NEW YORK STATE LITERARY CENTER (NYSLC) 

October 2015 Newsletter

READING JAMES BALDWIN 2015

On July 23, the inmates at Monroe Correctional Facility performed "Reading James Baldwin 2015" in honor of James Baldwin's ninety-first birthday on August 2, 2015. NYSLC Teaching Artist David Shakes introduced Baldwin's life to the inmates. NYSLC's founder and Executive Director Dale Davis worked with the inmates to fuse their written reflections on what they read by Baldwin with excerpts from Baldwin's writing.  B.O.C.E.S. Teacher Charles Kurtz worked on production details, and Sabra Hickam, Office of the Sheriff, Educational Coordinator facilitated the details. Dale Davis and NYSLC's videographer Juliana Muniz produced the video. An inmate wrote on the experience: 

"Seeing myself in 'Reading Jame Balddwin 2015' has been one of my proudest moments, especially speaking on such ongoing and important issues. My peers and I contributed so much time and effort to effectively express the importance of James Baldwin's role in the Civil Rights Movement and in our lives as we live them today. Thank you for allowing me to really express myself. I am a Native Son."

       Victor C., August 6, 2015

 

FOOD FOR THOUGHT

Read FOOD FOR THOUGHT

Community engagement is one of NYSLC's incarcerated education goals. Another goal is to improve literacy: Develop Reading, Writing and Listening Skills; The Ability to Use Language Proficiently; and To Gain Meaning from a Critical Interpretation of Written Text. FOOD FOR THOUGHT was created to address these goals. FOOD FOR THOUGHT, a newsletter, written by male and female inmates at Monroe Correctional Facility and published online by NYSLC, enables the inmates to research, write, and work collaboratively on issues that directly affect their lives: Rochester's Anti- poverty Initiative; The effects of incarceration on poverty; The lack of jobs and transportation to jobs in Monroe County; "Ban-the-box" laws that require checking a box on college applications and employment applications if an individual has a criminal history; The impact of incarceration on children. An inmate who contributed to FOOD FOR THOUGHT wrote:

"Before becoming a part of FOOD FOR THOUGHT I did not feel I was part of any community. There was no "our" or "my" community. My voice was ignored. I belonged nowhere."

"FOOD FOR THOUGHT gave me a voice. It gave me a sense of belonging. The gap between me and society has gotten smaller. Maybe I can make a difference."

Amanda M.

 

REBUILDING FAMILIES

REBUILDING FAMILIES is NYSLC's partnership with the Office of The Sheriff and Rochester Broadway Theater (RBTL) League http://www.rbtl.org/. REBUILDING FAMILIES was designed to connect newly released inmates with their families through classroom reading and writing while the the inmates are incarcerated and attendance at a Broadway musical with their families upon release. The collaboration builds upon NYSLC's knowledge and success with arts integrated learning programs for the incarcerated and both NYSLC's and RBTL's commitment to education and community engagement. Dale Davis and NYSLC's videographer Juliana Muniz produced the "Rebuilding Families" video to document and share the process through the voices of those who participated. 

This year, in addition to the memorable, intensive learning experience for newly released inmates and their families, REBUILDING FAMILIES will deepen the impact of this successful program academically for the children by working with the inmates while incarcerated to connect this authentic learning experience to the narrative structure for Common Core Reading Skills though: Emphasizing the narrative structure of the story; Heightening understanding of the key details of a musical to understand the narrative structure; To look at the elements of how a musical tells a story: language, form, and stagecraft. 

NYSLC continues to work on two community wide problems, transition from incarceration back back into the community and the dissolution of families due to incarceration. The children of those incarcerated are profoundly affected by their parents' incarceration. The cycle of crime and incarceration from one generation to the next is one of most significant collateral consequences of incarceration in the United States.  

     
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