact the communities they
serve.
O n e d a y , w e w e r e
visiting the pods at the
level VI facility of the
Penitentiary of New
Mexico, talking to inmates
who had shown interest in
GED classes and who
were ILP mandated. One
of the inmates asked if he could
talk to us. I went to his cell, and
he said: I received my GED a
while ago, but I am starting to
forget my math. Russell (a
teacher at PNM) gave me this
book so I can practice my math,
but I am having
difficulties solving
many of these math
problems, and I don’t
have any help. Would
you please help me? I
told him to give me the
book and that I would go home,
figure out how to solve the
problems and get back to him
the following day. I went home
with the book. It was very
simple math and it took me less
than 10 minutes to solve the
problems. The next day, Guy
and I taught him how to solve
the problems that he was having
trouble with. It took us 15
minutes and he was so
appreciative that he said: “This
is all we need; just 15 minutes of
your time can make a big differ-
ence, I’ve been looking for help
for a very long time. Thank you
very much and I hope that you
guys will stop by and help us
from time to time.”
able to assist an upstart
birthing clinic that
s e r v e s u n in s u r ed
women by helping
them with landscaping
needs necessary for the
opening of the clinic.
A m e r i C o r p s
volunteers also spent
time at St. Martins’
Shelter serving meals
and handing out cloth-
ing to the homeless in
Albuquerque. Members
were also happy to
work with Habitat for
Humanity of Santa Fe. The group spent the day siding a house that was
being built for a single mother and her family. Members were able to
lend a hand to a worthy cause while also learning construction skills
that would become helpful to them in the future. Community service is
clearly an ideal that each member believes strongly in.
AmeriCorps members are as
helpful in the community as
they are in the prisons. In less
than four months, members have
already participated in five
independent service projects.
These projects take place
outside each member’s normal
work duties. The first set of
projects came during the
mandatory OCT time in
December. As a group, we were
OARS Service Projects By Mark Rosebrough
Page 3
Just Fifteen Minutes of Your Time By Fatou Ndao
The rotunda and halls of the
statehouse were a hive of
activity as hundreds of
volunteers representing dozens
of AmeriCorps volunteer
organizations made their rounds
around and around the
Roundhouse during the 8th
A n n u a l S e r v i c e a n d
Volunteerism Day on January
26, 2010.
A private citizens, and through
meeting face-to-face with legis-
lators and pressing more than a
few hands, the OARS volunteers
demonstrated their political
savvy as they made the case that
not only is AmeriCorps (and, by
extension, the OARS program) a
vital piece of the community
service puzzle, but that
education in correctional
institutions is of paramount
importance in accomplishing the
stated goal of incarceration:
rehabilitation.
Aside from the official goal of
meeting and greeting legislators,
which was the primary purpose
of the day, it was simply a great
pleasure to connect with other
volunteers from programs all
throughout the state. The service
event at the Roundhouse was
indeed a much-needed respite
from the typical legislative
scene of political factions
fighting over the (admittedly)
pressing issues of budgets and
taxes. Seeing representatives of
the approximately 6,000
AmeriCorps volunteers who are
currently serving throughout
New Mexico was a heartening
sight that was a powerful visual
reminder of the spirit of civic
responsibility which is at the
foundation of the AmeriCorps
state. I am also looking into what
other state’s programs offer. The
documentary will cover all the
programs that are offered inside
a New Mexico prison. It will
also consist of
interviews asking
inmates as well as
facility and central
office staff what
they think about
e a c h
program. This is a
documentary that is
strictly going to
have a spotlight on all the posi-
As part of OARS goals for this
year’s grant, I am heading up a
team effort of producing a
documentary about education
and AmeriCorps programs in
N e w M e x i c o
prisons. At the
present time, the
documentary is in
the planning stages
and awaiting proper
NMCD approval. I
am gathering more
information about
different programs
in the prison system all over the
tives in the prison system. I feel
this documentary will not only
be beneficial to the inmates and
staff, but for the whole New
Mexico Department of Correc-
tions. Television shows such as
“Locked Up,” “Hard Time,”
“Doing Time” etc. highlight the
negative aspects of the prison
system. This documentary will
show that there are actual
programs inside the prison that
are beneficial to inmates and so-
ciety in general.
Trip to the Rotunda By Richard Hansen
Lights, Camera, AmeriCorps! By Seth Pedigo
Page 4 THE OARS ORACLE The Official OARS Newsletter.
“Tutoring Breakthrough”—Seth
Pedigo
I observed one inmate we trained
as a peer tutor actually tutor an-
other inmate. I was amazed at
how intelligent this inmate was
in the field of math. He made the
learning experience easier and
interesting for the other inmate.
The communication between
them is what I believe prisons
need more of.
I also facilitated inmates learn-
ing about the slope formula rise
over the run and understand how
to find perimeter with the equa-
tion P=2L+2W. The experience
facilitating these inmates with
their math was one the best ex-
periences in my life. It was in-
credible to see how much will-
power some of them have to
learn. I had 3 inmates that came
into the class and did not even
understand the concept of adding
and subtracting negative num-
bers and they did not understand
the concept that a negative times
a negative is always positive. As
a group they went from strug-
gling with adding, subtracting,
multiplying and dividing nega-
tive numbers all the way to un-
derstanding the math concept of
finding the slope and the perime-
ter. It's just amazing how much
progress can be made in just one
teaching session and how much
inmates do want to learn and
make a better life for them-
selves.
“The Power of a Simple
Apology”—Andrew Valdez
I started my second Breaking
Barriers class and I have 7 in-
mates who are participating. The
highlight of the week has to do,
oddly enough, with watching
two of my inmates argue with
each other. But then I helped
them make apologies to one an-
other without saying “my bad”
or anything like that but really
saying “I’m sorry”.
I think that the highlight of the
week can also be part of a good
story because both of the in-
mates, after we talked about it,
advised me that they have never
sat there and apologized like that
in a situation like that. I ex-
plained to them that it’s impor-
tant to be accountable for their
actions and those apologies are a
good way to show it and solve
the problem at hand. It got more
in depth with barriers and such.
It was a great discussion and
everybody in the class got in-
volved.
Some of the most simple acts
that non-incarcerated people take
for granted, like apologizing are
big deals in a prison and for this
population. It seems that all it
takes is a little guidance to make
a huge difference in inmates'
lives. Imagine if the U.S. put
more of our resources into to
educating our youth in these
ways as well as helping those
who have strayed from the path!
What a different world we could
someday live in!
“Special Education”—Donna
Harati
One of my students jumped 3
levels on the TABE test in both
math and reading in just one
year!!! When I first started to
work with him he kept asking
me if he should be in Special
Education because he was al-
ways put in Special Education in
school on the outside. I told him
he’s not “special ed” and that I
could tell he was motivated and
that’s what he needs to get a
GED. He also told me that he
took GED classes when he was
outside but he would always fall
behind and was unable to catch
up due to the size of the classes.
His work ethic and diligence are
really astounding. He won’t rest
until he completely understands
a concept. After getting an inva-
lid low score on the D level math
last year, he scored an incredibly
high 552 on the D level math last
week!!!
Page 5
Great Stories of Service
At the Level I and II facilities at
CNMCF I partake in what is
termed College Counseling. Our
mission consists of helping
inmates determine their college
major, the college or vocational
school they want to attend, the
process of enrolling at a
secondary school, and the
procedures to apply for Federal
Financial Aid. The
first step is
determining their
skills and interests
as linked to a
career. The next
step is finding the
r ight school .
Sometimes, this is
a difficult task for
a n o f f e n d e r
because some
inmates need to
release into an area where they
will not be tempted to return to
“the lifestyle” and won’t be
surrounded by their old gang-
related, or substance abuse-
related friends or family where
they may be more prone|
recidivating. After the inmate
picks a school he looks at the col-
l e g e c a t a l o g a n d h e
d e t e r m i n es h i s p r e f e r r ed
program of study. Then the
inmate can look at what classes he
may have to take to earn a degree
in his newly chosen field. The real
work begins at this
point because the
inmate’s teacher and
myself work together
to help the inmate
figure out his weak
points (for example
math and reading).
Refresher tutoring and
education is provided
v i a o n e - o n - o n e
sessions and computer
software such as
PLATO. Many inmates enter
prison having failed in the
regular high school classroom.
The goal setting and GED
practice we provide targeted
toward the areas they are most in
need of help aids in reducing the
fear and anxiety some inmates
experience when studying for
their GED. Once the time is
right, we provide guidance for
each inmate in properly filling
out a FAFSA. As of today,
inmates have been able to apply
for over $250,000 worth of Pell
grants and student loans to aid in
their pursuit of higher education.
This programming really does
make you feel like you are
aiding inmates in helping
themselves change their lives.
We are preparing them for a
successful reentry back into our
communities.
The Importance of Goal Setting By Seth Pedigo
Seth Pedigo assists a student at Los Lunas.
“As of today, inmates have been
able to apply for over $250,000
worth of Pell grants and student
loans to aid in their pursuit of
higher education.”
Page 6 THE OARS ORACLE The Official OARS Newsletter.
Page 7
in their ability to achieve their
personal and financial goals.
With over 100 enrollees in the
first offering of the class the pro-
gram is already off to a fast start.
The true measure of success will
of course be how
many of the students
use the knowledge gained to
further empower their lives.
purchases on credit
and the cost to the
individual, in time
and money, of re-
paying that credit.
The goal of the
class is to give the
students facts about how
personal finances can affect
many other aspects of their lives
(from relationships to the chance
they return to prison) as well as
show the ways the greater
e c o n o m y an d f i n an c i a l
institutions affect them on a
daily basis and the actions they
can personally take to gain
greater control of their own
finances and lives. Graduates of
the class should be prepared to
reenter society with greater
knowledge and self-confidence
Financial Sophistication By Guy McNeal Knowledge and empowerment
are the two major themes of the
Financial Literacy class being
facilitated in NMCD prisons
throughout the state by
AmeriCorps members. The class
is several weeks long and
contains topics ranging from
proper household budgeting to
credit and debt to the overall
economy’s effect on the
individual.
Each individual class focuses on
giving the students the
|information they need in order
to make smart financial and life
decisions when they are released
from prison. A recent class at the
Penitentiary of New Mexico
focused on the unusual
depreciation rates of cars as well
as the realities of making large
“Each individual class focuses on
giving the students the
information they need in order to
make smart financial and life
decisions when they are released
from prison. “
OARS Word Search
By Lesley Burnett
Find the words in the word bank. The remaining letters will tell you the
AmeriCorps motto:
___ ___ ___ ___ ___ ___ ___ ___ ___ ___ ___ ___ ___ ___ ___ ___ ___ ___ ___ ___ ___ ___ ___
___ ___ ___ ___
Word Bank
AmeriCorps OARS Service
Reentry Learn Teach
New Mexico Central PNM
Roswell Southern Las Cruces
L L E W S O R Y G E N
E T C T I N E R G T R
A H E I H C N T G S E
R D N O I C P N M S H
N N T V E F A E O R T
S P R O C I R E M A U
R E A A M E R R T O O
S I L A S C R U C E S
O C I X E M W E N C A