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VOLUNTEERS TODAY,

LEADERS TOMORROW
About the Petey Greene Program:
VISION:
The Petey Greene Program will be the national leader of quality
tutoring and related educational services to support incarcerated
students in achieving their academic goals. The Petey Greene
volunteer experience will inspire our alumni to advocate and take
on leadership roles that will re-imagine the criminal justice sys-
tem. We envision a world in which all incarcerated people have
access to high quality academic programs.

MISSION:
The Petey Greene Program
supplements education in cor-
rectional institutions by prepar-
ing volunteers, primarily col-
lege students, to provide free,
quality tutoring and related
THE PETEY programming to support the
academic achievement of incar-
GREENE PROGRAM cerated people.
UNDOUBTEDLY
CHANGED ME
For more information, visit our website:
http://www.peteygreene.org/
Introduction: OUR FUTURE LEADERS . . .
face a harsh reality.
The Petey Greene program recruits, trains, and coordinates Tutoring with Petey Greene was achieve successful life outcomes.
hundreds of volunteers each year, typically undergraduate and my most formative experience in What I learned in the classroom
graduate students, to tutor in educations programs in prisons college and helped solidify my was reinforced by what I wit-
and jails. commitment to serving those nessed in the prisons; and what
disadvantaged by unjust sys- I witnessed in the prisons stirred
tems. I came to Princeton with a up questions for me that I then
When integrated into existing programs, this supplemental
desire to help others, but without sought out answers to in the
service can significantly improve learning outcomes. Support- an awareness of the drastic un- classroom. Ill never forget the
ing education in correctional institutions is our mission, but equal access to opportunity that first time I tutored with Petey
along the way, the education is never one-sided. existed in our society. Greene and how shocked I was
to see how the overwhelming
As Joe Barrett, a veteran four-year tutor, put it, there was so Ill never forget the majority of inmates were of col-
much he wasnt exposed to previously: It was really through or. That didnt seem right or just,
my interactions with [the students], he said, that opened my first time I tutored and honestly just didnt make
eyes to a vast variety of issues in our contemporary criminal sense to me, so I sought to learn
justice system. As a public policy major I soon more.
learned how racism was institu-
Our tutors face a reality, and find themselves in a position to tionalized in our systems, and - Clare Herceg
how socioeconomic status, race, Director of Strategic Initiatives at
make a differencefirst at Petey Greene and then beyond. We
and place of birth could dramat- First Place for Youth
also hope to help raise the future leaders of the prison edu- ically affect ones opportunity to
cation and criminal justice reform movementsand it starts
with each tutors day-to-day experiences with the students
Of course, its inspiring as a tutor to see a student understand a dif-
themselves: the inspiration that comes from a students break-
ficult math problem or make progress on his persuasive essay. Just
through in a math problem or passing the GED. as tangible though is the transformation the program allows us to
see in ourselves. I still remember the first time I walked into a cor-
These are those storiesthe moments and inspirations that rectional facility. Everything about the prison environment with its
are building a next generation of leaders who will continue tight security, featureless interior, and slamming prison gates told
to advocate for a world in which all incarcerated people have me I should have feared the students I tutored each week, that I was
access to high quality academic programs. entering a space built for other people. But then, you sit down and
start talking to the students, you work with them each week, and you
begin gaining an understanding of who they are and what they hope
to achieve.

*Compiled by Logan Sander & Samuel Chang - Lawrence Liu


Ph.D. Candidate at UC Berkeley in Jurisprudence and Social Policy
OUR FUTURE LEADERS . . .
find inspiration.
As I tutored from sophomore through my senior year, I grew to
tutor inmates consistently, to see their progress in GED math, and
to ultimately get to celebrate their GED success with them. That
was always the best feeling when I would come in to tutor and
one of my students would share that he had passed the GED. He
would exclaim, I couldnt have done it without you. Thank you
to which I would respond that he was the one who learned the
material, studied, and passed the examthe success was his and
well-deserved.

- Clare Herceg
Director of Strategic Initiatives at First Place for Youth

My last semester with Petey Greene, I was assigned an illiterate


student. He was barely able to sign his name, and at first reading [He] came to class always believing he
proved impossible. Our progress was slow. For me, it was an ex-
ercise in empathy. Its easy to feel good about tutoring. Its more would reclaim his life: go to college, start his
difficult [] confronting one of an individuals most profound inse- own small business, and finally see his little
curities. And indeed, I dont possess the expertise or experience
to do so. Rather, I just aimed for small steps. girl again
One particularly memorable student was Mr. Country, an individual I
For me, it was an exercise in empathy tutored during the spring of my junior year. In addition to working to-
gether on different GED assignments, Mr. Country was always ready
By the last week of the term, I vividly remember him triumphant- to crack a joke or share his favorite rap songs. While I hope I contrib-
ly working through a few basic sentences. Undoubtedly, much uted to Mr. Countrys future, he likely had an even larger impact on
ground was still to be made up. But as I walked out of Alfred C. me. Acknowledging but not succumbing to his past, Mr. Country
Wagner for the last time, I reflected on the deep-rooted links be- came to class always believing he would reclaim his life: go to college,
tween the shortcomings of our education and social welfare sys- start his own small business, and finally see his little girl again. Mr.
tems and mass incarceration. Criminal justice reform is not solely a Countrys desire to succeed, his belief in education, and his love for
question of crimes, sentences, and second chances. Only through family reflected values I have seen in myself and my friends a poi-
collectively admitting our shortcomings as a society in providing gnant reminder of the humanity present in all of us.
for the most vulnerable among us will we be able to close our
prisons. - Lawrence Liu
- Brett Diehl Ph.D. Candidate at UC Berkeley in Jurisprudence and Social Policy
OUR FUTURE LEADERS . . .
gain leadership skills.
I have always been a quiet person, and public speaking/ My commitment to social justice, fueled and solidified by
classroom teaching/classroom management has always kind my experience with Petey Greene, has led me to pursue
of been a struggle for me. I remember during one particular a career in the nonprofit sector and to serve a range of di-
lesson I was having a really hard time getting control rect service organizations. Currently, I serve as Director
of the class, and I eventually just told everyone to of Strategic Initiatives at a nonprofit serving youth
work individually on the worksheet and I sat in transitioning from foster care and juvenile jus-
the back in case any one had any ques- tice systems. I believe so strongly in the
tions to ask me. The commotion con- work of Petey Greene program that I
tinued for a while but eventually one continued to volunteer as a tutor with
of the students who had been doing Petey Greene a few years after college,
the worksheet came back to ask me a joined one of the organizations region-
question. As we worked through that al boards, and recently joined the

unmet need for . . .


Petey Greene fills an
incarcerated people
problem together, one other student National Board of Directors. Petey
overheard our conversation and even- Greene fills an unmet need for tutor-
tually joined into the discussion of one ing supports and educational oppor-
particular question. As our discussion tunities for incarcerated people, while
grew louder, more people became also offering tutors a meaningful and
curious and joined us in the back of the transformative service opportunity and a
room to do the worksheet together. By the chance to learn about the criminal justice sys-
end of class, the majority of the students were still tem and its effects on others firsthand.
engaged in other conversations and such but a good
1/4 of the students were doing the worksheet in the back - Clare Herceg
and excited about it. This experience gave me confidence that Director of Strategic Initiatives at First Place for Youth
even if I still need to work on my classroom teaching, I was still
valuable as a teacher and a leader.

-Hannah Gu OUR FUTURE LEADERS . . .


pursue criminal jusice reform.
When I began working for Petey Greene, I found a framing in the
methodologies used by educators of adult learners, who resisted
OUR FUTURE LEADERS . . . the idea that an instructor was an expert who would fill a students

learn how to educate. mind with knowledge or ideas. I came to think that I and the tutors
I was coordinating should be neither models of ideal student be-
haviors nor ambassadors to educational enlightenment. Tutors, in-
stead, should facilitate learning by bringing out the expertise and
experiences learners already have and collaborating with students
to apply these to new areas. This idea profoundly changed how I
think of education, and of working with oppressed and marginal-
ized people, for others and myself.

Concretely, I have carried this mindset forward in my work in ed-


ucation in prisons. As a law student, I currently oversee a
legal research and writing course at a womens prison
in upstate New York. I use the same princi-
ples I came to develop in Petey Greene in
training the facilitators and in running the
program.

Grace Li
Five-year veteran volunteer
Law student at NYU
Root-Tilden-Kern Public Interest Scholar

It really bursts the bubble. At Prince-


ton, were so privileged, we have access
to resources, and its easy to take those
for granted. But for these students who
[want] a good education or if they want
to go to college, its a whole application
process thats quite foreign to them. So
in that sense, its kept me grounded and
its made me think about the definition of
privilege a lot . . . Its made me think about
how I approach teaching in a respectful manner,
and [teach] people who were brought up in different
backgrounds. Its been a great learning experience for me..
Its made me be a different type of leader in the sense that as
a teacher, you have to listen to the needs of your students, react
appropriately and then try to come to resolution or way of solving Petey Greene reminded me to never
forget the trees amidst the forest, and to
Its made me think about how I
always remember who I am working for
approach teaching
through my work
a problem that works for both people--that really works for your
student and what the student needs. And I think that thats some-
thing that Ill take away from this if I go on to other professional
roles where Im a leader: trying to assess the problem, assess who
the stakeholders are, and develop a solution from there. I think its
about listening--truly being a good listener. The Petey Greene Program criminal law, and administrative
undoubtedly changed me; it law in authoritarian states, un-
- Natasha Turkmani changed the way I look at the derstanding the promises and
Four-year volunteer world and the communities that pitfalls of our own system here
Princeton University Class of 2017 comprise it. And I know I will be at home shapes how I approach
a better scholar, and more im- my research. Academics are of-
portantly, a better person be- ten rightfully criticized for being
OUR FUTURE LEADERS . . . cause of my time volunteering
with Petey Greene.
too removed from reality. While
I recognize that pursuing my
pursue education. I am currently pursuing a PhD
research will require a sophisti-
cated theoretical and method-
in Berkeleys Jurisprudence and ological toolkit, experiences like
My decision to go to law school was also because of my work Social Policy program, with a fo- Petey Greene taught me that
with Petey Greene. Petey Greene gave me chance to meet incar- cus on law and politics in China, directly engaging with the com-
cerated students who would become my motivators and teachers and I also plan to combine this munities I write about is equally
in my own education about our criminal justice system. The New degree with a JD in the next few essential. In other words, Petey
Jim Crow was becoming popular when I was in college, and I years (likely at Yale Law School). Greene reminded me to never
likely would have heard about problems with our system of incar- Although my research interests forget the trees amidst the for-
ceration even if not for Petey Greene. But without regular contact have moved outside the do- est, and to always remember
with incarcerated students in the special, emancipatory space mestic context to focus more who I am working for through
of a classrooma combination I was lucky to get through Petey on law in authoritarian settings, my work.
Greene, I would have not developed the care for people that led my interactions with the Ameri-
me to pursue a career as a public defender. can criminal justice system and - Lawrence Liu
the individuals unfairly target- Ph.D. Candidate at UC Berkeley in
- Grace Li
ed by that system continue to Jurisprudence and Social Policy
Five-year veteran volunteer
color my work. As someone
Law student at NYU
interested in access to justice,
9 Mercer Street
Princeton, NJ 08540
(877) 624 - 7186
Bringing tutors into prison classrooms
to support academic opportunity

Our organization is named after Ralph Waldo Petey Greene,


Jr., a TV and radio talk show host and community activist who
overcame drug addiction and a prison sentence to become one
of the most notable media personalities in Washington, D.C.
history. While incarcerated for armed robbery, Greene be-
came the prisons disc jockey and subsequently a role model
for many other individuals incarcerated in the facility. Greenes
close friend and mentor, Charlie Puttkammer, was inspired by
Greenes life, and founded the Petey Greene Program in his
honor, to strengthen correctional education services and offer
college students the opportunity to pursue meaningful and
valuable work in the criminal justice system. Since 2009, the
Petey Greene Program has operated as a 501(c)(3) nonprofit
organization.

www.peteygreene.org

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