When Collin first set foot inside William Head Institution, he admits he was apprehensive.
His mind was immediately flooded with pre-conceived notions of what he thought being incarcerated would be like B次元官网网址� structure, metal bars and concrete keeping offenders in.
He had worked as a guard in a psychiatric centre, and thought he knew the type of people who were behind bars and the acts they committed to get there.
But those preconceived notions have since been shattered, as part of a new program through Royal Roads University. Collin is currently participating in a pilot program called the Inside Out Prison exchange program, in which 13 students (known as outside students) learn alongside 13 offenders (known as inside students) at the minimum security facility in Metchosin.
As part of the 13-week course, students, who are known only on a first-name basis, gather at the institution on Fridays for the three-hour program.
Students sit in a circle and learn the background, development and main features of legal traditions around the world, covering everything from common law, civil law, Islamic law, socialist law and Indigenous legal systems.
B次元官网网址淚B次元官网网址檓 impressed by the level of engagement by both inside and outside students. ItB次元官网网址檚 quite remarkable,B次元官网网址� said Michael Young, professor of justice studies and director of the School of Humanitarian Studies at Royal Roads.
B次元官网网址淭he conversations are rich. People arenB次元官网网址檛 afraid to laugh, thereB次元官网网址檚 a good rapport. People are excited and theyB次元官网网址檙e charged when the class is over. TheyB次元官网网址檙e ready for more.B次元官网网址�
The Inside Out program came out of Temple University in Philadelphia and originated as a means of bringing together campus-based college students with incarcerated students to offer a transformative learning experience across social barriers.
There are more than 100 education institutions that have sponsored similar courses around the world since the program began 20 years ago.
In B.C., Royal Roads is one of three post-secondary institutions that take part in the Inside Out Program.
The program is also offered through Vancouver Island University and the Nanaimo Correctional Centre, and at Kwantlen Polytechnic University and Kw矛kw猫xwelhp Healing Village in Harrison Mills.
Young hopes the program will help break down the stigma and barriers that emerge between people who are incarcerated and those who are not.
B次元官网网址淲e have the outside students who are bound to work somewhere in the justice sector or somewhere where thereB次元官网网址檚 going to be contact with groups who are disadvantaged or marginalized. We think this will give them a better understanding of how to meet people where they are and to take them for who they are,B次元官网网址� he said.
B次元官网网址淔or inside students, weB次元官网网址檙e hoping that they get to see that they have the capacity to do more than they thought they could do. Even if they decide never go to university, they know they have the ability to learn.B次元官网网址�
Inside students, who range in age from 20 to 50, have become a wealth of knowledge for outside students as well.
B次元官网网址淭hey [inside students] thought more critically of our current justice system. They find flaws that some people might not see. ItB次元官网网址檚 a completely different perspective. They had a different history, different background that they bring to the table,B次元官网网址� Collin said.
B次元官网网址淚t helps break down the barriers of preconceptions that some people might have about incarcerated individuals B次元官网网址� It prevents us from worrying or thinking too much about what people have done in the past and just see them as fellow academics. WeB次元官网网址檙e all there on equal terms.B次元官网网址�
Twenty-two-year-old Brie heard about the program from Young while attending university. Having worked in parole in the past, Brie wanted to see things from a different perspective.
B次元官网网址淚t was actually eye opening. A lot of the guys are knowledgeable, theyB次元官网网址檙e engaged, they do all their readings and theyB次元官网网址檙e very open-minded,B次元官网网址� she said, adding itB次元官网网址檚 an experience she would participate in again.
B次元官网网址淭heyB次元官网网址檙e really easy to work with. I feel like IB次元官网网址檓 learning a lot more than just class content, but IB次元官网网址檓 also learning about different world views.B次元官网网址�
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