Beyond the walls
Correctional tech, Insights, & articles
How Correctional Connectivity Systems are Shaping the Future of Digital Intelligence
As intelligence-gathering processes in corrections evolve, so do the tactics opportunistic inmates come up with to coordinate illicit dealings and outfox correctional staff. This has become one of the most pressing issues for correctional facilities today. Many find...
The Many Voices of Redemption: Albert Reed
With 2021 now in the rearview mirror, resolutions made in the lead-up to the new year are now in full swing. For some, the new year is a symbolic reset. For others, it’s a chance to strengthen a skill or tackle a new goal. For Albert Reed, change had nothing to do...
The Many Voices of Redemption: Gerald Tarboro
Stories of redemption are all around us. The context varies, but the inspirational quality of these real-life stories is universal. Behind every redemption story is a person who wrestled with adversity and succeeded against unlikely odds. Determined to make their mark...
What it Means to be an Active Listener in Corrections
Spend a little time in a corporate setting, and you’ll probably come away knowing a thing or two about being an active listener. That’s because it’s become a bit of a buzzword in workplace training curriculum. But in a correctional environment, active listening is...
Gratitude is the Best Medicine
With Thanksgiving only a day away, gratitude is sure to be on the minds of many. As I reflect on the importance of the holiday, I’ve become painfully aware of the comforts and luxuries I fail to appreciate the other 364 days a year. Unfortunately, this is something...
What’s the Scariest Part About Being a Corrections Officer?
Ask any corrections professional. They’ll tell you that the scariest part about being a corrections officer is when safety and security hangs in the balance. Still, that’s a one-size-fits-all answer to a complex question. Many factors play a part in the dangers faced...
Connection Prevents Inmates from Developing a Criminal Identity – Here’s Why
Any student of history knows that functioning societies and verbal communication are inextricably linked. Whether we’re talking about skyscrapers or social bonds, without verbal communication, humans would have never succeeded in building anything. Our ability to...
Former Inmates are Critical to Reforming Criminal Justice
“Within 3 years of release, 2 out of 3 people are rearrested and more than 50% are reincarcerated,” as noted by healthypeople.gov. This troubling statistic is evidence that our criminal justice system is broken, and while the causes for this are many, the input and...
Three Words to Live by: Knowledge is Power
I’ve always had a profound love of sayings and proverbs in language. Few are as to-the-point and thought-provoking as this one: Knowledge is power. The pursuit of knowledge opens so many doors. It gives us power over our lives and futures, the ability to learn from...
Scandinavian Jails: Why Is Their Recidivism Rate So Much Better?
Imagine a picturesque summer landscape in southern Norway with the scent of blueberry bushes, birch trees and the North Sea wafting through the air. None of the 300 inmates at the Halden maximum-security prison have to imagine anything; that seaside breeze is part of...