Preparing For The Party

Preparing for the Party It was very busy at the office today. Not much time to talk. Graduation Day is tomorrow! I work in a school. I know, yesterday I told you that I work in a secure minimum adult male correctional institution. Well both are true. The school is in the middle of the prison, and it is a very important place. Many inmates do not have their high school diploma when they are incarcerated. The State of Wisconsin has placed a strong emphasis on inmate education. We know that education is the ticket to success after release, the single activity that will prevent inmates from returning to prison. Inmates that do not already have this most basic academic credential are required to attend school. Students are enrolled in academic programming as a part time assignment. A stipend of $ 0.15 is paid for each hour they attend. Some students who begin with only a 1st or 2nd grade reading or math level take several years to successfully complete the program. Others zip through the tests with great speed, and complete the High School Equivalency Diploma in a couple of months. You see, it isn’t that they couldn’t have graduated before, but that they were not motivated to achieve this goal, they had been distracted by something else that they once thought was more important. There are some very motivated students who live where I work; some others who refuse to participate either out of stubbornness or a fear of failure after years of failure. There are some very dedicated teachers and recreation leaders who work where I work, succeeding in spite of the difficulties and roadblocks and budget cuts. The school houses an exceptional library with access to the South Central Wisconsin interlibrary loan system. We also offer some excellent vocational programs associated with certificates from the technical college in our area. These programs teach new skills that will translate into new jobs and new careers after release. Tonight inmates and their families are awaiting tomorrow’s ceremony, as have so many other graduates before them. Tomorrow 30 men will don blue graduation robes and mortarboards. The gowns and tassels were all steamed today. They were hung neatly and are waiting for the ceremony tomorrow. Programs have been printed, guest lists have been prepared, seating charts were created, attendance lists distributed. And so it was, today as yesterday, another day on the hill.