I have mentioned in several blogs that I do consulting for a world-wide educational accreditation service that allows me to travel far and wide. These school Quality Assurance Review Visits result in either initial or continuing accreditation for both public and private institutions. This ensures reciprocity of credits for students and demonstrates to parents and other stakeholders that the school is involved in continuous improvement and committed to high achievement.
Although I do have the opportunity to go to faraway, exotic places, many of the schools are right here in Texas, but they are as varied and diverse as any of those thousands of miles away. On one single driving stretch I chaired teams at a Catholic High School, a Presbyterian boarding school, and an Islamic pre-K through grade 9 school—I call that a good ole fashion religious sweep. And then to finish up, I evaluated a prison school. Yes, you read that correctly—a prison school.
This particular setting had 500 female prisoners and 500 male prisoners, many who had been incarcerated for a number of years and who were in what they hoped would be their last two to three years behind bars. And to have a decent chance at success they needed to finish high school, if in some cases even with a general equivalency diploma.
Our first surprise as a team was being met at the door and told we needed to show our driver’s license for identification and then empty our briefcases and purses on the spot. We could keep $20.00, but then we were required to take most of everything else back to our cars. We couldn’t even keep our lipstick. Now, when is the last time you heard someone spring a person out of the pen with LIPSTICK?
Next, we went through the metal detectors and were patted down by the appropriate guards. I wasn’t feeling really good about this and it was only 8:00 a.m.
After a debriefing from the warden who made it clear he did not like women, making several comments about how the women prisoners were harder to deal with than the men, I smiled, or maybe it was a slight smirk, and made some smart remark like, “Yeah, I noticed you aren’t wearing a wedding ring,” as if to say what woman would want to live with you.
He warmed up slightly knowing I was on to him, but continued to tell the team stories and sagas of the down and out women, who were in for various and sundry offenses, mainly drug-related, but one being in for leaving her baby in the car on a summer day only to come back to find her dead from the scorching Texas heat. Mostly, he talked about how everything was emotional to women, and how men just took it all in stride. I saw no need to argue since he had some good points, but by this time, I was “emotionally drained” from just listening, and told him we really needed to get on to the business we came for and that was to evaluate the standards we utilize and do some class visits.
Since the women and men are never allowed to see each other, we wound through a labyrinth of halls in order to take a tour and then began our classroom visits. In room after room, young men with fresh, almost cocky looks, mixed with the older guys whose faces revealed more hardened expressions, deep wrinkles and hollow resignation for wasted years. They were pleasant, respectful and courteous both in the classrooms and when we passed them in the halls. Of course, we were escorted everywhere we went, which was a new experience for me.
Next, we were taken to the female side, where once again we saw the young, the old, and the in-between. And then it became more apparent what the warden might be referring to. Many of these women definitely had attitudes and it didn’t take long to catch on to that fact. I’m sure many of the men did as well, but the women wore them like a badge of honor in full view.
Suddenly, I wished I weren’t so nicely dressed. If only I hadn’t worn my good jewelry, and it might be better if I had let my hair go a little messy. The school director sensed my apprehension, and quickly said, “These women need to see successful women; eventually they will be out of here, and they need to be motivated to do better the next time around.”
I didn’t feel a lot better, but I knew he was right. I just couldn’t quite put my finger on what I was feeling—was it empathy or disgust—the two emotions seemed to melt into a one. Looking back, I now know that it was, indeed, both—total disgust for the crimes they had committed and the lives they had led, and a woman’s compassion for the missed opportunities most had never even had the chance to grasp and the bad choices each had made.
But then came the moment that lightened it all up and made my day. We had just finished in a classroom and I was standing with the team at the door to leave. Out of the corner of my eye I saw a slight movement by a rather large (like 275 lb.) woman and as I turned my head just slightly, I saw her hand reach toward my butt, and at the same time, she said loud enough for the whole class to hear, “SWEET.” Laughter broke out as I stepped into the hall, and the laughter was coming not from inside… but from MY TEAMMATES!