President’s Update
I recently read an article about the lessons learned from welfare reform written by the former Commissioner of the New York City Human Resources Administration, the city’s primary social services agency. The first two got my attention because of the similarities to the principles we apply at KPEP.
The first lesson is Always Promote Personal Responsibility. This is a cornerstone of KPEP. He talked about how the city welfare workers could not take on the full responsibility for the people they served. If an individual does not put forth effort or take responsibility, success is impossible.
In the corrections system, like in the welfare system, there are many programs that claim credit for placing people or “getting” someone a job. While we provide an opportunity, training and a push towards employment, the person that gets a job is the one who deserves the credit for that accomplishment. Through all of our programs we emphasize taking responsibility and being accountable for your actions. This means being responsible for past criminal activity and accepting the consequences of those actions. This also means being responsible for your own success: getting a job, finding a place to live, paying your bills including restitution, etc.
The second lesson is that Employment is far better than training and education. Now this doesn’t apply to everyone, but it does apply to many adults who are in the welfare system or the criminal justice system. Most of the people we work with need some sort of entry level job immediately. Both the Michigan Department of Corrections and the Federal Bureau of Prisons put a strong emphasis on employment. The BOP expects that all KPEP residents under their jurisdiction obtain a job within three weeks of entering our program. For most, this is very attainable.
That doesn’t mean we don’t value training and education, but it can be attained as a supplement to a full-time job. Many of us, myself included, have worked full-time and gone to school either full-time or part-time. It is difficult, but can be done. We teach the same values to our clients at KPEP. If you dropped out of high school, we have GED classes for you to attend. If you don’t complete them before graduating from KPEP, we encourage you to continue at home. Once you have a GED or high school diploma, we encourage you to go on to college or some sort of vocational training.
While it is good to have a job right now, you can always continue to learn, and work towards a better job. This is part of the recipe for success and maintaining a drug and crime-free lifestyle.