FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Contact: Cindy Deppe, media relations, 641-269-4834

October 22, 2007

GRINNELL COLLEGE TO HOST PRISON EDUCATION CONFERENCE

Grinnell College will host "Partnership for Change," a Nov. 1-3 conference for Midwest college students to learn about the Grinnell Prison Workshop, a student-led teaching program at area correctional facilities.

Invited teams of students and faculty are attending from Buena Vista University, Cornell College, Creighton University, Mt. Mercy College, Simpson College, the University of Iowa, and Macalester College. Conference speakers include Iowa Department of Corrections officials and a keynote address by Max Kenner, founder and director of the Bard College Prison Initiative.

More than 25 Grinnell students volunteer regularly at the Newton Correctional Facility and the Iowa Correctional Institution for Women in Mitchellville, facilitating a variety of classes including art, playwriting, biology, and sociology. The student-initiated program began in 2003 with four Grinnell student participants and has earned the respect of the Iowa Department of Corrections.

Conference organizers Emily Guenther and Lolya Lipchitz credit Grinnell students’ commitment to volunteerism and social justice. "As a society, we think of incarcerated people as ‘lost’," said Guenther, a Wisconsin senior.

"Education is one of the most effective ways to prevent repeat offenses. Offering education opportunities to people in prison does not negate the harm they may have caused others, but may help them leave prison better able to participate in their communities in constructive ways," said Lipchitz.

The conference was developed to help invited teams design their own volunteer education program in partnership with a nearby prison. The conference includes events open to the public, as well as "how to" sessions for conference participants. All conference public events will be held in Joe Rosenfield ’25 Center, Room 101, unless otherwise noted. The Rosenfield Center is located at 1115 8th Ave. in Grinnell.

Nov. 1, 8:30 p.m., Alumni Recitation Hall, Room 302: Max Kenner, founder and director of the Bard College Prison Initiative, will discuss "College-in-Prison: The Bard Prison Initiative and Prospects for Similar Programs Across the U.S."

Nov. 2, 9 a.m.: A panel discussion by Iowa Department of Corrections officials: Terry Mapes, warden, and Evelyn Oltmanns, librarian, Newton Correctional Facility; James McKinney, warden, North Central Correctional Facility; and Betty Brown, restorative justice and victims’ rights administrator, and John Fayram, deputy warden of Anamosa State Penitentiary.

Nov. 2, 10:30 a.m.: A panel discussion by Grinnell College alumni Ursula Hill, Dale Mackey, and Laura Matter, who taught at the Newton Correctional Facility as undergraduates.

Nov. 2, 4:15 p.m.: Nonfiction writer, poet, and teacher Judith Tannenbaum will read from her book, "Disguised as a Poem: My Years Teaching Poetry at San Quentin."

Nov. 3, 9 a.m.: Chris Baker, victim-offender services coordinator for the Iowa Eighth Judicial District, will present "A Restorative Partnership: Student-Teachers in Corrections."

Nov. 3, 10:15 a.m.: A panel discussion led by Grinnell student-teachers on how to set up a teaching program with a prison.

The Prison Education Conference is sponsored by the Grinnell College Peace Studies Program, the Rosenfield Program in Public Affairs, the Donald L. Wilson Program in Enterprise and Leadership, the Lilly Endowment, and the President’s Discretionary Fund.

For more information about the Prison Education Conference, contact Lolya Lipchitz at avpiowa@iowatelecom.net, or Grinnell College student Emily Guenther at prison@grinnell.edu.

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