2014 CEA Regions III & IV Conference
Bloomington, Minnesota
Program At-A-Glance
Conference and Training Schedule: Monday, April 7
TOY Interviews TBD
Conference and Training Schedule: Tuesday, April 8
7:00 a.m. Registration Open Upper Lobby
7:00 – 8:15 a.m. Breakfast Miami
7:00 – 5:00 p.m. Vendor Fair Menominee
7:00 – 5:00 p.m. Silent Auction Open Menominee
8:30 – 9:00 a.m. Welcome and Opening Address: Chippewa
Color Guard featured from Cretin Derham Hall Junior ROTC
Jonathan Hunt & Ruth Stadheim, CEA Regional Conference Chairs
Mary Feeney-Wilfer, CEA Region IV Director
Margaret Done, CEA Region III Director
David Webb, International CEA President
Tom Roy, MN DOC Commissioner
9:00 – 10:15 a.m. Keynote Speaker: Aaron Cross Chippewa
10:15 – 10:30 a.m. Morning Break/Visit Vendors Menominee
10:30 – Noon Concurrent Session I
Embracing Change: Lessons from Wisconsin’s Creativity Contest
Mary Davies, Margaret Done, and Laurie Jarvis
The Wisconsin Chapter of CEA has held an annual Creativity Contest since 2002. The contest is open to those incarcerated in WI jails, prisons, and juvenile facilities. Artwork and creative writing pieces are accepted and published in an annual book. Attendees will learn how the contest has evolved, how it is promoted, and see samples of finished products.
Onset of Mental Illness
Jessica Parker
This workshop is intended to educate the audience about the prevalence of mental illness in MN prisons, understand what Serious and Persistent Mental Illness (SPMI) is, what it looks like in the offender population, and treatments/interventions that are used to reduce negative outcomes and improve safety and overall well-being.
Leveraging Emotional Intelligence in Workforce Readiness
Shereese Turner and Keith Simons
Twin Cities RISE! is a non-profit organization with the goal of eliminating poverty by providing employers with skilled employees who have the personal skills and attributes that allow them to move from unemployment (or under-employment) to a career where they earn a living wage with benefits and become a contributing member of their community. The cornerstone of the program is the unique Personal Empowerment curriculum, which brings about the personal, internal changes necessary for participants to achieve long-term success. This workshop will demonstrate the effectiveness of this program.
Transformation through Words: The Power of Creative Writing for Offenders
Jennifer Bowen Hicks
Learn about the Minnesota Prison Writing Workshop, a nonprofit group of writers who facilitate creative writing classes and forums in MN Correctional Facilities. Offenders in our classes write poetry and prose, submit work to MPWW chapbooks, give readings, and more. Instructors will discuss the unique benefits creative writing offers the incarcerated, plus share innovative programming ideas.
Reducing Recidivism Using Minnesota’s Transition from Prison to Community
Philosophy
Lee Buckley
The Minnesota Department of Corrections (DOC) has adopted the National Institute of Corrections Transition from Prison to Community (TPC) philosophy to successfully deliver the DOC Mission – Reduce recidivism by promoting offender change through proven strategies during safe and secure incarceration and effective community supervision. This workshop will describe the TPC philosophy, how the philosophy is embedded DOC, and the roles all DOC employees and stakeholders play in reducing recidivism across the state. You will also learn about other exciting initiatives in the DOC that are lowering recidivism.
Life After Murder, Considered
Andrea Smith
Professional development, book club style. The book: Nancy Mullane’s Life After Murder – the intimately reported, utterly compelling story of five convicted murderers sentenced to life with the possibility of parole, who discover after decades in prison that their second chance, if it comes at all, is also the challenge of a lifetime. Read the book and join the conversation!
Vendors Open Menominee
Noon – 1:00 p.m. Lunch & Teacher of the Year Presentation Miami
1:15 – 2:45 p.m. Concurrent Session II
2014 GED Program
GED TS
This session provides an in-depth look at the 2014 GED program’s new tools for educators and students. Explore the new student portal, MyGED™, and find out how to access featured study tools and the Enhanced Score Report’s detailed feedback and personalized study recommendations to help your students improve their scores.
Out of Prison, Now What?
Ben Murphy
This workshop will explore how offenders can be transitioned from prison life to life in the community. The focus will be information that can be provided at an ABE level that can help offenders transition into the community such as, career and college readiness. In addition, outside resources that offenders can utilize will be discussed.
Digital Literacy
Jen Vanek
The presenters will describe their work supporting digital literacy programming in ABE programs and the imperative to support digital literacy instruction for all low-skilled adults - such skills are essential for effective offender transition from correctional facilities. The presenters will demonstrate several promising tools programs can use to determine digital literacy skill needs and bridge skill gaps. Workshop time will include collaborative conversation about considerations and potential solutions to developing web-literacy in Corrections Education programs.
Job Ready/Life Ready: Coaching Behind the Wall
Alisa Smedley
This workshop will cover proven strategies for preparing ex-offenders for community reentry. The One Stop Center within Montgomery County Correctional Facility is a nationally recognized model program. The program has increased job placement and reduced recidivism by concentrating on the unique needs of offenders as jobseekers. Attendees will also learn practical strategies used at MCCF to promote discipline, commitment, and self-awareness.
Strength-Based Discipline with Troubling Behavior
Dr. Scott Larson
This training counters current punitive approaches that lock adults in conflict with young people and presents several best practice scripts and tools for turning problems into opportunities. Instead of reactive, coercive interactions, young persons are enlisted as responsible agents in positive change by presenting high expectations for youth to take responsibility and show respect for self and others.
Phishing? What’s that? And How can I Protect Myself?
Martin Hawthorne
Have you ever wondered how you can protect yourself from e-mail scams, and how they do it? This session will show you how to look at an e-mail and determine if it is legitimate or not and what you can do about it.
Vendors Open Menominee
2:45 – 3:00 p.m. Afternoon Break/Visit Vendors Menominee
3:00 – 4:30 p.m. Concurrent Session III
Project PROVEN- Focus on Transition from Jail into Education and Employment
Willa MacKenzie
Project PROVEN is a grant funded initiative through the Department of Education. The focus is on transitioning students from the La Crosse County into non-credit/certificate/credit classes and employment. The program is early in its inception, but there are some promising developments taking place. This is a community initiative that includes the county jail, DOC, YWCA, Job Center of WI, and La Crosse County Human Services.
Impact Teaching
Carl Olson
Good teaching that produces effective outcomes requires the teacher to have knowledge of the subject matter and the ability to use tools and methods to engage all of the students. To be effective, that material must be presented using methods that acknowledge and respect all learning styles and levels of attention.
“Tell me and I will forget
Show me and I may remember
Involve me and I will understand”
In this workshop we will use hands-on experiential techniques and examples to help the participants make better connections, build teams and improve their presentations.
The 2014 GED Test is Here. How’s it Going?
Randy Feldsien
This session will focus on collaborating ideas for the new test. We will look at how we can adapt old materials for the new test, what free resources are available, and what to look for in new materials. Come and share what has been working in your classroom and what hasn’t been working. Let’s learn from each other.
Working with Gangs
Dr. Scott Larson
Gang membership has grown more than 40% since 2009, with an estimated 1.6 million gang members. Many of these connections begin in prison. Thissession will give an overview of the major types of gangs and effective measures of intervention.
Educational Engagement Strategies for Future Employment
David Brady
During this hands-on workshop, participants will be familiarized with proven methods of training engagement for entry level employment in demanding occupations. You will complete authentic activities using telecommunications devices as we demonstrate the application of multi-tiered constructivist learning strategies.
ABE Licensure Program, U of M
Cynthia Digby
The adult basic education (ABE) teaching license will allow you to teach adults in public school community education programs throughout Minnesota, including correctional education. This mostly online program is designed with busy professionals in mind and includes a 12-credit endorsement option for licensed educators or a 24-credit program. We will highlight the license options, the process and our courses, and possible credit transfer in this workshop.
4:45 - 5:30 p.m. Region III Meeting Cherokee
4:45 - 5:30 p.m. Region IV and Minnesota State Meeting Chippewa
Supper on your own
7:00 – 11:30 p.m. DJ and Cash Bar Miami
Conference and Training Schedule: Wednesday, April 9
7:00 a.m. Registration Open Upper Lobby
7:00 – 8:15 a.m. Breakfast Miami
7:00 – 1:00 p.m. Silent Auction Open Menominee
7:00 – 3:00 p.m. Vendor Fair Menominee
8:30 – 10:00 a.m. Concurrent Session IV
The 2014 GED Test: Teaching Extended Response
This workshop will focus on integrated reading and writing strategies that can be used to assist students in developing effective extended responses and short answers on the 2014 GED® test. During this session, participants will explore the essential skills that students need in order to become more effective writers in both the workplace and higher education and training.
What Corrections Needs to Know about FASD
Ruth Richardson
Individuals with Fetal Alcohol Spectrum Disorders (FASDs) are involved with the criminal justice system at an alarming rate. Youth and adults with an FASD have a form of brain damage that may make it difficult for them to stay out of trouble with the law. This session will describe an overview of FASD and highlight some of the common issues that may arise when individuals with an FASD are involved in the corrections system.
Advocating for the Disabled ABE Learner: A How to Guide for Educators
Dave Haugen
In this session, the accommodations process will be reviewed from start to finish as it aligns to the new GED test and the computer based format. Particular attention will be spent on recognizing the types of documentation that are required for various accommodation requests, as well as highlighting some of the key components that contribute towards submitting a complete request. The presentation will include samples of complete request forms, as well as information on how to appeal a denied accommodations request.
Integrating Academic, Career and Employability (ACES) Skills in a Correctional
Setting
Jeanne Michels and George Kimball
ACES is an ABE initiative currently being implemented throughout Minnesota. The ACES vision is to “…ensure that ABE programs are able to provide effective contextualized instruction integrating post-secondary education and training readiness, employability skills, and career readiness at all levels.” Attendees will see how the MN DOC is implementing ACES and get ideas on how their state/program can incorporate ACES into their curriculum.
Resolving Conflict Creatively with High-Risk Youth
Dr. Scott Larson
Staff will come to understand the conflict cycle, how to keep from entering it, and provide kids what they really need for lasting change.
Personalizing Percents: An Integrated Lesson for Math, Writing, & Technology
Jethra Spector
Participants will walk through a lesson they can do with their students to reinforce the math concept that 100% equals a whole. Examples of student work will be shown: 100% Me Poems written by students, pie charts made using an excel spreadsheets that correspond to their percent poems, and pictures imported from Photo Booth.
Vendors Open Menominee
10:00 – 10:15 a.m. Morning Break/Visit Vendors Menominee
10:15 – 11:45 a.m. Concurrent Session V
The 2014 GED® Test: Teaching Mathematical Reasoning
GED TS
This workshop will provide participants with instructional strategies they can use in order to help students build their quantitative problem-solving skills. This session will provide hands-on learning activities that focus on the application of mathematical reasoning to real-world situations.
Building Comfort, Confidence and Community Using a Writing Rubric for Peer Editing Ruth Elias and Patricia Soydanser
Help students improve the quality of their writing while reducing the anxiety associated with it. Learn how to use a rubric developed to meet the standards of the 2014 Writing tasks. Using a rubric clarifies for students what they need to do to meet the College and Career Readiness Standards (CCRS). Try using the rubric for yourself before you adapt it for the students in your class.
Maintaining Boundaries and Overview of Prison Rape Elimination Act (PREA)
Deb Wienand and Mary Stahl-Swanson
This session will discuss maintaining professional boundaries while providing safety and security in a confinement setting and an overview of the Federal PREA mandate.
Differentiated Instruction for Corrections
Carrie Smith
Differentiated instruction is implemented nationwide for educational programs with varied levels of students’ achievement to facilitate students to successfully make academic gains while remaining in the same classroom. This workshop will provide an overview of differentiated instruction as well as strategies for differentiated instruction in corrections.
“Basic Training” for Success in Connecting with Challenging Youth
Dr. Scott Larson
Children and youth need supportive persons who respond to their needs rather than react to their problems. This curriculum teaches connecting skills grounded in the latest research evidence on resilience, brain science, and positive youth development.
Vocational Education: What is Michigan Doing?
Mary Hoag and Kim Corcoran
This workshop will give an overview of our vocational programs and the shift in programming to integrate employment readiness. Many of our programs have national or state certifications. A recent restructure of our Business Education Technology program was done to align with prisoner re-entry. Michigan Prisoner Education is being proactive in our commitment to assisting prisoners in being employable.
Vendors Open Menominee
Noon – 1:00 p.m. Lunch with Guest Speaker Sheila Raye Charles Miami