Program aims to change attitudes

North Carolina Department of Public Safety

March 2001

Program Aims to Transform Attitudes

DURHAM- A graduation ceremony was held Feb. 7 at Durham Correctional Center for the first class of inmates to complete the Soft Skills Re-entry Program. Secretary Theodis Beck, Superintendent David Cates of Durham Correctional Center, and program instructors Walter Farrell, Ph.D., and James Johnson, Ph.D., presented certificates of achievement to the 14 inmates enrolled in the program.

Farrell and Johnson, both of the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, coordinated the program, which prepares inmates for challenges that lie ahead of them upon release from prison. The training program draws upon the collective wisdom, knowledge, and expertise of a cadre of successful American males who have managed to "make it" in a contemporary society and attempts to affect the lives of recently incarcerated males in a positive manner. Class topics include recognizing the importance of attitudes, goal setting, job search strategies, money management and conflict resolution.

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